'I'm bisexual': Clive Davis reveals he's had relationships with men since the late '70s

Music industry legend Clive Davis, the man who discovered or signed countless multi-platinum recording artists including Whitney Houston, Bruce Springsteen and Alicia Keys has revealed he is bisexual.

In his new memoir The Soundtrack of My Life, the 80-year-old record executive, who has been married and divorced twice, says he has been involved in two monogamous relationships with men over the past 20 years.

Davis, who has never before publicly addressed his sexuality, writes that his first sexual encounter with a man was during ‘the era of Studio 54’ in the late '70s.

Music industry legend Clive Davis, who discovered Whitney Houston, has revealed he is bisexual

Twice married Davis, pictured with Alicia Keys, says he has been in two monogamous relationships with men over the past 20 years

Davis, pictured at the 2012 U.S. Open with an unknown male acquaintance, has been in his current relationship since 2004

‘On this night, after imbibing enough alcohol, I was open to responding to his sexual overtures,’ he writes. Prior to that he had only been with women and he writes that being with a man provided ‘welcome relief.’

Davis separated from his second wife in 1985 after a period of ‘soul searching and self-analysis’ and says that he went on to have simultaneous relationships with two women and a man. 

Then in 1990 he entered into a ‘monogamous relationship’ with an unnamed male doctor. That relationship ended in 2004, but Davis says he has been in a relationship with another man ever since.

Davis said his current partner attends industry events and travels with him, but he declined to reveal his identity in order to protect his privacy.

Davis won a grammy for producing Jennifer Hudson's first album in 2009

Davis, pictured with Jordan Sparks, tells Katie Couric, center, he is still attracted to women

Star signing: Clive Davis and Whitney Houston signing her first contract with Arista Records in 1983

Father of four Davis also writes that his coming out deeply affected his ties with one of his three sons, Mitchell.

However after ‘one very trying year’ they managed to work out their differences, he writes.

Davis has spoken with Katie Couric to discuss his sexuality in an interview scheduled to air on Tuesday.

Davis tells Couric: ‘I opened myself up to the possibility that I could have a relationship with a man as well as the two that I had with a woman.’

‘I'm still attracted to women. … You don't have to be only one thing or another. For me, it's the person.’

He also hopes that his coming out might lead to a 'greater understanding' of bisexuality.

'I’m not lying,' Davis told ABC News. '[Bisexuality] does exist. For over 50 years I never had sex with a male. It wasn’t repressed. I had very good sexual relationships with women.'

Davis with Carlos Santana at the Grammy Awards in 2000. Santana's awards included album of the year for 'Supeatural' which Davis co-produced

Davis, right, pictured in 1967 with Angela Lansbury, is a music industry legend who has been in the business for more than 50 years

Davis pictured with TLC at the 42nd Annual Grammy Awards in Los Angeles in 2000

Asked if he felt ashamed after first sleeping with a man, he relied: 'I never felt shame.'

'I felt puzzled. The subject of bisexuality really needs much more discussion. It's a status that does exist.'

Davis, known as 'the man with the golden ears,' has played a massive role in shaping popular music for well over five decades. He has won five Grammy Awards and is a member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a non-performer.

His most successful signing, was Whitney Houston, who he discovered and helped mold into one of the biggest selling artists in music history.

Davis devotes an entire chapter in his book, out Tuesday, to working with Whitney. He recalls his trepidations about her acting in The Bodyguard and writes in-depth about the subsequent problems that led to her death.

He reprints a letter he wrote to her after seeing an emaciated Houston perform at the 2001 Michael Jackson tribute concert. 'When I got home, I cried,' he told her.

He also reveals that he attempted a one-on-one intervention with her at his Pound Ridge, New York, home. Houston, he writes, was in 'complete denial' about her addictions.

Davis pictured in 2000 with Whitney Houston, her then husband Bobby Brown, right, and Sean 'Puff Daddy' Combs, left

Rod Stewart, pictured with girlfriend Penny Lancaster, has recorded for Clive Davis' label J Records during this century

Davis also recounts the shock of receiving the momentous phone call that Houston was dead. Houston was found dead in the Beverly Hilton hotel in February last year just hours before his annual pre-Grammy party.

The book also includes juicy behind-the-scenes stories of some of the best known recording artists of all time. Davis tells of how Janice Joplin suggested she perform a sexual act with him to seal their deal, how John Lennon offered him insight into the creative process and the false accusations that ended his career at CBS.

The autobiography also chronicles his childhood in Brooklyn, the loss of his parents when he was still a teen and his scholarship-supported jouey through New York University and then Harvard Law School.