7/4

MUSIC REVIEW Strange brew with a vintage Cream froth BY RAFER GUZMÁN STAFF WRITER October 27, 2005 Ginger Baker's nine-minute drum solo came near the end of Cream's two-hour show Monday night, and it was worth the price of admission - even if you did pay $354.50 for your seat. Drum solos are a thing of the past, as is Cream itself, and there was certainly something nostalgic about this reunion show. The souvenir programs were square, like album covers, and even the tickets, emblazoned with the band's art nouveau logo, were collector caliber. But on stage, the three musicians - Baker, guitarist Eric Clapton and bassist-singer Jack Bruce - seemed less interested in revisiting glory days than in continuing Cream's original mission: channeling the blues into a form of powerful, pounding, mind-altering rock and roll. Some in the audience altered their own minds (the smell of marijuana was powerful) and they probably enjoyed the vintage color swirls on the video backdrop, not to mention the band's famously nonsensical lyrics, better than most. But you didn't need a controlled substance to enjoy the spectacle of three astoundingly good musicians doing what they do best. Baker provided the thudding beats (and some delicate, jazzy fills) while Bruce drove the melodies with his bass and Clapton painted glowing canvases with his guitar. Clapton generally took a back seat to Bruce, who resumed his role as the band's front man as if only a few months, rather than nearly 40 years, had passed. (Cream played its last U.S. concert at the Garden in November 1968.) Bruce opened the show with "I'm So Glad," then delivered a snarling version of Willie Dixon's "Spoonful." On "Rollin' and Tumblin'," a blues numberplayed at steam-engine speed, he traded his bass for a harmonica while still belting out the lyrics. He juggled all three on the mournful "Sitting On Top of the World." (Near the end of the show, Bruce's fast-working left hand appeared injured - he frequently dropped it from the neck of his bass, flexing his fingers or pressing them to his thigh as if trying to work out a cramp - but there was no audible change in his playing.) Clapton revealed more spirit and imagination than he has of late. He sang passionately on "Stormy Monday" and worked up some friction with his guitar. And during the closing "Sunshine of Your Love," he delved into the distorted, swirling jams that made him a legend in the first place. Clapton has obviously eclipsed Bruce and Baker since the demise of Cream, but his old band mates served him well Monday. Clapton's take on "Crossroads" would have fallen flat without Baker's punchy drumming, and it was Bruce's hard-hitting bass that gave "Tales of Brave Ulysses" its power. The show had more than a few meandering moments - but then, this is a '60s band we're talking about. Overall, Cream made its version of the blues sound once again very much alive. CREAM. Past its expiration date but still fresh. Monday through Wednesday at Madison Square Garden. Seen Monday. Copyright 2005 Newsday Inc.

Cream's "Sunshine" Days are Over by Charlie Amter Oct 27, 2005, 4:05 PM PT back to story Cream may have finally curdled. Just days after the legendary group performed concerts in New York, the Eric Clapton-led band may have split up for good. According to a Reuters report, the band's promoter and publicist say the trio's recent shows were likely their last. "The band has no plans for the future," publicist Kristen Foster of KFPR told the news agency Thursday. The "Strange Brew" singers are just coming off reforming for a string of shows in London, New York and Los Angeles over the past few months. The English blues-rock pioneers could have surely launched a larger world tour based on the strength of the recent gigs; yet the appetite to do so is apparently not strong for remaining band members Jack Bruce, Ginger Baker and Clapton. Cream announced they would re-form last December in England. They went on to perform their first show in decades at London's venerable Royal Albert Hall in May--the same venue was the site of the power trio's final gig in 1968. Since the group's disintegration 35 years ago, the only other time Clapton, Bruce and Baker appeared onstage together was when they performed a scorching three-song set at Cream's 1993 induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. After the jam, an emotional Clapton told audience members that he was "moved" by the band's performance, sparking a decade's worth of talk of a possible reunion. "It's been so long since I've been around something from somebody else that's inspired me. For the last 20 years, it's been up to me to inspire me," Clapton said at the time. Cream was formed in 1966 when Clapton left another Hall of Fame band, the Yardbirds, and hooked up with Bruce, a Scotsman from blues outfit Manfred Mann, and Baker, who played toms for the Graham Bond Organization. Known for its blues and psychedelic-infused jams, the threesome quickly established itself among the rock pantheon. The band released just four albums in two years--Fresh Cream, Disreali Gears, Wheels of Fire and Goodbye--but left an indelible mark on classic rock with such radio standards as "Sunshine of Your Love," "Strange Brew," "Spoonful," "White Room" and "Crossroads."

