Six Definitive Songs: The ultimate beginner’s guide to Cream
The rock trio Cream were an unfathomably excellent supergroup and, arguably, the first of their kind. Granted, talented artists will always find their tribe – particularly if their tribe happen to have an affinity for virtuoso guitar playing – but that song has been sung forever.
Cream weren’t simply talented musicians playing with other talented musicians, they transcend that. Eric Clapton, Ginger Baker and Jack Bruce were artists who had such command of their instruments that at the time they formed in 1966, they had all the trappings of a supergroup just by virtue of being in the same room together.
Baker and Bruce had quickly gained notoriety before joining Cream as members of the Graham Bond Organisation. The rhythm-and-blues outfit had a major influence on many up-and-coming artists in the blues and jazz scenes of the late 1960s and early ’70s and was the first band to be introduced to the horrors of Ginger Baker’s temper and outrageous drug use.
While Baker and Bruce were busy squabbling, Clapton had just played lead guitar in The Yardbirds and John Mayall’s Bluesbreakers, and that was just his warm-up. When the trio eventually formed, they each bought their unique musical sensibilities to the studio, the result being a lasting legacy of psychedelic, bluesy rock songs that were so sharply unique you could pick out a Jack Bruce bassline or Ginger Baker’s drum fill before ‘Sunshine Of Your Love’ has even got to its first chorus.
Although they were only around for two years before imploding (in typical supergroup fashion), Cream had a massive creative output. Their penchant for five-minute drum solos, blues covers, and dizzyingly psychedelic lyrics can be hard to navigate, so we compiled a list of six of Cream’s most essential songs.
Cream’s six definitive songs:
‘I Feel Free’ (Fresh Cream, 1966)
A song that arrived as part of a lyrical Pete Brown collaboration, ‘I Feel Free’ is a euphoric single that combines the band’s love for blues with an upbeat pop twist. It really highlights their musical diversity, given how they were inclined to produce slightly heavier rock tunes – but could quickly come up with a breezy psychedelic tune.
The song shot to number 11 on the UK singles chart and served as a brilliant opener for the US release of their debut album, Fresh Cream (1966). It has since gone on to define the band as a blustering blues band.
‘Spoonful’ (Fresh Cream, 1966)
Cream covered Howlin’ Wolf’s ‘Spoonful’, first recorded in 1960, and it was a masterclass in paying homages to old influences, but all whilst bringing their signature jazz and rock fusion to the song, so it felt fresh.
The original is a one-chord modal blues tune, and Howlin’ Wolf sang with a rasp that made the song incredibly impactful. Cream substituted Wolf’s rasp with the fuzz of guitars, adding a harmonica solo that feels like a direct nod to the Delta blues style the trio loved so much.
‘Sunshine Of Your Love’ (Disraeli Gears, 1967)
It would be sacrilege to start without ‘Sunshine Of Your Love’, one of Cream’s most popular tracks. Jack Bruce created the iconic riff that opens the song the night after watching Jimi Hendrix play a gig at London’s Saville Theatre in 1967. You can practically hear the influence of Hendrix dripping from the bluesy bass, and it’s that heaviness from the bassline that stops the song from careening off into psychedelic pop territory.
It stayed enduringly heavy but imminently catchy, so the single raced into the charts, reaching number five, and it quickly became the band’s biggest hit.
‘Tales Of Brave Ulysses’ (Disraeli Gears, 1967)
Clapton’s first jaunt on a wah-wah pedal, ‘Tales Of Brave Ulysses’ retells the Greek tragedy of Homer’s ‘Odyssey’, as reimagined with the poetry of artist Martin Sharp, who Clapton collaborated with on the song.
Baker beats the drums as Bruce provides his typically seismic bass, but there’s a playful lightness to the song that stems mainly from its lyrics (“And you see a girl’s brown body / Dancing through the turquoise / And her footprints make you follow / Where the sky loves the sea”).
‘Crossroads’ (Wheels of Fire, 1968)
‘Crossroads’ was originally recorded by blues legend Robert Johnson in 1936 as ‘Cross Road Blues’. Cream took it and drove it to new heights by simplifying the lyrics, turning up the tempo and giving it a rock rhythm. Clapton dazzles in his solo in ‘Crossroads’, and he is ridiculously quick but plays so accurately.
In fact, every second of the song is punctuated by exceptionally sharp playing from all three members.
‘White Room’ (Wheels Of Fire, 1968)
‘White Room’ is Jack Bruce at his best on vocals, belting out lyrics written by Beat poet Pete Brown. Bruce’s vocal prowess was equally matched by Clapton’s guitar, and his wah-wah pedal outro is one of the most iconic in rock history. The two powerhouses were kept steady by Baker’s faithful drumming, which is every bit as loud and tenacious as the biggest notes Bruce wails.
It sat just behind ‘Sunshine Of Your Love’ at number six on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1968, a testament to Cream’s ability to write big hits as well as deliver bar upon the bar of bluesy majesty.
