Following a theatrical run this spring, documentary What the Hell Happened to Blood, Sweat & Tears? is now set to make its online premiere via VEEPS on August 20 at 8 PM Eastern. Following the film there will be a live Q&A with director John Scheinfeld and BS&T co-founder Bobby Colomby. Tickets are on sale and you can watch the trailer for the film below.
What the Hell Happened to Blood, Sweat & Tears? is not your average rock doc, with director Scheinfeld creating a film that is also part conspiracy thriller, involving the band’s 1970 tour behind the Iron Curtain with concerts in Yugoslavia, Romania and Poland on a tour sponsored by the U.S. State Department that nearly ended the band’s career. The film features footage from the tour that had been suppressed for 50 years.
Goldmine talked with Bobby Colomby about the original Iron Curtain tour and the documentary. On playing Romania, he said, “They’re chanting, ‘USA, USA!’ They see freedom. They probably don’t know our names, but they’re seeing people that can do what they want, go where they want, and are free — and they’re taking their shirts off, and they’re waving them and making peace signs, and they’re flipping out. The government doesn’t want to see this, so they crack down, and they have a meeting with us, the government, our State Department. We’re all sitting in the room and say, ‘OK, what’s up?’ And they go, ‘OK, you have to play more jazz and less rock.’ As a joke, I actually said, ‘Do you have a jazz meter here?’ Like, how are you going to know? And of course, I played harder backbeats on the second night than I ever played in my life. I was coming down through the ceiling to hit the snare drum. But what happened is they said, ‘No more filming.’ The crew all had still cameras so they took stills. That audience, the second night, rioted and they set the place on fire. The cops came in with dogs they put on the people going, ‘USA, freedom!’ and then they rioted as a result of what the cops did, and we were witnessing this.” Read the whole interview at Goldmine.