Cream rises to the top: A legendary '60s group reunites to revisit its past Wednesday, October 26, 2005 BY JAY LUSTIG Star-Ledger Staff NEW YORK -- Blues revivalists, pop hitmakers, proto-metal band, head-spinning jam combo. Cream was all those things in its 2 1/2-year reign as a top rock act in the 1960s, and it was all those things Monday night at Madison Square Garden, presenting the first of three reunion shows. For blues majesty, you couldn't beat "Stormy Monday," featuring a long, cathartic solo by guitarist Eric Clapton, or "Rollin' and Tumblin'," howled by Jack Bruce, who also played harmonica instead of his usual bass. For pop accessibility, there was the smooth-grooved "Sunshine of Your Love," saved for the show's only encore. For heavy-metal crunch, there were the power chords and bellowed vocals of "Sweet Wine," and the lurching menace of "Politician." For jam-band expansiveness, there was "Toad," a 10-minute instrumental, mostly featuring just drummer Ginger Baker, who managed to retain a sense of swing even as his rhythms became progressively more complex. Cream was, and is, a three-man band capable of just about anything. "Pressed Rat and Warthog," an odd little story-song, was drolly recited by Baker. "N.S.U." veered toward psychedelia. Few rock concerts are once-in-a-lifetime opportunities, but this one qualified. That's not to say that Cream is picking up exactly where it left off when Clapton, now 60, Bruce, 62, and Baker, 65, went their own ways, in 1968. Whereas the original group was wild and combustible, the current version is more careful and precise. At times during Monday's two-hour show -- the ferociously raw "Rollin' and Tumblin'," an extended jam on "Sunshine of Your Love" -- you felt anything could happen. But mostly, the band was content to revisit the past. And a few numbers simply didn't measure up. "Crossroads" was slowed down, with some soul added, but much drive lost. "Born Under a Bad Sign" seemed lethargic. There were few surprises for anyone who has seen the DVD set or heard the CD set documenting the band's first four reunion shows, which took place in May in London. (No other shows have been mounted, or are currently planned.) Only one song, "Tales of Brave Ulysses," was added to the standard setlist, and it was met by huge cheers. Why did Cream wait nearly four decades to reunite? Well, the musicians were frequently feuding, and Clapton has been hugely successful on his own. In an interview segment on the London DVD, Clapton explained that he resisted the idea of a reunion for years, but finally asked himself "Why not?" instead of "Why?" "We are one of the few groups from (the '60s) who can honestly say that we can get back together again and do exactly -- almost -- what we did then," he said. "And I thought, 'Well, if that's the case, we would really be kind of crazy not to.'" Indeed, all three musicians have made it through the years with their skills remarkably intact. Bruce still has a commanding voice and is an agile bass player. Baker still deserves to be considered one of the rock world's most creative drummers, rarely content to play a simple beat. Clapton's guitar solos still combine flash with slow-building drama, and though he sings less than Bruce, his plaintive vocal style adds another important flavor. Perhaps it was necessary for the band, so forward-looking in the '60s, to be so focused on the past now. The musicians had to get reacquainted with each other before anything else was possible. But if the reunion is to continue beyond the Garden stand, they can't keep on playing the same old songs, every show. It's not certain, of course, if Cream has a future. But after seeing Clapton, Bruce and Baker onstage together after 37 years, one believes that anything is possible.

