Blood, Sweat & Tears

Wow dude. This is what I'm fucking talking ABOUT. Any hint of cheese that this might possess is instantly negated by the unflagging tightness prevalent across every single track. What an absolute ripper.

This one's a bit of a mess but enjoyable overall, I think. It sure seems like the band wasn't sure what kind of band they wanted to be so the album bounces from genre to genre, never settling into a groove. Is it rock? Is it proto-disco? Is it pre-funk? Is it big band? Is it lounge-lizard soft pop? I really couldn't tell you. There are a few bright spots. Jim Fielder, the bassist does some serious work on this whole album. That fella is a BEAST and single-handedly carries several of these tracks. And, obviously, "Spinning Wheel" is a jam. But it's also the single most coherent track on the album. Which is saying something because that song is kinda wild. Unfortunately, there aren't enough bright spots to tip the scales into a positive score. I have to dock the album a star for the weird instrumental tracks that really don't fit. Had "Variations on a Theme" and "Blues, Pt. 2" been omitted from the album, it would have felt so much more cohesive. But they're there. And they're awful. And so "Blood, Sweat, & Tears" earns a middle-of-the-road 3 stars.

In 1969, I turned 19 &, still living at home, also held the first backyard party where I invited everyone I knew. I seem to remember that this album was a large part of the soundtrack to that bash. I’s copped a lot of criticism over the years for being too mainstream, particularly when compared to the band’s debut album. I just played them back-to-back & the fact is they are both great but totally different. The debut album was half written by Al Kooper, who was essentially the band’s creator, but also highlighted a bunch of songwriters who had yet to make their mark as performers - Nillson, Randy Newman, Tim Buckley. Then Al left the band & his somewhat weak vocal was replaced by David Clayton-Thomas. You could not get 2 more different voices. But the thing I’m forever grateful for are the song choices the band took on the second lp. They introduced me to such great music - I had never heard of Erik Satie. The opening cover of a Satie variation is a piece of music I’ve heard so often over the years, but this was where I heard it first. I had never heard Billie Holiday, let alone God Bless The Child. I’d never heard Laura Nyro’s And When I Die. I’d never heard the Motown classic, You’ve Made Me So Very Happy. Not to say that there wasn’t great original material here as well - especially Spinning Wheel - covered by so many artists over the years. Anyone whose ever had a child in a school choir in the last 50 years knows that song. You can hear the band’s live set from Woodstock (1969) on youtube. I do love this record.

There's a track that shows they know how to play the piano and jam but the music is very AM sounding psychedelic that didn't age well. This sounds like the soundtrack from an Austin Powers movie.

Lot of fun on this album. I'm surprised the genre only says rock because the content feels very prog to me. Definitely will re-listen to this album later.

Extremely unfocused, but when they decide to have fun, it's a blast. Best track: You've Made Me So Very Happy

Rollicking bass and organ with jazzy horns, the perfect friend to David Clayton-Thomas’ incredible voice. This is my favourite iteration of BS&T and this one is a perfect album, simple as that.

well this is a new all-time favorite too good to rate

Never heard a band like this that fuses jazz and rock so well. Liked almost every single track. Thank you to this list for showing me this album. Rating: 4.8

I am a big fan of the Jazz/Rock bands of this era and BST is one of the best

Well that was an absolute belter. Never heard of this band before and had no idea what we were in for but this was great. Blues, funky, rocky , it's got it all!

Rock organ and horns? Sign me up! What I like is that it sounds natural/folk and experimental/progressive all at the same time.

