Clay lives on Sullivans Island, South Carolina with his wife, Manoli, their twin sons Alex and Rivers, and a dog named Pearl. A life-long lover of music, Clay is actively involved with the nonprofit organization, Charleston Jazz, since its formation in 2008, including helping establish its Jazz Academy, Festival, and big band known as the Charleston Jazz Orchestra, with the hope of stewarding and sharing Charleston’s rich jazz history for generations of players and aficionados to come.

When Clay is not listening to or playing music, he can be found exploring western North Carolina and the Blue Ridge mountains with his family, hiking, fishing, finding seldom visited places, or picking through barns and out of the way stores for rare guitars or other stringed instruments.