"What the Hell Happened to Blood, Sweat & Tears?" Shows David Clayton-Thomas at the Height of His Powers

 

I have been on something of a Blood, Sweat & Tears kick since the passing of its former lead singer, David Clayton-Thomas, earlier this week.

Truth be told, though, I have been listening to Blood, Sweat & Tears for as long as I can remember. The group's eponymous second album which represented Clayton-Thomas' debut with the group is among the first albums I ever remember listening to as a child. Dad told me how I would bounce around the room when I heard "Smiling Phases". That album would spawn three Top 5 singles - "You've Made Me So Very Happy", "Spinning Wheel" along with "And When I Die" and would best The Beatles' "Abbey Road" to win the Grammy for Album of the Year for producer James William Guercio who would also produce the likes of The Buckinghams, Chicago and Moondog.

Yet I needed something more by which to remember Clayton-Thomas. When I saw that the 2023 documentary What the Hell Happened to Blood, Sweat & Tears? was available for viewing on YouTube, I leapt at the chance to see it. Directed by John Scheinfeld, What the Hell Happened to Blood, Sweat & Tears? tells the story of their 1970 tour of the former Yugoslavia, Romania and Poland and how it would lead to the group's decline. I only wish I had saw it in a movie theatre to get the full glory of the sights and sounds.

When Blood, Sweat & Tears played in the Soviet bloc, they were the first rock 'n roll group to play behind the Iron Curtain. However, this was a tour that Blood, Sweat & Tears had no desire to embark upon but did so under duress. The reason for this duress was that Clayton-Thomas had been arrested for an alleged assault and faced revocation of his Green Card as he was a British born Canadian citizen. To make matters worse, Clayton-Thomas had a criminal record as a juvenile growing up in Toronto.

In an effort to prevent Clayton-Thomas' deportation, their manager Larry Goldblatt made a secret deal with the U.S. State Department. In exchange for Clayton-Thomas to remain in the U.S. they would partake in this cultural exchange. Less than a year earlier, President Nixon had visited Romanian dictator Nicolae Ceaușescu in an effort to promote detente. However, several of the group's members particularly guitarist and occasional lead singer Steve Katz were strong critics of not only the Nixon Administration but their escalation of the Vietnam War and thus felt uneasy about their involvement. But for the sake of Clayton-Thomas they reluctantly went along with it.

For his part, Clayton-Thomas made a point of saying he was not as political as Katz but did share his opposition to the Vietnam War. While not mentioned in the film, it is well worth noting that before Clayton-Thomas joined Blood, Sweat & Tears, he had fronted a Toronto-based group called The Bossmen which had a minor Canadian hit with a song called "Brainwashed" which was an anti-war song with jazz undertones. The song featured Clayton-Thomas singing "damn" which was bleeped out for radio airplay. That was heady stuff in 1966.

During their time in the Eastern bloc, the band members were followed not so inconspicuously by local spies while having their rooms trashed by some other not so conspicuous local spies. Accompanying Blood, Sweat & Tears on the tour was a film crew led by first-time director Donn Cambern who had recently completed work as a film editor on Easy Rider. Cambern and his crew would capture the sights & sounds of Romanians loving the music, chanting "U.S.A." and Ceaușescu's goons turning their dogs on people who wanted nothing more than peace, fun and music. 

Cambern's crew would also capture representatives of the State Department pressuring the group to emphasize jazz over rock, tone down their gestures and to dump long-haired members of their road crew. To their credit, Blood, Sweat & Tears ignored their edicts. Unfortunately, this was not what either the Nixon Administration or the Ceaușescu regime wanted to see. So, the original documentary never saw the light of day. While Cambern had a successful career as a film editor and would earn an Oscar nomination for editing the 1984 film Romancing the Stone, he would never direct another film. Sadly, Cambern died a few months before the release of the documentary, and it is dedicated to his memory.

When Blood, Sweat & Tears returned to the U.S., the group was not treated as cultural Ambassadors for peace but as tools of the Nixon Administration as Clayton-Thomas, Katz and drummer Bobby Colomby fielded hostile questions during a press conference. The group still opposed Nixon and the Vietnam War but had a newfound appreciation for American freedom after being exposed to the repressive nature of Eastern bloc Communism.

Then as now, there was little appreciation for nuance. The group would subsequently face a slew of negative articles in the press and would become the bête noire of the New Left culminated by a protest led by Abbie Hoffman outside a Madison Square Garden concert dubbed Blood, Sweat & Bullshit! During the performance, an audience member hurled horseshit on stage striking Colomby's drum kit. Meanwhile, conservatives assailed the Nixon Administration for subsidizing supposedly long-haired radicals to a Communist country. This was a no-win situation for Blood, Sweat & Tears. Clayton-Thomas expressed sadness for putting the group into said no-win situation.

