Biography
During the zenith of Blood, Sweat & Tears’ commercial success, David Clayton-Thomas served as lead singer, delivering the chart entries “You’ve Made Me So Very Happy,” “And When I Die,” “Hi-De-Ho,” and his own composition “Spinning Wheel.” That final track revealed wider artistic aims; once the band’s intense run subsided in 1972, he launched a solo venture only to suspend it and re-enter the lineup in 1975. From then on he divided his time between the group and independent releases until he exited permanently in 2004. After leaving, he continued touring under his own name and periodically recorded fresh material.
Born David Henry Thomsett on September 13, 1941, in Kingston Upon Thames, Surrey, England, Clayton-Thomas was the child of a Canadian soldier and a mother who performed music. He grew up in Willowdale, Toronto, where friction with his father and a difficult youth led him to seek comfort in song. Early on he took up an instrument and, following the pattern of other aspiring Canadian rock musicians in the early 1960s, received guidance from rockabilly veteran Ronnie Hawkins before striking out with his own ensemble. Under the adopted name David Clayton-Thomas he assembled the Fabulous Shays, who issued a 1964 rendition of John Lee Hooker’s “Boom Boom.” The single drew sufficient notice to secure a spot on NBC’s Hullabaloo, yet Clayton-Thomas soon departed and gravitated toward folk and blues. After performing in Toronto coffeehouses he formed the jazz-tinged Bossmen, scoring a 1966 hit with “Brainwashed.” In 1968 he issued the album Sings Like It Is! on Canada’s Roman Records, then traveled to New York City to play folk clubs until he encountered Blood, Sweat & Tears drummer Bobby Colomby. With Al Kooper recently gone, the band sought a new vocalist; after Columbia president Clive Davis approved the choice, Clayton-Thomas joined—though not before Decca released the LP David Clayton-Thomas!
His debut album with the group, Blood, Sweat & Tears, appeared in December 1968, topped the Billboard chart, captured the 1970 Grammy for Album of the Year, and yielded the 1969 singles “You’ve Made Me So Very Happy,” “Spinning Wheel,” and “And When I Die,” each reaching number two. The 1970 follow-up Blood, Sweat & Tears 3 generated the moderate successes “Hi-De-Ho” (number 14) and “Lucretia Mac Evil” (number 29). Momentum eased with 1971’s B, S, & T 4, after which Clayton-Thomas departed. He issued an eponymous solo album in early 1972 and Tequila Sunrise at the start of 1973, then moved to RCA for 1973’s Harmony Junction. That same year he hosted the CBC series The David Clayton-Thomas Show. Rejoining the band in 1975, he appeared on New City; two further albums, More Than Ever (1976) and Brand New Day (1977), preceded Bobby Colomby’s exit and retention of the group name.
Clayton-Thomas released the 1977 solo set Clayton on ABC, then secured Colomby’s consent to assemble a fresh Blood, Sweat & Tears lineup for 1980’s Nuclear Blues. The ensemble disbanded after that release, yet the singer resumed performing in 1983, a stretch when promoters sometimes billed his solo shows under the band’s name. A 1984 agreement with Colomby permitted Clayton-Thomas to tour for three decades with rotating personnel using the Blood, Sweat & Tears moniker. In 2004 he ceased employing the name, returned to Toronto, and performed and recorded steadily under his own identity. He had already issued the solo Blue Plate on Stony Plain in 1997; the first post-band album, Aurora, followed in 2005. Spectrum arrived in 2009 and Soul Ballads in 2010. A Blues for the New World, a blues collection, appeared in 2013; Combo, credited to a group of the same name, surfaced in 2015, and another Soul Ballads collection closed that year. Canadiana, comprising covers by Canadian songwriters, was released in October 2016, followed in December by the protest song “Ode to the Donald,” which addressed Donald J. Trump’s election.
Born David Henry Thomsett on September 13, 1941, in Kingston Upon Thames, Surrey, England, Clayton-Thomas was the child of a Canadian soldier and a mother who performed music. He grew up in Willowdale, Toronto, where friction with his father and a difficult youth led him to seek comfort in song. Early on he took up an instrument and, following the pattern of other aspiring Canadian rock musicians in the early 1960s, received guidance from rockabilly veteran Ronnie Hawkins before striking out with his own ensemble. Under the adopted name David Clayton-Thomas he assembled the Fabulous Shays, who issued a 1964 rendition of John Lee Hooker’s “Boom Boom.” The single drew sufficient notice to secure a spot on NBC’s Hullabaloo, yet Clayton-Thomas soon departed and gravitated toward folk and blues. After performing in Toronto coffeehouses he formed the jazz-tinged Bossmen, scoring a 1966 hit with “Brainwashed.” In 1968 he issued the album Sings Like It Is! on Canada’s Roman Records, then traveled to New York City to play folk clubs until he encountered Blood, Sweat & Tears drummer Bobby Colomby. With Al Kooper recently gone, the band sought a new vocalist; after Columbia president Clive Davis approved the choice, Clayton-Thomas joined—though not before Decca released the LP David Clayton-Thomas!
His debut album with the group, Blood, Sweat & Tears, appeared in December 1968, topped the Billboard chart, captured the 1970 Grammy for Album of the Year, and yielded the 1969 singles “You’ve Made Me So Very Happy,” “Spinning Wheel,” and “And When I Die,” each reaching number two. The 1970 follow-up Blood, Sweat & Tears 3 generated the moderate successes “Hi-De-Ho” (number 14) and “Lucretia Mac Evil” (number 29). Momentum eased with 1971’s B, S, & T 4, after which Clayton-Thomas departed. He issued an eponymous solo album in early 1972 and Tequila Sunrise at the start of 1973, then moved to RCA for 1973’s Harmony Junction. That same year he hosted the CBC series The David Clayton-Thomas Show. Rejoining the band in 1975, he appeared on New City; two further albums, More Than Ever (1976) and Brand New Day (1977), preceded Bobby Colomby’s exit and retention of the group name.
Clayton-Thomas released the 1977 solo set Clayton on ABC, then secured Colomby’s consent to assemble a fresh Blood, Sweat & Tears lineup for 1980’s Nuclear Blues. The ensemble disbanded after that release, yet the singer resumed performing in 1983, a stretch when promoters sometimes billed his solo shows under the band’s name. A 1984 agreement with Colomby permitted Clayton-Thomas to tour for three decades with rotating personnel using the Blood, Sweat & Tears moniker. In 2004 he ceased employing the name, returned to Toronto, and performed and recorded steadily under his own identity. He had already issued the solo Blue Plate on Stony Plain in 1997; the first post-band album, Aurora, followed in 2005. Spectrum arrived in 2009 and Soul Ballads in 2010. A Blues for the New World, a blues collection, appeared in 2013; Combo, credited to a group of the same name, surfaced in 2015, and another Soul Ballads collection closed that year. Canadiana, comprising covers by Canadian songwriters, was released in October 2016, followed in December by the protest song “Ode to the Donald,” which addressed Donald J. Trump’s election.
Albums
Say Somethin'
2020
Canadiana
2019
Mobius
2018
Combo
2015
A Blues For The New World
2013
Soul Ballads
2010
The Evergreens
2008
In Concert: A Musical Biography
2006
Aurora
2005
The Christmas Album
2003
David Clayton-Thomas
1972
Singles
