"Every picture tells a story, don't it?" - Rod Stewart

I found that not only had the constantly touring band completed their first USA tour, after enjoying two weeks off, they were to return to the States to kick off their "Disraeli Gears" tour. There, following their first dates at the Santa Monica Civic Auditorium (a 1800 seat venue which was by far the most popular concert site in LA at the time) and the Earl Warren Showgrounds in nearby Santa Barbara (with Taj Mahal and the James Cotton Blues Band) was San Fernando Valley State College - Sunday, Feb. 25, 1968. This little college performance was followed by 8 nights (2 shows a night) in San Francisco at Winterland and the Fillmore, the famed showcases for rock and roll for at least a decade. CREAM returned to LA the following weekend (3/15-16) to headline 2 shows at the Shrine Auditorium (I believe around 8,500 seats). I certainly didn't realize the band had already achieved that much popularity, although "Sunshine of Your Love" was being played hourly on every rock station. I thought, being a music aficionado and local bass player, that I was fortunate to be ahead of the crowd and catch this soon to be legendary group under such intimate conditions. I realize now that that is an understatement. Other than being in some boozy London pub many months earlier, I can't imagine a better situation to experience such renowned talent. I think I was especially fortunate because most groups played 2 sets a night in those days and this was for a solo performance with the next 4 days off and the boys definitely let go and "jammed" like I've never experienced again (LED ZEP ain't too shabby though). The fact that they were to enjoy 4 days off in LA resulted in Eric getting busted in a "Drug Raid" with members of Buffalo Springfield.

The concert was a general admission show in a small basketball gym complete with pullout bleacher seating.

The above photo accurately documents my choice of seating location. I chose not to sit in the front row due to both the shabby condition of the individual seats, and mostly because I prefer a slight elevation and wanted to be close to Jack Bruce (avoiding the intensity of Eric's Marshall stacks, and savoring that of Jack's -  Note Bruce's stack.

I arrived quite early and had my selection of seats. Luckily, I chose a seat on Jack Bruce's side of the stage at the front of the bleacher seats. As a testament to the choice location, the lead singer of local opening act CANNED HEAT, Bob "Bear" Hite, sat next to me at the conclusion of their set to share the experience of CREAM under such ideal conditions. This proved to be a mixed blessing because one can imagine what a huge, sweaty man must smell like after intense "Boogying" for an hour onstage. However, I considered it an honor, as he was a huge blues fan/historian and I'm sure it was as great an experience for him as it was for me. Canned Heat had totally rocked and I was quite proud of the "Local Boys".
They were a local group from Topanga Canyon and their set included several old blues standards which CREAM had recorded (Rollin' and Tumblin' immediately comes to mind - they had also recorded "Spoonful" but I don't think they played it that night ). Remember that this was a year and a half before Woodstock and they were unknown outside of their local following from the Corral (Topanga boogie bar, also home to SPIRIT). They had been playing at San Francisco's Fillmore Auditorium and LA's Kaleidoscope and were beginning to develop a larger fan base.
I should interject that 1968-69 was the hippie era which is remembered by most as drug influenced (especially LSD). I don't want to debate the merits of that representation but I will attest to the fact that some of the best ever was readily available at that time. It's a good thing that I had previously attended a rock concert at the Palm Springs drive-in theater featuring Vanilla Fudge, Eric Burdon, Sweetwater, and others, and had experienced the awesome power of stacks of 100 watt Marshall amps within less than 50 feet. The power that is transmitted is something that can't be described with words and when unbelievable musical virtuosity is being transmitted as well (not experienced with Vanilla Fudge, well, Tim Bogart wasn't too shabby…) it is truly unforgettable.

" What followed from the amp stacks of Mr. Bruce and Mr. Clapton remains on the top of a long list of special musical moments in my life. "

Ginger Baker's driving percussion, in particular those 2 thundering bass drums fueled the fire that followed. He possessed both the unbelievable power of John Bonham and the manic imaginative zeal of Keith Moon. Keep in mind that I had never heard either of these two geniuses live at this point. Wow!

It should be noted that, to my recollection, the only drum solo that I had heard previous to Ginger's "Toad" was Iron Butterfly's Ron Bushy during a thirty minute rendition of "Inna Gadda De Vida". That was at my first "real" concert at the "Cheetah" on the Santa Monica Pier. No disrespect to Bushy but Ginger took it to an entirely different level. To this day I have never again felt the drive like those two bass drums. It felt like a train was roaring into my testicles.

If my fellow "thecream" members read Angelo's excellent discourse on the merits and subtleties of Eric Clapton's playing, I can only say I whole-heartedly agree. Clapton is truly a genius and CREAM showcased him at his most intensely passionate.

Playing music is a lot like making love. Proficiency and ecstasy are two distinctly different experiences. It's admirable when one achieves the first level but that second level is so rare it should be treasured forever. When a partner can inspire another to extraordinary levels it is indeed magic. It seems that the intense synergy of CREAM's personal interaction is what sparked their magic yet also caused their demise. I don't know about any of you but I have been lucky enough to experience this phenomenon on a personal level and have accepted the reality of its existence. Clapton seemed pretty high during the performance. I suspected alcohol at the time being ignorant of heroin's subtleties. Upon reflection, maybe his state explains the true magic of their very extended jam on Willie Dixon's "Spoonful".

Don't misunderstand me, I'm far from a proponent of that heinous drug but I think I can see its attraction for some, and I think Eric's wailing strings were singing its bluesy song better than I've ever heard, before or since. I'm sure the drug has been a strong influence throughout the history of the old blues legends and here was an English kid emoting it's passion via hundreds of watts of Marshall power yet never losing the pathos oozing from its every note. As Angelo pointed out, Eric's guitar was singing, not playing notes.

Now that I've gotten so carried away with reliving the moment,  I've got to say a quick word about Jack Bruce.

photo courtesy of Bruce Krejcik 2000
Taken the following week @ Winterland

Having professionally played bass guitar for 8 years and attempted to write music and even singing when I was confident that the audience was drunker than I was, there is not enough I can say about the man. True Genius! His soaring vocals were so unexpected and his playing drove me to hundreds of hours of practice to try to recreate what I thought I had heard. Just his tones were an inspiration. A six string bass! Don't get me started. Unlike many bass players who get too busy, etc.; he never forgot that his job was to provide a "Bottom". Once again I present comparisons, the solid bottom of John "Ox" Entwhistle and the hectic melodic creativity of Chris Squire.

So much for this magic musical moment;
 I won't ramble on anymore.

As most of you know, Cream disbanded nine months later due to animosity between Ginger and Jack.

"Ginger and I never got on, ever," says Jack. "But perhaps because of the very pain of our relationship, we were the hottest rhythm section I've ever played in. There was something between Ginger and me that was a fire burning. He brought out some amazing stuff in me. And he is a wonderful drummer".

Definitely a sad moment in Music History. To paraphrase the words of the infamous Rodney King:

"Why can't we all just get along?"

So much talent and musical chemistry wasted due to petty squabbles, etc.

Please click on the following links to read more about the bands of each individual CREAM member and my experience with each.

                    BLIND FAITH               DELANEY & BONNIE             DEREK & THE DOMINOS

                    JACK BRUCE / GINGER BAKER BAND            RINGO STARR'S  ALL-STARS

        OTHER CONCERT MEMORIES

       ZIGGY STARDUST                                      MAD DOGS AND ENGLISHMEN

 

                     Please let me know what you think...