What the Hell Happened to Blood, Sweat & Tears? essentially argues that this tour represented the end of the group. I think it would be more accurate to say that it was the beginning of the end. At the time of the tour, Blood, Sweat & Tears had just released Blood, Sweat & Tears 3. While not as successful as their previous album, it did yield two Top 40 hits - "Hi-De-Ho" and "Lucretia MacEvil" both of which were played during the Eastern Bloc tour. The following year, the group would release B, S, & T 4. This would yield "Go Down, Gamblin'" which would prove to be their final Top 40 hit. Another single "Lisa, Listen to Me" would peak at #73 on the U.S. Billboard charts but would get more airplay in Canada. 

Clayton-Thomas along with founding members Dick Halligan and Fred Lipsius would depart the group after B, S & T 4. By 1975, Clayton-Thomas would return to the group but by this time Blood, Sweat & Tears would be for all intents and purposes a nostalgia act which remains the case to this day under the direction of Colomby. There have been over 150 members of Blood, Sweat & Tears. 

What the Hell Happened to Blood, Sweat & Tears? gives the most important members of the band the opportunity to share their firsthand experiences. Along with Clayton-Thomas, Katz and Colomby, Jim Fielder and Fred Lipsius also share their insights. We also hear from Clive Davis who signed the group to Columbia Records back in 1967. Davis passed away two days before Clayton-Thomas. Perhaps the most joyful aspect of the film was hearing David Clayton-Thomas sing songs originally sung by Al Kooper on their debut album Child is the Father to the Man such as "Something Goin' On", "I Can't Quit Her" and "I Love You More Than You'll Ever Know". While I enjoy Kooper's performances, Clayton-Thomas takes those songs to places which Kooper couldn't. We get to hear Clayton-Thomas' voice at the height of its power.

If nothing else What the Hell Happened to Blood, Sweat & Tears? gives the uninitiated to see and hear how the innovators of jazz-rock got to the top of the mountain even if it also meant seeing their inevitable fall. R.I.P. David Clayton-Thomas.

Mets Give Mendoza His Marching Orders; Name Ex-Padres Skipper Green Interim Manager

Exactly halfway through the 2026 MLB season, the New York Mets have parted ways with manager Carlos Mendoza. Andy Green, who managed the San Diego Padres from 2016 through most of the 2019 season, has been named interim manager for the rest of the year.

The Mets began today 34-47 amid a six-game losing streak and have already lost their first game under Green. Both the Mets and the Philadelphia Phillies began the season with a record of 9-19. On April 28th, the Phillies dismissed Rob Thomson in favor of Don Mattingly. Under Donnie Baseball, the Phillies have gone 37-17. They are the top seed in the NL Wild Card race and are only 3½ games back of the Atlanta Braves in the NL East.

From April 28th through June 18th, the Mets treaded water going 25-22 before dropping back-to-back games to the Phillies and being swept in a four-game series with the Chicago Cubs which precipitated Mendoza's firing. Back on April 18th, I reflected on Mendoza's job status after the Mets had lost 10 in a row in what would ultimately be a 12-game losing streak:

For starters, the Mets have the second highest payroll in MLB. This means the Mets are expected to win and to win now.

Let us also consider Mendoza himself. Hired prior to the 2024 season on a three-year deal with a club option for 2027, the Mets would earn a NL Wild Card berth and reach the NLCS falling to the eventual World Series champion Los Angeles Dodgers in six games. But then there was last year. Things were looking very good for the Mets. In mid-June, the Mets had the best record in MLB with a 45-24 and had a 5½ game lead over the Philadelphia Phillies in the NL East. The Mets were not so amazin' going 38-55 the rest of the way. As Mets announcer Gary Cohen put it at the time, "And the Mets agonizing, three-and-a-half-month, slow-motion collapse, is complete."

This collapse has now lasted more than a year. Fittingly enough, it began on Friday the 13th beginning a 7-game losing streak going 3-13 for the rest of the month and it hasn't got much better since.

Unless, the Mets go on a Knicks-like surge, Andy Green will be a short-term solution to get the team to the finish line. During his near four-year stint in San Diego, the Padres never finished better than 4th place as the Los Angeles Dodgers began their dominance of the NL West. I'm not sure if even Danhausen could uncurse the Mets at this stage.

