About this episode
Bobby Colomby has had an absolutely fascinating career in music.
Growing up in Manhattan, Bobby's older brothers were deeply entrenched in the city's thriving jazz scene: one was best friends with Miles Davis, while the other managed Thelonious Monk. That love of jazz rubbed off on Bobby, who, as drummer and co-founder, alongside his friends Al Kooper and Steve Katz, helped create one of the first bands to successfully blend jazz and rock: Blood, Sweat & Tears.
Blood, Sweat & Tears became one of the biggest bands in America in the late 1960s and early 1970s, producing a string of hit singles and albums. Their self-titled second album earned the Grammy Award for Album of the Year in 1970, famously besting The Beatles' Abbey Road.
The acclaimed 2023 documentary What the Hell Happened to Blood, Sweat & Tears? tells the incredible story of what happened next: the band's controversial State Department-sponsored tour of Eastern Europe and the swift backlash that followed.
But Bobby never stopped.
He discovered the groundbreaking jazz bassist Jaco Pastorius, securing Jaco a recording contract with Epic Records and personally producing his landmark debut solo album.
While working at CBS Records in the late 1970s, Bobby oversaw and executive produced Destiny by The Jacksons, an album that featured the hits "Blame It on the Boogie" and "Shake Your Body (Down to the Ground)." The project marked a pivotal moment in Michael Jackson's artistic development as he emerged as a songwriter, producer, and creative force in his own right, serving as a precursor to his solo breakthrough, Off The Wall.
Bobby's subsequent artist discoveries include Grammy-winning trumpeter Chris Botti and piano prodigy Jesús Molina.
Today, Bobby remains the owner and steward of the Blood, Sweat & Tears name and legacy.
Lots of amazing anecdotes, insider stories, and music history await on this episode of Rock & Roll High School.
