Michael George Smith was born on December 12 1943 at Edmonton

Michael George Smith was born on December 12 1943 at Edmonton, Middlesex. An only child, Michael showed an early aptitude for music and learnt the piano from the age of five.

At 13 young Mike passed the entrance exams for Trinity College of Music in London, but classical music was soon usurped by rock and roll and by his mid-teens he had begun imitating the singing style of his hero, Little Richard. Having first met Dave Clark on the sports field — the two were both members of the same football team — Clark asked the 17-year-old Smith to join his band, which had recently lost its lead singer.

Smith accepted the invitation, but held on to his job with a finance company while the group coalesced around Clark himself on drums and the guitarist Rick Huxley.

Contributing vocals and playing keyboards, Smith made his recording debut with the band in June 1962 with I Knew It All The Time, released on the Pye label. But their first big hit came two years later with Glad All Over (1964).

Throughout 1964 and 1965, the band released a string of percussive hits including Bits and Pieces and Catch Us If You Can, which became the title song of a film, directed by John Boorman, starring the group.

On The Ed Sullivan Show on American television, Smith mused that stardom had caught him unawares.

"I'd never been on a plane before," he confessed. "On Friday I was told: 'Pack in your job', on Saturday I flew to America, and on Sunday I played in front of 70 million people!"

Although hailed as "a truly outstanding soul shouter" Smith was a reluctant celebrity, and invariably turned down requests for interviews. For 30 years after the group's heyday, he earned a living as a record producer for such artists as Shirley Bassey and Michael Ball — for whom he recorded four gold albums — and as a writer and singer of advertising jingles; his clients ranged from British Airways to Volvo and McDonald's. He also sang on the original recording of Tim Rice and Andrew Lloyd Webber's musical Evita.

In 2003 Smith toured America for the first time in more than a decade with his new group, Mike Smith's Rock Engine. "It's what I've done all my life. For me, it's enjoyment. We get out there and we play rock and roll. I know how to do that, and how to have fun, and I just want everyone to join in and do it with me."

With Smith as front man, the Dave Clark Five sold more than 100 million records, sold out five consecutive world tours and made a record 18 appearances on The Ed Sullivan Show.

As one enthusiastic American critic noted, "they actually made the most powerful records of anybody... They were a tremendous band."

Smith was due to be inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in New York in two weeks' time.

Mike Smith, who died of pneumonia, had been treated for spinal injuries following a fall in 2003 that left him paralyzed.

He is survived by his second wife, Charlie, an actress whom he married in 2001. His only son, Jamie, died in 2003 in a scuba diving accident.