3 Candidates Endorsed by Mamdani Will Be Headed to Congress

(Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images)

New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani displayed his clout this evening as all three congressional candidates he endorsed won their Democratic primaries including two candidates who unseated incumbent Democratic Congressmen.

Brad Lander, the former New York City Comptroller and mayoral candidate, unseated two-term incumbent Congressman Dan Goldman winning his primary in New York's 10th Congressional District by more than 30 points.

New York's 13th Congressional District proved a closer contest, but Darializa Avila Chevalier unseated incumbent Adriano Espaillat by 3.5%. Espaillat had served five terms in Congress and was the Chair of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus. Chevalier was part of Mamdani's DSA.

Meanwhile, New York's 7th Congressional District was an open seat, but Mamdani's pick, Claire Valdez bested Antonio Reynoso, who was endorsed by retiring Congresswoman Nydia Velázquez, by nearly 18 points. Valdez is also a DSA member.

Given that these are safe Democratic seats, all three of these Democratic nominees will be elected to the next Congress in November.

What is unsettling is how Israel was a defining issue in these races and, in so doing, has become a litmus issue among Democrats. How else does one explain a business openly bragging about wishing they could deny service to soon to be former Congressman Goldman? Or for that matter how Mayor Mamdani can call AIPAC monsters when he won't use that term to describe Hamas?

But most frightening of all is how this sentiment among Democrats is not confined to New York City as we have seen in Maine with Graham Platner, in New Jersey with Adam Hamawy and perhaps in Michigan with Abdul el-Sayed or possibly Nithya Raman in Los Angeles or Janeese Lewis George in Washington, D.C.

Andy Burnham Was a Horrible Boss

When I wrote my lament for soon to be former UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer, I mentioned that I had firsthand experience working for his likely successor, Andy Burnham.

Back in 1995, I was an undergraduate political science student at Carleton University in Ottawa, Ontario. I was selected to partake in an academic exchange with the University of Leeds during which I would intern for a UK Member of Parliament (MP). 

As I was a card-carrying member of the New Democratic Party (NDP), I wanted to intern for a Labour MP. I would be assigned to Tessa Jowell, a MP representing a constituency called Dulwich which was situated in South London. Jowell would later serve as a cabinet minister in both the Labour governments of Tony Blair and Gordon Brown and subsequently was appointed to the House of Lords. Sadly, she passed away of brain cancer in 2018. 

There were two staffers working for Jowell, one of whom was Andy Burnham. He was for all intents and purposes my boss. I'm sorry to say that he was a horrible boss.

To put it bluntly, Burnham treated me like shit. He constantly talked at me as if I were a buffoon. Indeed, both he and his assistant Duncan went out of their way to belittle my intelligence. They would tell me that I had limited intelligence.

Needless to say, I was largely confined to opening mail and was often sent downstairs to an empty desk where for the most part I would catch up on my homework. The problem with this arrangement was that in order for me to graduate I had to demonstrate what kind of parliamentary work I was doing be it at the constituency or policy level. The fact that I could not demonstrate this put my university graduation into jeopardy. Burnham was well aware of the situation, but he did not give a toss. 

There were occasions when I was asked to attend surgeries. In the context of UK politics, a surgery is where a MP will meet directly with their constituents. In Canada, MPs have permanent constituency offices for that purpose. 

I didn't have a problem being involved with that process. The problem was that I had to get there on my own. While I had my Nicholson's Guide to London, I was nevertheless in unfamiliar territory and frequently got lost often in very rainy weather. By the time I would arrive there would be nothing for me to do except stand around soaking wet while Burnham would laugh at me derisively.

I do remember Burnham getting very angry with me after he found out I had contacted Tony Benn, a legendary Labour MP who would serve in the House of Commons for nearly half a century. My undergraduate thesis was a comparison between the youth wings of the NDP and the Labour Party. The reason I wanted to get in touch with Benn was to interview him due to his support of Andy Bevan, who had been hired as the party's official youth organizer, despite considerable resistance from the party establishment.

In any case, Burnham made a point of accusing me of "sleaze". Sleaze? This wasn't cash for questions. I was trying to fulfill my academic requirements. Nothing more.

I should mention that I did interview Tony Benn. In the years that followed, I was not crazy about Benn's softball interview of Saddam Hussein. But when I visited Benn at his home, he treated me with the utmost courtesy and respect and I did the same. Tony Benn provided me with more courtesy and respect in 30 minutes than Andy Burnham could muster in two months.