So I have commented numerous times, that most bands have their good tracks spread out over a number of albums, so it is much rarer when you come across one that is loaded up with goodness… The “Blood Sweat & Tears” album is just one of those, as it seems like their most well-known tracks are on this album… First off, the quality of the recording for 1968 is exceptional, as I have listened a number of albums from the late 60’s – and many of them just don’t have a solid audio quality to them at all – but this one was excellent… As for the songs themselves – not sure what the purpose was for the opening and closing “Variations” tracks, but they kinda felt out of place to be honest… Best songs on the album IMO were the run of – “And When I Die “ – 6-stars out of 7 “God Bless The Child” – 5-stars out of 7 “Spinning Wheel” – 5-stars out of 7 “You’ve Made Me So Very Happy” – 5-stars out of 7 “Blues – Part II” is also a very interesting track with multiple sections – 0:00-3:00 – The organ intro section reminded me of early ELP (i.e. maybe something off of Tarkus?) 3:00-4:30 – The obligatory bass and drum solos – ugh… 4:30-8:00 – Was a great sax-led jam, and the best part of the song… 8:00-8:50 – Was a reprise of Cream’s “Sunshine Of Your Love” – not sure why that was on here… 8:50- End – Was the only blues singing on this track – which was fine, but suddenly ends – very odd… Wish this had been more of a 6-8 minute song of that great sax-led instrumental – or perhaps the organ opening, followed by the sax-led jam – but the rest really didn’t fit – but that’s just me… This is better than a 3, but not quite a 4 – but if I could, I’d give it a 3.50 for sure - but I can't, so it's a 3…

The first time I listened to this album must have caught me on a bad day, because I feel like I've fallen in love this time. I can do without the Variation tracks, but understand their inclusion. But the energy, swing, and soul on all the other ones are fantastic. Favorite track: Blues, Pt. 2

5-

Marvellous

TRes bon, je ne connaissais que de nom et j'ai été époustouflé surtout pour l'année. Je réécoute certainement. un 5

Much needed vibrs after all the rock albums

This was actually really fun, I'm surprised I'd never heard of them before this

This is such a weird album. Wikipedia categorizes it as jazz-rock but I feel most songs aren’t the intersection of the two genres but instead different sections that alternate between classic rock and jazzy horn solos. More jazz and rock than jazz-rock. And the album is bookended by variations on a classical piece. In the end, a decently fun listen. 7/10

Really varied album, lot of jazz elements, good lyrics, bluesy, great fills. A surprisingly great listen. It’s my kind of all over the place.

Nice 60s jazz and r&b and folk rock.

A bit all over the place, but a good listen overall.

One is all for jazz flavorings in rock and supports outright fusion, but this is unsubtle in the extreme. The Satie opener and closers only add to one's wonderment that this was a top-seller and Grammy winner. It's fine, if too loud, too effortful and over-emoted. The primary strength – the lead vocals – are also its greatest weakness (or annoyance). Dude had a great voice but way oversells it. "God Bless the Child" is the most interesting cut, if only because it's the one least bulldozed by too brassy brass and least bludgeoned over-the-top vocals.

Blood, Sweat & Tears Variations on a Theme sounds pretty schizophrenic, which sort of encapsulates the whole album. It's messy, but not in a totally uncharming or unpleasant way, although it never quite seems to catch fire and fuse all its disparate parts into a fully realised whole. The cover of Smiling Phases starts off as a fun bit of rolling rock/soul, but then it descends into some kind of prog rock jazz club, with a A LOT going on, before picking the first bit back up. Sometimes in Winter feels vaguely out of place, it has the same jazz elements, but feels more like lounge music, and the vocals are quite nondescript in comparison to the normal lead singer, although again its not without a kind of slightly gentle charm. More and More is fun in a funky jazz way, And When I Die’s riff feels quite Sesame Street, especially with its stop start nature, definitely something slightly children’s entertainment about it. I’m not familiar with the original so not sure if it sounds similar? God Bless the Child’s horn arrangement in the intro sounds a bit like the Welsh National Anthem and He Ain’t Heavy, but it’s a nice enough version even if musically a bit heavy handed. Very nice and controlled vocal though. Spinning Wheel is probably the standout. I only know Shirley Bassey’s version, but it's a great bit of blue eyed soul with a nice tight arrangement. You’ve Made Me So Very Happy is a lovely song, and again, this is a nice version, particularly the more upbeat parts. Blues Part II, not sure about this, p robably a bit too much prog jazz and just too much happening in 11 minutes to get any sense of it, although I do like the Sunshine of Your Love bit, and it’s better than some of the Yes type songs we’ve had. Overall there’s a lot going on in pretty much every song, which although fun, does make you wonder what this would be like with a more focused approach. But then on the flipside the jumping around, time changes and jazz excess (Jazzcess?) seem to be done out of a sense of fun and enjoyment rather than po faced seriousness, so it might lose the appeal it does have. A nice little oddity that I enjoyed, but will probably not come back to - 3. 🩸🥵😢 Playlist submission: Spinning Wheel

Swell throughout. The closing Variations of a Theme sounded like The Legend of Zelda, which I enjoyed.

