Mind Mint: Blood, Sweat & (lots of) Tears.

Blood, Sweat & Tears was the second highest paid band at the 1969 Woodstock music festival; only Jimi Hendrix was paid more. Yet few people know that Blood, Sweat & Tears playedWoodstock because they aren't in the Woodstock movie or on the album.

BS&T was on fire in 1969: they had a #1 album with three Top 10 hits. So they probably felt okay about turning down the mediocre movie and album deal. The terms might be good enough for Hendrix, The Who, and Jefferson Airplane, but not for Blood, Sweat & Tears.

BS&T became musically and commercially irrelevant within two years of the festival while most of Woodstock’s acts continued to rise. Might things have turned out differently if they'd been part of the movie and album? Well, it wouldn't have hurt...

For me, this is a cautionary tale about letting sudden success go our heads and cloud our judgment. And I'll leave you with this fail-safe piece of advice: if someone offers you the same deal they’re offering The Who, take it.
 
Have a soft spot in your heart for jazz rock with horns? Check out BS&T’s first and second albums, two of my all-time favorites.