October 25, 2005 Rock Review | Cream Cream Returns, Mellowed By BEN RATLIFF When venerable rock bands mobilize their management, their lawyers, their crews and matériel, and go back on the road, there's usually some degree of padding in their shows. A horn section, backup singers, an extra guitarist or keyboardist in the shadows all buttress the sound, firming it up. The major attraction of Cream's limited reunion is that it's only the three of them, as forceful or sludgy or spindly as they may be. You must factor in their age, the encroachment of mellower temperaments. But still, the band was recognizable last night at Madison Square Garden in its heavy greasiness, its stomp, its throaty singing and some of its blare. Cream existed only briefly in the late 60's and so is fixed in history a certain way, as purveyors of intense, long-form playing. Last night's efficient, more formalized set didn't conform to the historical record, but if you've been watching closely, you already know that. The band put on a series of shows in London in May, and the concert at the Garden generally adhered to those shows' set lists - and to the exact track order on the live album and DVD from those shows, "Royal Albert Hall" (Reprise), released three weeks ago. Like the London shows, the concert heavily reinforced the notion of Cream as an overdriven blues band, with the band's versions of Skip James, Willie Dixon and Robert Johnson mixed in with its better-known originals, from "White Room" to "Sunshine of Your Love." ("Tales of Brave Ulysses" was the only surprise, a deviation from the new live album. "Never before done onstage," Eric Clapton declared when it was finished.) But blues is Mr. Clapton's bread and butter, and he played it well, superbly at times; if there were few frenetic outbursts, he still played riffs beautifully, like the one in "Born Under a Bad Sign." Except when Mr. Clapton overpowered the sound with high-note soloing, Cream is a band with a low center of gravity, reinforced by Jack Bruce's bass playing and Ginger Baker's drumming. Holding his sticks at the bottom to wield maximum thump, Mr. Baker displayed a version of rock drumming that was at least half tom-toms. Cream was at its best when cruising in mid-tempo or slower. In "Sweet Wine" there was a feeling of settling in, and the band did what great groups do: subtly adjust the dynamics around what you're supposed to hear, which in this case was one of Mr. Clapton's better solos. In "Stormy Monday," the audience adjusted its own dynamics: when Mr. Clapton sped up his licks, organizing them into hectic focus, there was a rising, calibrated roar. As a bonus in a clockwork show, there were even a few longueurs, like Mr. Bruce's extended harmonica solo in Muddy Waters's "Rollin' and Tumblin'," and "We're Going Wrong," full of slow, sticky dread. You couldn't afford a ticket? It's really all right. Watch the DVD.

Happy Birthday Chris!

I've been around here for a while and I don't know about any warm fuzzy Organissimo package. And I did, I wouldn't touch it.

show tunes?

Unless things have changed, they have to start fulfilling your sub in 4-6 weeks. I've been the biz for 20 years, my father wrote a book on it. That 120+ days doesn't wash. If EBay is doing that they are breaking Federal laws. Go to the magazines web site, don't screw around with agencies.

I'd like a Japanese back scratcher that makes tea.

The Brecker album sounds fine. But then I haven't heard Audio-Visualscapes in years. I never thought it was an equipment issue, I thought it was an recording issue. Maybe I was just hooked on the EMC sound.

I thought Tony Williams played a recording of them playing together for Miles.

The pitch mapping is a global setting that makes everything higher or lower in pitch. No settings for each note, so no microtones. I like the ones you found.

It doesn't work in Firefox, but it does in IE. Sounds crazy...now to check the first link.

I'm having problems getting this to play...

and Dave Stewart too.

I have this on vinyl if you want it. I thought it was real cool, but then I noticed his drums, particularly the cymbals - sounded different on Impulse than on EMC. And those electric harmonisers on the horns became dated real quick. No problems with the playing, those guys smoke.

Same here. But I've never heard him perform. I should do something about that! When I started a business with my Dad, I didn't have much money (I was in my late 20s, it really sucked). But I'd save it up and every weekend I'd go to the Princeton Record Exchange and buy used ECM cutouts for 1.99-2.99. It's amazing how many of those albums he was on.

I'm interested in this angle, looking forward to the results.

Man, I haven't seen an Opel in years.

It's because it shows up after "Stolen Moments". "SM" to "Hoe-Down" is one of the most jarring segues in the history of recorded jazz. It's a schizophrenic mood shift--magnified by the fact that the "Hoe-Down" intro sounds like soft-parody. I think it plays into the overall "concept" of the album--a sort of emotional travelogue, encompassing the whole "sphere" of "blues"--but that doesn't make it any less out there. It took me a long time to come to terms with it. Then again, I didn't get "Kind of Blue" until a plane flight to Germany, so... ← Yep. Sums it up. I think I could have done something to that head to make it a bit less angular, but the solos bring it up to speed.

I might have to start a new poll.

Didn't think of including that one, but I never use it. I'll have to add it to the vocabulary.

and little flags like those seen right after 9/11.

I think those could work as billboards and tatoos on righty foreheads.