Pretty good. Some radio rock staples but overall it's just not something I could find myself reqply getting into.

Broadway jazz rock is not my bag, but I hope it enriches others here. The chunk of “Sunshine of Your Love” indicates how big a deal that riff was to that generation - Hendrix kept throwing it into sets, Skip Spence savaged it for his terrifying outro to “War On Peace”, and I’m pretty sure most guitarists coming after that generation learned that riff first. There’s also the amazing funk cover. Requiscat Jack Bruce.

This was quite familiar, although not in a particularly good way. Almost as if someone decided to make a record satirizing the hoariest blues, jazz and '60s musical cliches all together at once. Not bad really in a technical sense, but not very enjoyable either. ELP without a sense of humor, in some parts

Ugh! Pop jazz. BS&T and Chicago - hated the sound and the instrumentation then, still sucks pond water today. Not sure there was a good reason for me to listen to this - again. But I did.

This one was all over the place, I think I liked 2 songs maybe? 3 tops? The fact that I can't remember sums up my opinion. I'd give it a 1 but thanks to M.I.A. my standard for a one has plummeted.

Blood, sweat, tears & shite. Mostly shite.

I had no idea what I was getting into with this album, but man am I blown away. Never had heard of this group but their mix of jazz and rock is really spectacular. The bass is grooving throughout this entire album as the horns and piano take turns between David Clayton-Thomas' vocals, which are also awesome. Every song is a little crazy and it's common to see this group jump between sounds, like the ending of Spinning Wheel. And When I Die is a contemplative song and is a joy to listen to with hints of motown. I also really enjoyed Smiling Phases. Pretty much loved this whole thing, exactly what I'm looking for in this set list.

I don't think I've even been so into jazz fusion. The whole thing was wonderful top to bottom

Holy cow. I just have to note that sunshine of your love is buried within Blues Pt 2. This is the album I was waiting for. An out of the blue banger. I was listening while working and really enjoyed Smiling Phases and then my ears perked up at And When I Die, existential song wrapped in folksy cowboy ragtime. I loved the genuine lyrics on You’ve Made Me So Very Happy, sent that one to my wife. And then I had to pause because I had some presentations today at work. Now here I am in the evening and started back up on Blues pt 2 and got lost in it, had no idea it was 11 mins, I was so concerned it was part of the deluxe version because it felt so out there but that song is on the regular album so that just catapulted this one for me. Jazz, 60’s pop rock. A mix of mountain music CCR and Dave Brubeck and blues too! God Bless this Child has western harmonica moments along with a giant Tito puente jazz fusion number. Been a while since I’ve done a 5 star but this needs it.

10/10 Among the other albums I've already listened to there this one is a pure joy. So many sounds, instruments, expressions. It really impressed me, absolute glory. Blues, Variations and God bless found place in my heart!

Really good album. Great vocals and playing. Horns in rock is a plus for me. And, if you played Woodstock you're in the eternal pantheon of badass.

Have to give this one a 5 just to acknowledge the sheer ambition of it. Jazz, rock, classical...this album has it all. DCT was a stellar vocalist and the band was so talented, horns and rhythm section. Great songs including "Spinning Wheel", "And When I Die" and "You've Made Me So Very Happy" compensate foe the digressing and diversions.

Ok, right back round to the subject of Jazz and Prog. Because this album is a GREAT way of showing how to make music that's sophisticated and smart and yet perfectly accessible to normal people like me. The songs are all over the place but they always return to a central idea and make it easy for me to go oh yeah, that's the song. Full of passion and variety and dynamic songwriting and performances. This was a 5 star album. It's dated in the best way. You can hear it came from the 60s, but it still sounds fresh and vibrant and alive. If it came out today it would just be called retro. The vocals were a particular standout. Makes me want to step my own singing game up. WOW.

