Search results
The following year, in early February 1994, Kooper returned to the Bottom Line for his 50th birthday celebration, in which he played with members of his new band plus the Blues Project & BS&T. The BS&T lineup at this show was the same as the 1993 Silver Anniversary show, with the exception of Will Lee sitting in for Fielder and John Sebastian (ex- Loving Spoonful ) contributing harmonica.
Mar 23, 2017 · John “Sib” Hashian, the former original drummer for the rock band Boston who played on their self-titled debut item, died Wednesday, March 22, 2017, while playing onstage, according to multiple…
January 13, 2017. Complications from diabetes [8] Richie Ingui. Soul Survivors. 70. January 13, 2017. Magic Alex. Electronics engineer for The Beatles.
Dec 29, 2017 · Who died in the past 12 months? Take a look at some of the famous faces no longer with us at the end of 2017.
- Overview
- Al Kooper
- The original Blood, Sweat & Tears
- David Clayton-Thomas, BS&T’s chart-topping success, and beyond
Blood, Sweat & Tears (BS&T), American big-band jazz rock group that topped the charts in the late 1960s with its innovative blend of pop, jazz, and rhythm and blues infused with horns. The band’s original members were Al Kooper (b. February 5, 1944, Brooklyn, New York), Steve Katz (b. May 9, 1945, Brooklyn), Bobby Colomby (b. December 20, 1944, New...
The original driving force of the group was Al Kooper, whose considerable footprint in popular music history includes a stint the Royal Teens in the late 1950s, authorship of the Gary Lewis and the Playboys hit “This Diamond Ring,” and membership in the seminal blues rock group the Blues Project in the mid-1960s. Kooper also provided distinctive or...
In addition to Kooper on keyboards and lead vocals, the core of the original group included Blues Project guitarist Steve Katz, drummer Bobby Colomby, who had backed folksingers Eric Andersen and Odetta, and bassist Jim Fielder, who had played with Buffalo Springfield and the Mothers of Invention (see Frank Zappa). To this foundation was added a collection of horn players from New York jazz and studio bands: Fred Lipsius on alto saxophone (and piano); Randy Brecker and Jerry Weiss, who both played trumpet and fluegelhorn; and Dick Halligan on trombone, flute, and, later, keyboards. The group’s name was inspired by an all-night jam session that Kooper had participated in with B.B. King and Jimi Hendrix. At the end of it, there was blood on the keyboards from a cut on Kooper’s hand that had gone unnoticed because he had been so blissfully immersed in music-making. “What a great album cover, I thought,” Kooper wrote of the moment in his memoir, Backstage Passes & Backstabbing Bastards (1998), adding, “No. What a great name for a band. Blood, Sweat & Tears.”
Released in 1968, Blood, Sweat & Tears’ debut album, Child Is Father to the Man, was moderately successful commercially. In addition to various Kooper compositions, it included songs written by Randy Newman, Carole King, and others. Following the album’s release, Brecker left the group to join jazz great Horace Silver’s band. Kooper also departed after other members of the band made known their dissatisfaction with the quality of his vocals and what they viewed as his dictatorial rule.
The band regrouped with David Clayton-Thomas (b. September 13, 1941, in Surrey, England), formerly of the Canadian blues band the Bossmen, as the lead vocalist and soon vaulted to popularity. The 1969 Grammy-winning album Blood, Sweat & Tears spent more than two years on the Billboard 200 album chart in the United States, including seven weeks at number one. Three hit singles—“Spinning Wheel,” “And When I Die,” and “You’ve Made Me So Very Happy”—all of which reached number two on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, helped the group achieve worldwide recognition, and the U.S. State Department asked the band to do a goodwill tour abroad.
In the early 1970s Blood, Sweat & Tears had hits with “Hi-De-Ho,” “Lucretia MacEvil,” and “Go Down Gamblin’.” A series of singers replaced Clayton-Thomas when he left to pursue a solo career, but he rejoined the group in 1974. With the emergence of other rock bands with a similar emphasis on brass (most notably Chicago), the group had trouble duplicating its previous recording success but became popular on the nightclub circuit. Through the years, more than 175 musicians have filled the positions of the eight-to-ten-member band.
Are you a student? Get Britannica Premium for only 24.95 - a 67% discount!
Learn More
- The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica
Mar 24, 2017 · Photo: Michael Putland/Getty. Sib Hashian, drummer for the chart-topping classic rock outfit Boston, died Wednesday evening after collapsing mid-performance aboard a cruise ship. He was 67 years ...
Formed in 1985, the group originally consisted of vocalist Axl Rose, lead guitarist Tracii Guns, rhythm guitarist Izzy Stradlin, bassist Ole Beich and drummer Rob Gardner. The band has been through many lineup changes and currently includes Rose (a constant member), bassist Duff McKagan (from 1985 to 1997, and since 2016), lead guitarist Slash ...
