19. Spinning Wheel (Blood, Sweat and Tears)
"Spinning Wheel" was written by vocalist David
Clayton-Thomas, arranged by saxophonist Fred Lipsius, and produced by James
William Guercio. It stands today as the greatest success of Blood, Sweat &
Tears.
"Spinning Wheel" was nominated for three Grammys
in 1970, and won Best Instrumental Arrangement. It was nominated for Record of
the Year and Song of the Year. The album itself won the Grammy for Album of the
Year in 1970.
In founding member Al Kooper's memoir, Backstage Passes
and Backstabbing Bastards, Kooper writes that he originally conceived of
Blood, Sweat & Tears as "a band that could put dents in your shirt if
you got within fifteen rows of the stage. Like Maynard Ferguson's band from the
years 1960-1964, I wanted a horn section that would play more than the
short adjectives they were relegated to in R&B bands; but, on the other
hand, a horn section that would play less than Count Basie's or Buddy
Rich's. Somewhere in the middle was a mixture of soul, rock, and jazz that was
my little fantasy."
When Blood, Sweat & Tears was first forming, they needed
$40,000 seed money while the first album was in progress. This made Jerry
Wexler at Atlantic Records (the A&R behind Leiber and Stoller, Led
Zeppelin, and Bob Dylan, amongst others) turn them down. Mo Ostin of Warner
Brothers also nibbled but turned them down. Finally Bill Gallagher at Columbia
signed them on, after attending the Monterey Pop Festival and becoming
interested in the alternative market.