What did I just listen to? I mean that in the best possible way. Trying to define this by an established genre feels impossible. Classical? Not entirely? Jazz? For some parts, sure. Rock? Definitely in there. Gospel? You could argue. Folk? I think that’s mostly the underlying theme here. I loved this. I loved it for its complexity, its variety, and its soul. I loved it for the tightness of the band and for their clear love of music, for its energy, and for the sheer force of will that is David Clayton-Thomas’s voice. I don’t even know what to say. This is an easy five stars. Just absolutely fantastic. A masterclass in feel and variety, in band tightness and togetherness. I even listened to the live tracks at the end because I had to hear how they were live and they didn’t disappoint. They’re the real deal. I must heard more. Standout Tracks: Smiling Phases, More and More, And When I Die, Spinning Wheel, Blues, pt. 2

Finally another album where I know some of the songs! I figured this would be "Spinning Wheel," "And When I Die," "You've Made Me So Very Happy" and the rest filler. Nope, I'm very surprised how solid this was besides the first couple of boring minutes and the last couple. Really jazzy, I loved the drumming especially. The one song where the other guy sang wasn't as good as the rest. The main singer has a Tom Jones quality to his voice, so it might sound a bit lounge singer-like, but I like it. The three songs I knew all made me feel all warm and nostalgic, and that's surely going to bring my rating up. This album made me so very happy.

Hell, I'm so burnt out on indistinguishable 4-piece rock groups from this era that even if this album was just an hour of some guy playing a mildly-impressive kazoo, I'd still be looking up vinyl prices right now.

HOLY SMOKES. I had extremely low expectations for this album. The band doesn't have many monthly listeners, which has previously meant that the album really isn't worth it. BUT!! WE ARE FOOLS!! This album is SO good. I loved every minute of it.

Probably one of the best bands that you've never heard of

Truly magnificent. This was a mixture of like 5 genres?? Folk, jazz, rock, bluegrass, soul? I LOVED IT

Lovely. A little bit of everything. We love the blood, sweat, and tears.

Not perfect, but really good. I'd rate it 4.5-stars if I could. Jazzy. I love the horns. Grew up playing trumpet, so makes sense.

Excellent

When I Die, Spinning Wheel &’You Made Me So Very Happy are favorites of mine- going way back.

That first track is just the tip of the iceberg. Great album.

Loved it, loved it all. Great blend of rock and jazz elements. The Satie bookends are beautiful, can’t go wrong there. 4.8/5

I don't know what I was expecting but it wasn't this. This was amazing.

Groovy. The Erik Satie cover is cool

Amazing! 4.5

Genre: Rock, jazz rock 1968 What a sound! Standouts: And When I Die, Spinning Wheel, You've Made Me So Very Happy, God Bless the Child, Smiling Phases, Blues Part II 4.5/5

This one really hit the spot for me. I love this era of music. I love how passionate each song sounds. I love the structure of the album, with the instrumental intro and outro, really giving it a sense of completeness.

Version of Smiling Faces too long but other than that it is a great album

Oh, this opens with one of my favorite musical pieces ever. Okay. (I wake up to Satie's Gymnopedies every morning and haven't gotten sick of it.) I've never thought of myself as a jazz rock person, but I can dig this. It's fun and a bit campy, almost dramatic in moments. It reminded me of musical theatre a bit, in moments. And the horns sound great. I'm honestly a little surprised by how much I like this album. Highlights: Smiling Phases, Sometimes in Winter, More and More, And When I Die, Spinning Wheel, You've Made Me So Very Happy

Thanks for reminding me about this great album

Another interesting, eclectic album. I quite enjoyed this mix, both the music that was new to me and the wonderful classic hits.

Excellent!! No question that I will listen to this one again.

Thoroughly enjoyed this one even though I was sometimes flummoxed by unexpected changes in tone. (A salsa break in the middle of God Bless the Child? OK...) BS&T has a unique sound and interesting takes on other folks' stuff.

Blood, Sweat & Tears isn’t a group I know outside of the hits, but I always love their groovy intensity. This album is no exception. I dig the horns and organ, and those deeply urgent vocals. And When I Die, Spinning Wheel and You’ve Made Me So Very Happy deserve their hit status and are brilliant! But I also loved songs like Sometimes In Winter, More and More that showed some other sides to this band. Great stuff!

Búin að hlusta þrisvar í gegn í dag og var farin að skæla af fullkomnuninni í lokin. Þetta ættu öll að hlusta á, og virkilega *hlusta á*. Ég meina það.

Fantastic

Groovy and fun. Really loved this listen!