I'm not sure why Tessa Jowell wanted an intern. I'm also not sure why Andy Burnham treated me the way he did. All I know is that I was miserable and things got to a point where University of Leeds faculty agreed to reassign me to a different MP. I would be placed with a Scottish Labour MP named Jimmy Wray who gave me the following advice after telling me he thought I was on the verge of a nervous breakdown:

You're the boss!

Don't worry and don't hurry!

A man who never made a mistake is a man who never made anything!

Needless to say, my time with Jimmy Wray proved a far better use of my time and Jimmy's. And yes, I was able to graduate.

Now, I write all this with the understanding that this took place more than 30 years. Burnham would subsequently be elected to the House of Commons in his own right in 2001. He would later serve in Gordon Brown's cabinet and twice sought the leadership of the Labour Party in 2010 and in 2015. 

Following the ascension of Jeremy Corbyn in 2015, Burnham was smart enough to leave Westminster and successfully seek the mayoralty of Manchester. He would be re-elected to the same post twice before making his successful return to Westminster last week.

Going to Manchester was a shrewd move on Burnham's part. He managed to create a power base for himself outside of London and I'm sure other MPs may take a similar path should he end up living at Number 10 Downing Street.

So, I will be the first to acknowledge Burnham's success. I can only hope that he treats the people who work for him now a lot better than he treated me more than 30 years ago.

Will Poetica Coffee Receive Poetic Justice for Its Anti-Semitism?

 

I had never heard of Poetica Coffee, a NYC coffee shop with several locations in Brooklyn and in Manhattan's East Village.

But Poetica Coffee sure decided to draw attention to itself with a Facebook post which remains up as of this writing. The Facebook post blasts New York Democratic Congressman Dan Goldman for having the temerity to visit their establishment and engaging in commerce:

Hey Congressman Dan Goldman, we see that you stopped by our shop today for a coffee. Do you see how it doesn’t taste like genocide juice? Or are you still having a hard time telling the difference? 

See, here at Poetica, we don’t serve racists, fascists, homophobes, genocide enablers, or anyone in between. Too bad we didn’t recognize you right away, or we would have turned you away. We issued you a refund—we don’t need your money (it’s probably coming from AIPAC anyways). Enjoy your loss on Tuesday. Don’t ever come to Poetica.

Given the fact that Poetica sees fit to associate "genocide enablers" with AIPAC, it is safe to say that they will likely not deny service to people of Chinese origin despite the Government of China's genocide against Uyghur Muslims or to people of Burmese origin despite the Government of Myanmar's genocide against Rohingya Muslims. No, Poetica is only singling out Jews.

For his part, Goldman, who is facing a primary challenge from Mamdani ally Brad Lander, responded:

I am sorry to see this post. The barista could not have been nicer to my 7-year-old daughter and me — allowing her to use the bathroom even though we had not purchased anything.

I made sure to buy a coffee in return for her kindness. I hope you at least make sure she gets the tip that she deserved.

It is worth noting that the DoJ is not amused and has already seen fit to launch a probe against Poetica Coffee. Given that Trump's DoJ has a fairly broad definition of what constitutes religious discrimination as is the case with their probe into MLB alleging discrimination against players writing biblical verses on their caps in protest of Pride Night, I'm not sure if this will serve as much of a remedy.

Perhaps Poetica Coffee will receive poetic justice instead. The fact that the establishment went out of its way to single out a Jewish Congressman for visiting their establishment will make New Yorkers rethink where they purchase their coffee. This would be a fitting consequence for brewing discontent.

Mamdani is The Real Monster

 

At a rally last Thursday evening in Brooklyn for DSA endorsed congressional candidates, only hours after being present at the New York Knicks championship celebration parade, New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani called AIPAC "monsters.":

These monsters take many forms today: in those who fund television ads that blanket the airwaves with misleading and bad-faith attacks about Claire, Brad, and Dari; those who would rather spend far more on political contributions than they would ever be made to pay in taxes; in AIPAC, for whom the only thing more frightening than democracy being allowed to run its course is an end to the genocide in Netanyahu's wars.

They move millions in dark money to accomplish a single goal: to preserve their power, so that they can turn us against one another instead of turning our leaders toward the moral change we all know to be necessary. In a politics that for too long has asked working people to lower their expectations, to settle for less, to become satisfied with small victories while our wages grow even smaller and our costs grow even larger; to resign ourselves to resignation, to accept the unacceptable. In the wealthiest city, in the wealthiest country in the history of the world, we need not live in fear of monsters any longer. 

