Clef
- Place of Publication: Santa Monica, CA
- Language: English
- Date of Publication: 1946
- Periodicity: 7 nos., monthly
- Editor: Albert S. Otto
- Publishers: Otto-Marble Publications, Otto-Marble
- Type: Full Text
Seven issues of Clef were published jointly by the editor, Albert S. Otto, and the advertising manager, Ben Marble. Otto and Marble declared Clef to be devoted to popular music in its most broadly viewed form, which they attempted to define lexicographically and categorically into jazz, Dixieland, Chicago music, music of dance orchestras, “Ellingtonia,” swing, and small combos. Each issue contained some 30 to 36 pages and relatively minimal advertising.
Albert S. “Al” Otto (1915-2006) wrote on jazz from California for The Record Changer and as noted by Michael Fitzgerald, later became an ordained minister and contributed to the NAJE Journal. Otto’s column “Alottomusic” provided a forum for diverse musical and extra-musical topics. The regular column “Caught in the act” – a rubric shared with Down Beat – covered live performances in the Los Angeles area under the pseudonym “The Night Owl.” Nesuhi Ertegun contributed articles on Lu Watters, New Orleans clarinetists, and a remembrance of Tubby Hall. Records of various genres are reviewed, reflecting the wide-angle editorial view of Clef. It is unclear why the magazine ceased.