David Clayton-Thomas, lead singer for Blood, Sweat & Tears, dies aged 84

The Canadian musician, who achieved major hits such as Spinning Wheel and You’ve Made Me So Very Happy, died peacefully at a Toronto hospital David Clayton-Thomas, lead singer of 60s and 70s group Blood, Sweat & Tears has died aged 84. According to his publicist, the Canadian singer died peacefully at a hospital in Toronto with no cause of death given. Clayton-Thomas wrote the group’s most well-known song Spinning Wheel which reached number two in the US and was nominated for three Grammy awards, winning one. He was born in England before his family settled in Toronto after the second world war. By the time he was 14, he was homeless and spent a great deal of his teenage years in trouble with the law and living in and out of a number of jails. In the 1960s, he started to find success as a musician and fronted a band called David Clayton-Thomas and the Fabulous Shays, later moving to New York. He joined the recently broken up band Blood, Sweat & Tears who then reformed and sparked the attention of the legendary music executive Clive Davis who later described Clayton-Thomas as a “staggering” musician. “Blood, Sweat & Tears was such an unusual mix of people,” Clayton-Thomas said in an

Jun 25, 2026 → Jun 27, 2026