This did not sit well with New Jersey Democratic Congressman Josh Gottheimer:

“Monsters.” “Dark money.” A hidden hand “turning us against one another.” Swap “AIPAC” for “Jews” and it’s the oldest antisemitic conspiracy theory in the books. That’s not criticizing a lobby. That’s laundering antisemitism from your podium as Mayor of a city with more than a million Jews. This bullshit is dangerous. If you want to talk about real monsters let’s start with the North Koreans, Russians, Sudanese, the Iranian regime, and their proxies — Hamas, Hezbollah, PIJ — and other terrorist groups who’ve killed scores of Americans.

AIPAC isn't frightened by democracy, it is engaging in it while Mamdani engages in demagoguery by likening it to monsters.

To pick up on Gottheimer's point, Mamdani has never referred to the North Koreans, Russians, Sudanese, the Iranian regime much less Hamas, Hezbollah and Palestinian Islamic Jihad as monsters.

Consider what I wrote back in January after a mob chanted pro-Hamas slogans in front of a synagogue in Queens:

The fact that Mamdani cannot condemn Hamas by name much less characterize them as anti-Semitic should not come as a surprise. While vowing to fight "the scourge of anti-Semitism" after taking the oath of office he immediately rescinded executive orders regarding the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance's definition of anti-Semitism and prohibiting the city from engaging in the Boycott Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) Movement against Israel.

Let us also remember that the day after October 7th, Mamdani also condemned Israel while making no mention of Hamas.

Mamdani cannot condemn Hamas because he supports Hamas and their anti-Semitic objective of wiping Israel off the face of the Earth. If Mamdani were to condemn Hamas by name, he would be a dead man walking. 

Keep in mind, this will only get worse. The night Mamdani was elected, I predicted there would be an October 7th inspired attacks against Jews in NYC. By calling AIPAC monsters, Mamdani is planting the seeds for bloodshed. That makes him a monster in my eyes.

Why I Feel Sorry for Keir Starmer

 

As widely expected, Sir Keir Starmer announced his resignation as UK Prime Minister this morning. Starmer's resignation will most likely take effect in September when the Labour Party is expected to elect a new leader. 

That new leader will very likely be Andy Burnham, a three-term Mayor of Manchester who was returned to the House of Commons in a by-election last Thursday. I plan to write more about Burnham in the coming days as I have firsthand experience working with him.

For now, however, I wish to share my thoughts about Starmer's current state of being.

Simply put, I feel sorry for him.

After all, it was less than 2 years ago that he led the Labour Party to massive landslide victory ending 14-years of Tory rule. It was a landslide almost a large as that of Tony Blair when his first Labour government ascended to power nearly 30 years ago. Unlike Blair, however, Starmer will never get an opportunity for re-election much less three mandates.

As of this writing, unemployment in the UK is just under 5% - its lowest level in five years. You would think the unemployment rate would have been treble that amount given the eagerness with which Labour hung Starmer out to dry. Then again, the unemployment rate under President Biden was under 5% (much of that time under 4%) and fat lot of good that did him. 

This isn't to say that Starmer didn't make a share of mistakes. He should have exercised far more diligence and better judgment when considering Peter Mandelson to be Ambassador to the U.S. Mandelson was a confidante of the late convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein although he was not involved in any sexual misconduct. 

Although Starmer's government was successful in reducing migration levels to the UK, it was insufficient for many voters who turned to Reform led by Nigel Farage and his tendency towards incitement against minorities calling for "pure, cold rage."

When Starmer made his resignation speech, he made a point of saying he was proud of "ripping out the poison of anti-Semitism". Unfortunately, as it turns out, there a lot of anti-Semites in the UK and many of them have turned to the Green Party to find a purportedly legitimate expression of that hatred. 

From where I sit, I think Starmer is to be given every credit for his earnest efforts to stamp out anti-Semitism in the Labour Party and speaking out against its further rise under his watch. However, I think Starmer was wrong in recognizing a Palestinian state at a time when Hamas was still holding hostages. Alas, many a troll on Blue Sky think Starmer is guilty of enabling a genocide and they are clearly not referencing China or Myanmar.

Keir Starmer strikes me as a decent fellow who the British electorate expected to walk on water. If this same electorate perceives Andy Burnham as a savior, then I can only imagine how they will react when Burnham attempts to take a stroll on the Thames.

Starmer ought to have had the chance to make his case to the voters in 2028 or 2029. Whatever mistakes he made have made, I can think of certain world leaders who made far worse mistakes and were given second chances.