David Clayton-Thomas, the powerhouse vocalist and songwriter behind some of the biggest global hits of Blood, Sweat & Tears, died last evening (June 24) at St. Michael's Hospital in Toronto. He was 84.
An obit issued by publicist Eric Alper on his passing calls Clayton-Thomas ''One of the most recognizable voices of his generation. He sang the hell out of every song he touched, soaring and sunny one moment, a deep and somber shade of blue the next. Over a career that carried him from the streets of Toronto to the stage at Woodstock and beyond, he sold more than 40 million records and helped shape the very sound of jazz-rock.''
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Born in Surrey, England, as David Henry Thomsett, he was the son of a Canadian soldier and an English music student. After the end of World War II, the family relocated to the Toronto suburb of Willowdale. As has been well-documented, he had a troubled early life, living on the streets from the age of 15 and spending time in jails and reformatories as a serial offender for vagrancy, petty theft and street fighting.
After teaching himself to play guitar in jail, he performed jailhouse concerts prior to his release in 1962. A Canadian Encyclopedia entrynotes that ''he began performing as Sonny Thomas (later David Clayton-Thomas) on Toronto’s Yonge Street strip, where he developed a reputation as a tough, brawling blues singer. John Lee Hooker became his idol and Ronnie Hawkins his mentor. The music of jazz greats Lenny Breau, Oscar Peterson and Moe Koffman was equally influential.''
''Clayton-Thomas’s first band, David Clayton-Thomas and The Fabulous Shays (later The Shays), was an R&B outfit that had hits in 1964 with 'Out of the Sunshine”' and 'Walk That Walk,' a rendition of Hooker’s 'Boom Boom.' They opened for the Rolling Stones at Maple Leaf Gardens and played the NBC-TV variety program Hullabaloo (1965) at the invitation of host Paul Anka.
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''After The Shays broke up, Thomas played solo in Toronto’s Yorkville coffeehouses. He then joined the Bossmen, which featured the prodigious jazz pianist Tony Collacott. The Bossmen were one of the first rock bands to incorporate jazz elements, and had a Top 20 Canadian hit in the summer of 1966 with the fiercely political, anti-Vietnam War song 'Brainwashed,' one he wrote.''
After the Bossmen broke up, he formed the David Clayton-Thomas Combine with former Bossmen guitarist Jack Mowbray. They released two singles through Arc Records, one of which had the original version of Clayton-Thomas’s “Spinning Wheel” as a B-side.
John Lee Hooker then invited him to New York City, where he played clubs in Greenwich Village before being deported for having a criminal record and working illegally in the US. While playing in NYC, a life-changing moment came when Clayton-Thomas caught the ear of folk star Judy Collins. She recommended him to Blood, Sweat & Tears drummer Bobby Colomby and Clayton-Thomas became part of a reconfigured lineup of that band, one that soon exploded to global fame with its eponymous 1968 debut album.
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Blood, Sweat & Tears sold ten million copies worldwide, topped the Billboard 200 for seven weeks, and remained on the chart for 109 weeks. It won five Grammy Awards, including album of the year, and featured three signature hits that each reached No. 2 on the Billboard Hot 100: ''You've Made Me So Very Happy," "And When I Die,'' and Clayton-Thomas's own tune, "Spinning Wheel." Those tunes are now considered classics, as is a version of Billie Holiday's "God Bless the Child" that showcased Clayton-Thomas' formidable vocal chops.
Clayton-Thomas had written “Spinning Wheel” in 1967 in Toronto while performing on Yorkville's bustling coffeehouse and club scene. Released as a single in May 1969, it sold one million copies within three months. It remained at No. 2 for three weeks on the Billboard Hot 100 in the U.S. In Canada, “Spinning Wheel” topped the RPM Weekly singles chart for three weeks.
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Subsequent BS&T albums including Blood, Sweat & Tears 3 and Blood, Sweat & Tears 4, were also hits, both going gold, alongside such singles as "Lucretia MacEvil" (a Clayton-Thomas composition) and "Go Down Gamblin'."
Blood, Sweat & Tears quickly became international touring stars, appearing at prestigious concert venues in North America and Europe and making a splash at the Woodstock and Newport Jazz Festivals. In 1970 they became the first rock group to play behind the Iron Curtain, touring Eastern Europe at the request of the U.S. State Department and in exchange for permanent U.S. residence status for their singer.
Clayton-Thomas left the band in 1972, returning mid-decade and and assuming leadership in 1976, shepherding the band through many changes in membership. He secured legal rights to the name Blood, Sweat & Tears in 1984 and toured with an ever-evolving roster of players until 2004.
From the mid-'90s on, he pursued a prolific solo career that brought him critical acclaim, if not major commercial success. He released albums on noted Canadian independent labels Justin Time and Linus Entertainment, and such work as 2008's The Evergreens and 2015's Combo explored jazz and blues elements, in more minimal fashion than the work of Blood, Sweat & Tears. He also hosted his own CBC television series, and in 2010, the same year he survived serious heart surgery, he performed at Massey Hall with the Toronto Symphony Orchestra.
His later work often possessed a political edge, something also demonstrated on his outspoken social media posts. Clayton-Thomas became a strong advocate for justice-involved youth and a champion of Peacebuilders Canada, a charity promoting restorative youth justice, alternatives to incarceration and conflict resolution. In 2020m he wrote and recorded the song "The System" to support that organization' and headlined numerous fundraising galas and benefit concerts on its behalf. A celebration of life concert that is being planned will also benefit Peacebuilders Canada.
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Clayton-Thomas' substantial career achievements have been recognised in his home country. He was inducted into the Canadian Music Hall of Fame in 1996, and the Canadian Association of Broadcasters Hall of Fame, in 2008, received a special Juno Award for his outstanding contribution to Canadian music in 1973 and earned a star on Canada's Walk of Fame in 2010. His work has also been recognized by the Grammy Hall of Fame and the Canadian Songwriters Hall of Fame.
Clayton-Thomas recounted his fascinating life in a candid 2010 memoir, Blood, Sweat and Tears. From his Toronto base, he continued to write and perform in his later years. “People like me don't retire,” he once said. “This is what I was put here to do.”
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This is a developing story. Billboard Canadais collecting tributes to David Clayton-Thomas from fellow artists and industry figures.
