David Clayton-Thomas
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
David Clayton-Thomas (born 13 September 1941 in Kingston upon Thames, Surrey, England, UK) is a musician and singer.
[edit] Biography
Born David Henry Thomsett, Clayton-Thomas is the son of a decorated Canadian soldier of World War II who met his piano-playing mother when she came to entertain the troops at a London hospital. They were married, and when the war ended, the family moved to Willowdale, Ontario, a suburb of Toronto, when David was not yet school-aged.
Growing up, he was taught music by his mother but had difficulties in what was a dysfunctional family. He left home in his early teens. He idolized the music of John Lee Hooker and began playing guitar and singing, and by the time he was 21 had his own band, The Shays. David Clayton-Thomas & The Shays recorded for Roman Records of Toronto. David Clayton-Thomas released two albums on the label, "A Go Go" (with The Shays) and "Like It Is" (with The Bossmen).
In February 1966, he joined a new band, The Bossmen, fronted by the child prodigy, pianist Tony Collacott, who had played with Sarah Vaughan at New York's Carnegie Hall at the age of 14. The group recorded a lone single, the jazz-rock song "Brainwashed," which was a Canadian smash in June 1966 and gave an indication of his future work.
The band broke up soon afterward and he traveled to New York. In October 1967, he joined forces with former members of the Toronto R&B outfit, Jon and Lee & The Checkmates and renamed them his new backing band, The Phoenix. The group started a residency at a New York nightclub, Steve Paul's The Scene, but he was soon deported for working illegally in the States.
In February 1968, Clayton-Thomas formed a new band in Toronto, the David Clayton-Thomas Combine with former Bossmen guitarist Jack Mowbrey, ex-Phoenix bass player Peter Hodgson, and drummer Pat Little from Luke & The Apostles. The group recorded the original version of his classic hit "Spinning Wheel" but the band broke up a few months later when Clayton-Thomas was offered a more attractive offer from Bobby Colomby, the drummer with Blood, Sweat & Tears.
Under the stage name David Clayton-Thomas, he is best known as a vocalist with the band Blood, Sweat & Tears, whose first album with him as lead singer in 1969 produced three gold[1] singles and three Grammy Awards[2] including the Grammy Award for Album of the Year. The album included his own composition "Spinning Wheel" which became a big single hit on both sides of the Atlantic.[3][4]
In 2002, the album was honoured with a Grammy Hall of Fame Award. Clayton-Thomas left the band twice, but he was still touring with a reconstituted Blood, Sweat & Tears through 2004.
Clayton-Thomas was inducted into the Canadian Music Hall of Fame[5] in 1996. In January, 2006, the song "Spinning Wheel" was inducted into the Canadian Songwriters Hall of Fame.
He lived in New York City for more than 30 years, but returned to Toronto in 2004, where he once again has made a name of himself as a solo artist, releasing several DVDs (including one featuring a live performance).
[edit] References
- ^ Gold & Platinum certification of albums at RIAA. www.riaa.com. Retrieved November 26, 2006
- ^ Grammy Awards winners. grammy.com. Retrieved November 26, 2006
- ^ Canadian Charts from 1957 - 1986. 1050chum.com. Retrieved November 26, 2006
- ^ U.S Billboard chart rankings. billboard.com. Retrieved November 26, 2006
- ^ Juno Awards/Canadian Music Hall of Fame winner and nominations. juno-awards.ca. Retrieved November 26, 2006
