The Cream is always on top....

Good evening Rawkers. Felt inspired to spend a few minutes talking about the single greatest rock trio ever to pick up and plug in -- none other than (as the BBC famously announced) "The Cream".

At the time, three of the most exceptional and interesting musicians on their respective instruments, Ginger Baker, Jack Bruce and Eric Clapton joined forces in 1966 to form the supergroup forever to be known as Cream. And what a blessing it was.

They were done as a unit by 1968, but in those two years the lads delivered several of the most enduring rock tunes ever, including "Sunshine of Your Love", "Crossroads", "White Room" and "Strange Brew" among others.

Much has been said and written about the group's bona fides -- Clapton's massive blues guitar cred from the Yardbirds and the Bluesbreakers ("Clapton is God"), and the serious jazz chops of Bruce and Baker (who played together and separately and had a fairly incindiary relationship). Together, the three combined to create a volcano of musical force and excitement that made it seem as if Cream had been on the scene for YEARS, rather than about 24 months. These guys could do ANYthing and it sounded great.

The cool thing about a trio is the ability to FILL space and to ALLOW space. I think trios lend themselves to incredibly interesting explorations when the musicians are dialed in to one another at the deepest levels. Cream did this at a level unmatched by ANY other trio, with the arguable exception being the Jimi Hendrix Experience (although I would side with Cream in this argument based on the ability of each member of the group, not just on the talent of a singular genius). Listen to the jam portion of "Spoonful" and you'll get an idea of the sublime heights to which they were capable.

If you love rock and roll, odds are extremely high that your heroes were heavily influenced by the Cream.

Now, I happen to be a huge Clapton fan, and actually prefer his voice to that of Jack Bruce (who did most of the Cream vocals). A great Clapton vocal with Cream is "Outside Woman Blues". Dig it. Along with the aforementioned "Crossroads".

My personal favorite Cream tune is "White Room" (sung by Bruce). As someone who has performed the song in a band, the cut just rips. It's lyrics paint exceptionally strange and vivid pictures and the song's chord changes, while simple, are simplisticly amazing and powerful. Just a great, great song that few others match.

Another fantastic song is "I Feel Free" off their debut album, Fresh Cream.

Listening to these songs as i write this blog, you can actually HEAR that the boys KNEW how good they were and how important their music was. I can only imagine how that must have felt. I wonder if they felt the same energy when they reunited in 2005 at Royal Albert Hall. Opening with the appropriate "I'm Glad", the concert showcases three giants whose shoes are still bigger than most could hope for. Watching the DVD of the '05 concert, it appears that they are truly happy, not only for the past successes they enjoyed, but that they are all still around to do it one more time and to be -- as they say -- making beautiful music together.

It brings a smile to my cynical face. Hope it does to your's as well.

Go in peace....

G.O.T.