Cream’s importance in the development of rock music cannot be underestimated. Their blues and jazz backgrounds formed the basis for the rock virtuoso and soon the rock industry followed. This history traces the early beginnings of the band through their 2.5 years together and slightly beyond.
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The slideshows are sublime. Don't get too dusty. Hee.
John Mayall had a unique gimmick, a 9-string guitar, shown in the slideshow. He made an excellent "solo" album called The Blues Alone. I do a wicked Mayall impersonation which also doubles for Kermit and as a vocal coach we call it "swallowing the tongue" which hides the real note. There is a simple solution, called "opening the throat". Apparently John likes the Kermit voice. Oh shite he lives 2 miles west of where I type…
A truly wonderful band – and their story very well told – Thank you!!
I also * really liked the great collection of pictures you sourced and shared … they were a very photogenic bunch of musicians 😊
The summer of 1968 sure was the ultimate “passing on of the baton” at the top of the newish and small “world” of blues/ power rock.
In July Cream announced they were breaking up. That same month was the last show of the also fraught Yardbirds.
The following month – no doubt partly inspired by Cream, below a record store in London (unlike Cream, three of them virtually unknown) the “New Yardbirds” played together for the first time. Who (as you would all of course know, as Zeppelin) with mostly extended songs, added a heavier sound to blues/ power rock
… were fortunate to never experience the tensions which sadly, destroyed the often magic sounding Cream within only two years
I learned these guys were multi-deminsional after hearing the songs "I Feel Free" and "Badge".
Thanks for another great band history Matt. One of my favorite bands. Some of the songs are really quite beautiful, it was nice to hear them again. I'll have to break out the vinyl.
I also love the studio sides more than the live ones. It's fortunate that Felix Pappalardi was around to advocate for the band and to produce them.
The sound track for Ginger Baker goes to Africa( much recommended) uses Pressed Rat and Warthog as a template with much success. Cheers and looking forward to the next one.
after following and listening to all sorts of music for 64 years i've come to this:the accolade "greatest" or "the best" is nearly impossible to apply! HOWEVER believing that you are only as good as you are LIVE is a fair benchmark. that being said cream, the allman brothers band (with duane) and the band seem to be at the apex? once again based on live performances.
Ginger Baker was a jerk Eric and Jack are cool and this guy has his facts wrong, what a waste of time
Speaking of "throw ins"–Stigwood did the same thing to Murray the K, according to Dave Marsh in "Before I Get Old." Stigwood was told to use The Who as leverage to keep Mitch Ryder OFF a Murray the K bill (as in, "Mitch insists, he digs the Who," even though he didn't), hoping that Mitch's insisting on including the Who would be a deal killer. Not only was it NOT, but Stigwood threw in "on, and Mitch digs The Cream, too." So Cream was on the bill with Mitch Ryder, Herman's Hermits, The Who, and a few others. Turned a fluff show into a seminal event.
Also–"Badge" was a Clapton-Harrison co-write, despite what the label says
Meilenstein…. alles was hier entstand gab es zuvor nicht… vielleicht.. Chuck Barry…aber
und sie hatten Songs… unglaublich gute Songs…. es gab viele die es versuchten in ähnlich avantgardistischer
Weise…. aber solche Songs hatte keiner…
das andere drum herum… interessiert mich nicht wirklich…
so eine Entwicklung entsteht natürlich nicht in luftleeren Raum
aber
Sunshine of your Love… White Room… Crossroads… spoonful..
I feel free… I m so glad…. und etc.
das war aussergewöhnlich
I saw Cream live in 1968 at Clowes Hall in Indianapolis. We sat nine rows in front of Jack Bruce, but I couldn't take my eyes off of Ginger Baker whose arm and leg movements made him look like an octopus! From then on my favorite drummer. Oddly enough, the first half of the show was the American Breed of "Bend Me, Shape Me" fame…a mismatch which was typical in those days.
Very comprehensive and thoughtful band review. I also like the song "Badge" a lot, and it is worth mentioning that it was co-written by George Harrison. "While My Guitar Gently Weeps" is another example of what they could do together. Why those two friends didn't collaborate more in their careers I don't know. (Typical big star ego issues? Patti Boyd? )
Thanks Matt! Another superlative historical narrative on one of the great bands in rock history. I was in my early teens when Cream was popular. But their sound was revolutionary at the time – compared to the teeny pop I was listening to on AM radio. Clapton's guitar solo on "I'm So Glad" is one of the best ever recorded. It's just so inventive and original. Still gives me goose bumps to listen to it. I think that was his best period (along with Derek & Dominoes). The last Clapton album I ever bought was "461 Ocean Blvd". Never cared for his later sound.
I'm an old F, and never remember "the" Cream or Fresh Cream.
What a treat! No bs, no hype, no filler. Informative and sincere. Well done!
Their music still sounds great and I hope it never gets forgotten in the mists of time. I've always especially loved 'Politician', it's got a really sleasy feel to it, the studio version anyway. They were and still are legendary; has anyone tried imitating them in the form of a parasitic tribute group?👺👽👹
Saw them live in Chicago in 1968. Great show.
Different album cover variations and so on.
Atco
Polydor
R.S.O.
Reaction.
Sir, it would be nice if you would do a story on
Larry Byrom
You cannot complete a history of Cream without mentioning the reunion concerts, especially the 2005 ones in the Albert Hall in London which were videoed and are available on YouTube. White Room and We're Going Wrong are the standout tracks for me. Amazing how good they still sounded.