David Clayton Thomas
| David Clayton-Thomas | |
|---|---|
Clayton-Thomas performing at Gulfstream Park in Hallandale, Florida
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| Background information | |
| Birth name | David Henry Thomsett |
| Born |
13 September 1941 Kingston upon Thames, Surrey, UK |
| Genres | R&B, rock, funk, pop, jazz |
| Occupation(s) | Singer, musician, songwriter, record producer |
| Instruments | Vocals, guitar |
| Years active | 1968–present |
| Associated acts | Blood, Sweat & Tears |
| Website | davidclaytonthomas.com |
David Clayton-Thomas (born David Henry Thomsett; 13 September 1941) is a Grammy Award-winning Canadian musician, singer and songwriter, best known as the lead vocalist of the American band Blood, Sweat & Tears. Clayton-Thomas has been inducted into the Canadian Music Hall of Fame and in 2007 his jazz/rock composition "Spinning Wheel" was enshrined in the Canadian Songwriter's Hall of Fame. In 2010 Clayton-Thomas received his star on Canada's Walk of Fame.
Clayton-Thomas began his music career in the early '60s, working the clubs on Toronto's Yonge Street, where he discovered his love of singing and playing the blues. Before moving to New York City in 1967, Clayton-Thomas fronted a couple of local bands, first The Shays and then The Bossmen, one of the earliest rock bands with significant jazz influences. But the real success came only a few difficult years later when he joined Blood, Sweat & Tears.
Clayton-Thomas's first album with the band, Blood, Sweat & Tears (which was released in December 1968) – despite the self-titled name, actually the band's second album – sold ten million copies worldwide. The record topped the Billboard album chart for seven weeks, and charted for 109 weeks. It won five Grammy Awards, including Album of the Year and Best Performance by a Male Vocalist. It featured three hit singles, "You Made Me So Very Happy", "Spinning Wheel", "And When I Die" (on the Hot 100, each peaked at No. 2 and lasted 13 weeks) as well as a rendition of Billie Holiday's "God Bless The Child".
With Clayton-Thomas fronting the band, BS&T continued with a string of hit albums, including Blood, Sweat & Tears 3 which featured Carole King's "Hi-De-Ho" and Clayton-Thomas's "Lucretia MacEvil", and Blood, Sweat & Tears 4, which yielded another Clayton-Thomas penned hit single, "Go Down Gamblin'" and "Lisa Listen to Me".
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