It is amazing when you think that the lads from Cream were only together for a little more than two years. They were rock's first power-trio and in they went out to sell millions of records and give concerts with a packed house. The band was formed as a blues oriented group in late 1966 with Eric Clapton (coming from suck bands as The Yardbirds or John Mayall's Bluesbrakers) on guitar and occasional lead vocals, Jack Bruce as its main songwriter, lead singer and bassist and drummer Ginger Baker (Graham Bond Organisation). Clapton was already pretty well know as a guitar hero in the UK and in the States as well due to the hit single For Your Love but he would rise to guitar playing superstar in Cream. All three future Cream members were looking to expand their music experiences and play music in a nonconventional manner. They met do to a jam session and the rest is pure music history. No question that was what they ended up doing, playing long blues jams and extended solos live including everything from blues, to psychedelic, to hard rock.
They made their debut with the album Fresh Cream which was released in December of '66. It was mainly a blues album, it was a hit reaching the British Top Ten in early 1967. Almost a year after their first release can the album Disraeli Gears. It was loaded with hits and made them big in the US, reaching number five. The hard rock song "Sunshine of Your Love," was the album's biggest hit with its great guitar and haunting vocals. "Strange Brew" was another hit and songs like "Dance the Night Away," "Tales of Brave Ulysses" and "S.W.L.A.B.R." all got substantial radio play. In June of '68 the double album Wheels of Fire topped the American charts and they were now considered one of rock biggest bands. One disc of this double album was recorded in the studio, the second recorded on stage in San Francisco. On this live disc Clapton fans would get to hear the Robert Johnson cover "Crossroads" for the first time. The studio disc contained the top ten single, Bruce's "White Room" (number 6 on the charts) as well as a grand cover of Albert King's "Born Under a Bad Sign."
Even today, looking back, it seems unreal that a band so hot would break up while at their best, yet that is just what happened to Cream. Once again the three members wanted to break out and do something new. Cream played their last concert on November 26, 1968, at London’s Royal Albert Hall. There would be one last album after the breakup to be released in early 1969 , Goodbye, it consisted of three studio tracks and three live tracks. One of those studio tunes would be the Eric Clapton-George Harrison composition "Badge" which is the album's best track. Goodbye may not have gotten the greatest reviews but it did hit number two on the charts.
Clapton's music career was most rewarding after Cream. He did for a short period of time belong to two supergroups, teaming up again in '69 with Baker in Blind Faith and then in 1970 he formed Derek & the Dominos. Bruce went on to form several different bands with several big name musicians and covered everything from blues, rock, folk and jazz. Baker after Derek & the Dominos formed a couple of bands including Ginger Baker's Air Force which put out a couple of albums. He was later in a few other bands and then got back with Bruce in BBM in 1994. He retired from the business in late '97 and bought a horse farm in Colorado which he ran until late '99 when he was being force out of the country.
Cream - Discography
1966 - Fresh Cream
1967 - Disraeli Gears
1968 - Goodbye
1970 - Live Cream, Vol. 1
1972 - Live Cream, Vol. 2
1989 - live 1968
2005 - Royal Albert Hall: London May 2-3-5-6 2005