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In 1966, Cream spearheaded the first wave of the British rock invasion and revolutionized the concept of the power trio. Their brief career, lasting only three years, left a musical legacy that exists to this day. Cream standards such as: "Sunshine of Your Love" (track 19, encore), "Crossroads" (track 15), "White Room" (track 17), and "Badge" (track 8) grace the classic rock airwaves from coast to coast daily. Their live show set the standard for rock concerts for decades to follow. Ginger Baker was one of the first to incorporate double bass drums, extra toms and cymbals into a now familiar kit that would be imitated by a generation of rock drummers. Jack Bruce, schooled as a classical cellist, showed that a Marshall stack was not only for guitarists, and changed the role of the electric bass forever. Eric Clapton went on to become the preeminent blues-rock guitarist of our times.
For those of us who remember Cream, their 2005 reunion, culminating in a four night engagement at London's Royal Albert Hall stirred anticipation from bar room to board room. For others too young to remember, this reunion is a heart warming lesson in the bonds of friendship, and musical mastery. Producers John Beug and James Pluta captured the best of Cream's set in a two-disc DVD package that no fan, young or old can afford to miss. The package and accompanying song list resembles a flower-powered, psychedelic painted Volkswagen bus. Yet this cosmetic debauchery cannot mask the sound and visual artistry within.
The 19-song set, consisting of mostly Cream hits, and a few blues covers (with three alternate takes) highlights the second, third and final nights' performances. Brief, interviews of all three band members, round out the package. Although oscillating from show to show disrupts the continuity of watching one performance from beginning to end, this tactic is not too annoying. The producers wisely chose to utilize the three-way split screen effect sparingly. Audience shots and brief views of the inner bowls of the historic Royal Albert Hall are weaved together, and inserted tastefully. Yet it is the honesty and integrity of the musicians on stage that leave the viewer spellbound and breathless.
The band opens with an awkward rendition of their hit "I'm So Glad." Bruce, shorter than we remember, dons a beautiful red mahogany vintage Gibson EB-1, the violin-shaped bass popularized by the late Felix Pappalardi of Mountain. Bruce will play this instrument for half the DVD, before switching to a fretless Warwick, his axe of choice in recent years. Clapton, wearing brand new, off the rack denims and "Wallabies(?)" looks scruffy in a four-day growth of beard. Baker, the oldest of the three at 66, wears jeans (rolled up to the knee, an old trademark) Cream tee-shirt, and a pair of Oxfords in dyer need of a shine. He looks more like one's grandfather, than a rock legend. Beautiful A cappella vocal harmonies by Clapton and Bruce in the bridge, soon remind the audience, that despite outward appearances, the old Cream magic is still there.
Bruce's crisp vocal range, responsible for Cream's distinct sound, is quite evident in Willie Dixon's "Spoonful" (track 2). Originally running over six minutes, this piece exhibits the band's standard formula built upon a riff, and basic blues progression. Clapton's long, soul searching guitar solo, backed by improvisational jamming and thunderous rhythms by Bruce and Baker, provide the template for "Politician" (track 8), "Born Under a Bad Sign" (track 13), and "Sitting on Top of the World" (track 16).
Clapton's slow hand is surely felt on Arthur Baker's "Outside Woman's Blues" (track 3), and T-Bone Walker's immortal "Stormy Monday" (track 11). Bruce blows a mean blues harp, and gets the normally subdued London audience dancing in the aisles with Muddy Water's "Rollin' and Tumblin'" (track 10). Nicely arranged vocal harmonies between Bruce and Clapton on Bruce's own "Sleepy Time Time" (track 5) provide one of the show's highlights.
Bruce's unique song writing, arrangement, and singing styles are further evident in "We're Going Wrong" (track 14), "N.S.U." (track 6), and "Deserted Cities of the Heart" (track 12). Baker's less known writing contributions are displayed in "Sweet Wine" (track 9), while "Pressed Rat and Warthog" (track 4) is resurrected in Baker's gruff deep baritone speaking voice. It is on "Toad" (track 18), the compulsory drum solo, where Baker confirms he is still the founding father of rock/jazz drummers. This solo is breath-taking, meticulous, and never is a misjudged rim shot or stick clashing in mid-air to be heard. At 66, Baker unequivocally reaffirmed his place at the pinnacle of his profession.
There are several moments of pure fun, on stage. "You're just trying to make me nervous," declares Baker, after Clapton introduced Peter Edward Baker, before "Pressed Rat and Warthog." Bruce smiles broadly at Baker, for following his up-scale bass line with machine-gun tom-toms, and both miraculously came back in time. Then, Bruce and Clapton acknowledge a smile and a nod after a satisfying performance.
There are slight imperfections as well. In "Sunshine of Your Love" (alternate take), Clapton starts to sing a verse too early, as Bruce glances over and smiles forgivingly. Bruce, likewise misses a bass cue in "N.S.U.", and more than once, Baker finishes a drum roll two early, and waits motionless for his band mates to catch up. One critique is the slower tempo of "Crossroads." Bruce just did not attack those now classic bass runs, as he did in the original version. Though professing that "we wanted to play as we do now, not as we did then," I wanted Bruce to set his fret board on fire. Yet Clapton, Bruce and Baker are only human; three musical icons together again after thirty-seven years. If you remember the early days of British rock, ever jammed a blues into the early morning hours, or are a classic rock fan, you need this DVD!
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Reviewed in France on January 17, 2024