Those horns! This is fantastic! Great example of how well Jazz and Rock go together so well! Standouts: And When I Die, Spinning Wheel, You've Made Me So Very Happy, Smiling Phases, God Bless The Child, Blues Part II, 4.5

Great

This album is quite interesting. Sort of a jazzy feel mixed with 70s. Instrumentals include horns, which is a big plus for me. Some of the instrumentals even give me the feels of Christmas instrumentals, but that might just be because of the jazz sound in it 😁 They even got a jazz flute!! 😃 Hey what do you know?! I know some of their songs (Spinning Wheel & You've Made Me So Very Happy) 🥰

Blood, Sweat & Tears is one of the best bands of this productive age of music that combined so many influences. Their debut is also one of their best albums. While you don't really need the Satie variations (so many did them before and after it), the original tracks are amazing. 'Spinning Wheel' is just full of energy and 'You Make Me So Very Happy' too. These songs just want to makes the biggest loner have a big party with his family and friends on a long summer evening.

This was damn good

Jazz rock. Me ha gustado. Un 4.

Older rock, with a heavy jazz lean. Cool combo

Really good! Took me on a journey!

OMG what a lovely surprise - this band is known mostly for Spinning Wheel - and I had no idea how diverse, interesting, fun and fantastic this album was! Yeah Blood Sweat and Tears! What a talent. What a cranking jazzy bridge version of God Bless the Child. Time to read more about them

What a forceful output, especially considering it was released in 1968. At times downright funky.

This album blends jazz and rock in a way that feels like a summer street parade with careful choreography. The brass carries everything forward, even when the vocals stay calm and grounded. Think of the mix of grit and polish you’d get from a Steely Dan record, but with a dash more brass. It’s playful but a bit predictable.

Expectations were very low after reading the dreaded Jazz word in the Wiki article but I rather liked it. Knew Spinningwheel and You Made Me So Very Happy but not in the versions on this album. The Wiki article also seems to suggest that it wasn't all that well recieved by critics at the time something that should have raised my expectations. It seems the more critics like an album the more I hate it. Blues, Pt. 2 is a bit too jazzy for my taste but all in all worth 4 stars.

Groovy listening with so much brass almost overtaking the organ. My favorite song has to be God Bless The Child.

Favorite Track: Spinning Wheel

This album was kind of disjointed as a whole, but I liked almost all the individual songs.

I really enjoyed this album. It had a great mix of blues, jazz, and maybe pop? I liked the vocalist's voice as well. Spinning Wheel, And When I Die, and Blues Pt. 2 were the highlights for me. A 4.5, a high score earned in part for adding variety to this list.

Jazz Rock, (a little bit country moods)

This album is great. I am so tempted to give it a 5, but I just haven’t had enough time with it to know for sure. It is at least a 4.5 in my book.

an erik satie gymnopedie remix ??? yes pls!! I'm kind of shocked I neve heard about this album or band, it was all pleasantly fun and enjoyable. Not necessarily a great album but had a bit of rock, jazz, and experimental concepts. 'You've made me so happy' is wonderful. People won't like this for how off shoot it can be and I get it but musically this is quite brilliant and i'm shocked they didn't go on to have further success.

Very nice. Did not know the album or the band although I know "Spinning Wheel" quite well from hearing it regularly over the years on the radio. So it was a nice surprise!

A little weird at times but overall a lovely album.

Well this was a pleasant surprise Not heard of them before but this is really very good (the brass band in particular really elevates a lot of the songs) A bit too jazzy in places but very strong

Wow, where the hell have they been hiding albums like this? The first few tracks I was just staring at my phone with my mouth agape, this stuff is huge. Really wild fusion of genres, especially jazz mixed in with the rock. I love that, it works really well. Had no expectations going into this (except maybe some typical psych-rock) and was genuinely blown away. Bravo, gang. This one's fantastic. Favorite tracks: Variations on a Theme, Smiling Phases, Sometimes in Winter, More and More, God Bless the Child, You've MAde Me So Very Happy, Blues Pt. II. Album art: At first thought it was just some guys outstanding in their field. Now it looks to be ghosts? Very old pictures of ancestors or something. Pretty cool effect, but overall an unassuming cover, not unlike the Band cover we had recently. 4.5/5

Really, really solid. High 4 I actually have this one on vinyl but never listened to it before, so that was fun

I don’t know. I kinda liked all of this. Is some of it just kooky to be kooky? Probably. But the music is good and I never got bored. 4/5

I only heard Spinning Wheel before. It's not one of the highlights of the album for me. The album blends all kinds of styles together. Played very well. Great singer. Production sounds timeless. The music sounds of that time, or maybe 5 years later. But that's not a problem, in the way that it's not a problem with Strauss or Beethoven either. Favorite song: Smiling Phases.

