Search - Blood Sweat & Tears :: Blood Sweat & Tears

Absolutely great!

Ruckus Man | Brooklyn, NY USA | 06/14/2005

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Really, folks, this is one of the very best albums of all time, of any type. No fluff (except for BP2)



The reason it had three #1 singles wasn't because the album pandered to what some marketer said would sell. Folks, this album came out in 1969, when Motown was at its peak, The Doors and Janis Joplin were hot, Aretha was sa-mokin', and Santana was incredible. Among many, many others.



No, the reason that BST had three #1 singles was because they had a **lot** of musical sophistication and craftsmanship. They never used (didn't need) anything to prop up their music. The performances were flawless, and the arrangements were a delight to listen to. For example, "You've Made Me So Very Happy" is still very romantic after all these years.



They even had the chutzpah to do a cover of "God Bless The Child" -- and they did great!



Exception: "Blues Part 2" is a waste of time. But it's the only fluff on an otherwise strong album."

Awesome collection

Robert H. Command | captain cook, hawaii | 08/27/2000

(5 out of 5 stars)

"If you don't give a damn about a trumpet playing band, don't pick this up. But the Sultans of Swing are missing a truly great mixture of rock and roll and jazz. This collection builds from nothing more than an emotional flute solo to the thundering licks from Sunshine of Your Life. In between is a smorgasborg of rock and blues (Smiling Phases and Spinning Wheel), jazz (Billie Holiday's "God Bless the Child") and even Broadway (Laura Nyro's "And when I die"). David Clayton Thomas thunders. If you can't get into this unit, then you deserve Peter Frampton."

One of the great classic albums

woburnmusicfan | Woburn, MA United States | 04/20/2005

(5 out of 5 stars)

"What can you say? Every single song on this 1969 album is a classic, except for the sprawling "Blues--Part II". This was the first album to have three singles go gold in America ("You've Made Me So Very Happy", "Spinning Wheel", "And When I Die"). Founder/singer Al Kooper had left after BS&T's first album. The band rehearsed with Laura Nyro as singer for a while (she wrote "And When I Die"), before going with the strong voice of David Clayton-Thomas. The album has excellent production by James William Guercio, who was also a founder/producer of Chicago (while both bands played brassy jazz-rock, BS&T focused more on the jazz); he manages the unusual feat of giving all nine band members room to shine without cluttering up the sound. In addition to the hits, there are fantastic covers of Billie Holliday's "God Bless the Child" and Traffic's "Smiling Phases", and even a couple of permutations of Erik Satie's "Trois Gymnopedies". Guitarist Steve Katz wrote and sang the heartbroken ballad "Sometimes in Winter". While there is plenty of soloing, the solos are focused and don't overstay their welcome (again, this excludes "Blues--Part II).



(1=poor 2=mediocre 3=pretty good 4=very good 5=phenomenal)

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