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Penguin to publish memoir by David Clayton-Thomas

February 10, 2010 - (Toronto) – Penguin Group (Canada) announced today it will publish a memoir titled Blood, Sweat and Tears by Canadian Music Hall of Fame Inductee David Clayton–Thomas.

As the longtime frontman for legendary band Blood, Sweat & Tears, David Clayton–Thomas has spent a lifetime in the spotlight, touring and collaborating with some of the greatest musicians of all time, including Miles Davis, BB King, Thelonious Monk, Nina Simone and Sammy Davis Jr.  He has headlined at Woodstock, Madison Square Garden, Caesar’s Palace and numerous other world–renowned music venues; has recorded 27 albums and sold more than  40 million records, scoring 6 gold singles and winning a host of Grammys and other music awards.

But his success did not come easily.  A teenage runaway on the streets of Toronto, Clayton–Thomas served three sentences behind bars before he turned twenty.  Discovering his gift for music in jail, he taught himself to play guitar using a marked–up cribbage board and a how–to book from the prison library.  

On the outside, his determination drove him from the brawling bars of Toronto’s Yonge Street Strip to the “basket houses” of New York’s Greenwich Village and on to international stardom. Clayton–Thomas is the instantly recognisable voice of Blood, Sweat & Tears, the first contemporary band to tour behind the Iron Curtain, to headline the Newport Jazz Festival, to play Lincoln Centre, to headline in Las Vegas, and to play the first fully integrated tour of South Africa.   

In Blood, Sweat and Tears, for the first time Clayton–Thomas talks candidly about his troubled upbringing, the break–up of his phenomenally successful band and the wild ride that is a life in rock and roll.  It’s an inspiring and often shocking tale that provides a fascinating look into the man behind huge hits like “Spinning Wheel” and “You Made Me So Very Happy”.

David Clayton–Thomas performs at Massey Hall with the Toronto Symphony Orchestra on Feb. 12–13.   

The book was signed by Penguin Canada Publishing Director Diane Turbide for release in September, 2010.