Loved this! What treat tripping down memory lane with BST! Spinning wheel, You Make Me So Very Happy. Love the vocals and the brass. Reinforces my love for jazz.

Great sounding album. A couple of great tunes, even enjoyed Spinning Wheel that I've heard a million times on the radio. But a confusing listen esp the bookended Satie pieces.

Came into this one blind, really surprised me, loving it. Great mix of jazz and 70s rock

Wow, j’aurais pas cru être accueilli par du Minecraft en commençant cet album là, qui d’ailleurs encapsule du rock de qualité

"Blood, Sweat & Tears" is the second album by American band Blood, Sweat & Tears. Rock and jazz rock. Yep. Al Kooper, Randy Becker and Jerry Weiss left the band after the first album leaving Bobby Colomby (drummer) and Steve Katz (guitar, harmonica, vocals) to find a lead singer and they did in David Clayton-Thomas. The band rounds out with seven other members on the piano, organ, horns and bass. The album is more pop-oriented than the first album along with more cover songs. It did incredibly well commercially, hitting #1 in the US and staying there for seven weeks. It also won the 1970 Grammy for album of the year. Critically, it had mixed reviews. The first song with vocals is a cover of the Traffic song "Smiling Phases." Horns, a drum roll and an organ open the song as vocals and a bass enter. Very distinct vocals by Clayton-Thomas. There's a jazzy interlude, a piano solo and very impressive drumming and changes in time. A solo harmonica, very Western movie sounding, begins the Laura Nero cover "And When I Die." Lots of pace changes. A bouncey, Bo Diddley beat. A great outre with horns exploding. Why not cover Billie Holliday and they do with "God Bless the Child." This is very melancholy with horns st the start and end reminding me of a New Orleans funeral. They actually try a bossa nova beat for awhile. The second side has their two big hits. A loud horn intro, the cowbell and the famous Clayton-Thomas vocal "what goes up, must come down" opens "Spinning Wheel." Lots of instruments, a jazzy interlude and ends with flute/recorder fade. The vocals and lyrics are why I remember this song. The Berry Gordy Jr. song "You Make Me So Every Happy" starts slow with an organ and then we get the horns jammin.' A great vocal chorus: the highlight of the song and Clayton-Thomas's best high point on the album. It's the one song I think of when I hear Blood, Sweat & Tears mentioned. The album really reminded me of Chicago's first album. The music is jazzy, pop and rock with lots of beat changes, instruments used and various solos. Very impressive drumming by Colomby. With all the changes within a song, you almost need a flowchart to follow. I've heard that style in a lot of jazz. Overall, I enjoyed this album. Some memorable songs yet some excess, similar to early Chicago. Most everyone knows their hits, and, if you're in to 60's/early 70's jazz rock or early Chicago, you'll surely enjoy the rest of this as well.

This was not at all what I expected, in a positive way. I was expecting a country\folk\rock album, but although there are elements of that it was primarily a jazz sound that I heard. Some tracks were a little weaker, but as a whole it was very good. A particular highlight is Spinning Wheel, which was sampled with great effect by 3rd Bass on the Sons of 3rd Bass track (a favourite of mine). I give it an unexpected 4 stars!

The album opens with a Theme and Variation from one of my favorite piano pieces from one of my favorite composers, and then immediately goes into some rocking full band music. I've never been so turned on by an album before. They're a little like an off-brand Chicago, just a little more classical-influenced and honky-tonk(?) and not quite as good. Still a great listen, but they fall just short of great for me. Favorite Song(s): Variation..., Smiling Phases

I know many hate that this beat Abbey Road for AOTY at the Grammys, but sorry, it’s nearly as good and probably deserved. Sounds as smooth as ever. B+