David Clayton-Thomas, the Canadian singer and songwriter whose soulful voice was ubiquitous on American radio in the late 1960s and early ‘70s as lead singer of the brass-driven group Blood, Sweat & Tears, has died, according to his publicist. No cause of death was cited except that he died peacefully at a Toronto hospital on Wednesday evening; he was 84.
Clayton-Thomas wrote “Spinning Wheel,” the group’s most well-known original composition, which reached No. 2 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1969, one of three songs by the band to reach that mark in that year; “When I Die” and the powerful ballad “You’ve Made Me So Very Happy” also reached No. 2, powered by Clayton-Thomas’ unmistakable voice. The group won two Grammys in 1970, including best album.
Part of a wave of soulful, brass-driven rock-soul ensembles, the group’s sound meshed with the R&B acts of the era and more pop-leaning outfits like Chicago. While BS&T scored other hits, their star faded as the ‘70s progressed. However, Clayton-Thomas continued working over the decades, both solo and as a member of later incarnations of the band.
He was born David Henry Thomsett in Surrey, England, on September 13, 1941, during the height of World War II, to a Canadian soldier and an English music student. The family relocated to Canada after the war and settled in a town outside Toronto. He had a troubled relationship with his father and left home in his early teens, having run-ins with the law and passing through a series of jails and reformatories. In one such institution he acquired a guitar left behind by a departing inmate and taught himself to play.
After his release in 1962, he gravitated to Yonge Street, the epicenter of the burgeoning Canadian music scene, which ranged from folk to R&B. He was mentored by rockabilly legend Ronnie Hawkins — who also united the musicians who became the Band — and before long he was fronting his own bands. In 1966 he wrote and recorded the an anti-war anthem “Brainwashed” that was a major hit in Canada.
Folk singer Judy Collins heard him perform one night in New York and told her friend, drummer Bobby Colomby. The drummer was a member of Blood, Sweat & Tears, a group led by Al Kooper, former member of Blues Project and a top session musician and producer who’d worked frequently with Bob Dylan. While the Kooper-led incarnation of the band splintered after releasing one album, several members regrouped around Clayton-Thomas and released a self-titled second album in 1968. The album — produced by James William Guercio, who also helmed Chicago’s albums — featured “Spinning Wheel,” “You’ve Made Me So Very Happy” and another hit single titled “And When I Die.” It topped the Billboard albums chart for seven weeks, and remained in the top 200 for nearly two years.
The group soon became one of the biggest bands in the United States, performing at Madison Square Garden, the Hollywood Bowl and the Woodstock festival. A series of albums ensued, along with hit singles like “Lucretia MacEvil” and “Go Down Gamblin’.” The band even became the first major group to perform behind the so-called “Iron Curtain” in Communist Eastern Europe, at the request of the U.S. State Department (which presumably was unaware of Clayton-Thomas’ earlier anti-war song). However, the singer was exhausted by the pace and left the band in 1972, although he returned several years later and worked with them frequently until 2004.
He pursued a solo career over the decades, releasing nearly a dozen albums and even hosting his own series on Canada’s CBC television network. He also did extensive charity work, focusing on troubled youth, as he once was.
He was inducted into the Canadian Music Hall of Fame, received a special Juno Award for his contributions to Canadian music, earned a star on Canada’s Walk of Fame in 2010, and in 2007 saw “Spinning Wheel” enshrined in the Canadian Songwriters Hall of Fame. He published a memoir, “Blood, Sweat and Tears,” in 2010.
The group was also the subject of a documentary film, “What the Hell Happened to Blood, Sweat & Tears?,” released in 2023.
He is survived by his daughters, Ashleigh Clayton-Thomas and Christine Graham. According to his rep, a memorial concert will be held at a later date, with proceeds benefiting Peacebuilders Canada.
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