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The Cream concert was unbelievable!!!! 
So for anyone who wants to know, I went to the 2nd of the four Cream concerts this week at Royal Albert Hall in London.  I had been looking forward to it for what seems like forever, so when I was actually in my seat and experiencing it, I could hardly even believe it.
They played for a little over two hours, and here's the set list from that night.... Tuesday 3rd May 2005 I'm So Glad Spoonful Outside Woman Blues Pressed Rat and Warthog Sleepy Time Time NSU Badge Politician Sweet Wine Rollin' & Tumblin' Stormy Monday Deserted Cities of the Heart Born Under a Bad Sign We're Going Wrong Crossroads Sitting on Top of the World White Room Toad and as encore..... Sunshine of Your Love 
I was just blown away by how great they all sounded. I really had no idea what to expect after 35 years, but they were truly just flawless. I figured Clapton would be good, as he's been in the spotlight a lot still over the years, but both Ginger Baker and Jack Bruce have been sick, so I was really worried how it would all come together. The crowd just wenr crazy when they came out, giving them a standing ovation and then they started playing "I'm So Glad". I had binoculars with me, although my seat was actually really good. I was up high, but I could still see everything. With the binoculars, I could almost read the setlist on Ginger's drum kit. 
I'm horrible at writing reviews, but I can honestly say that Jack Bruce just shocked me at how great his voice sounded. Like going back in time. Also, I've never really been a huge Clapton fan apart from his work with Cream, but he left me speechless with his playing. His solos, especially on "Stormy Monday" were just phenomenal. The audience were on their feet halfway through it clapping and cheering. It was just such a cool thing to be a part of. And now onto Ginger Baker.  That man is 65 and he just never missed a beat. His drum solo on "Toad" had (again) the entire crowd up and screaming for him. It was almost 15 minutes long and just as intense as ever. I got tears in my eyes after it was over.
Then Jack and Eric came back on to do "Sunshine Of Your Love" and the people on the main floor rushed the stage (which is very low) to get closer. Ginger threw four of his drumsticks into the crowd at the very end, and people were fighting over them.
I'm so glad they played "Politician" which I had been looking forward to, but they didn't play "Strange Brew" which made me sad. But they did do "Outside Woman Blues" which is basically the same riff/song to me.
All in all, it was one of the most worthwhile and cool experiences I've ever got the chance to witness. They were extremely tight sounding, and obviously had a bit less of that raw, fuzzy power they had back in the day, but then I didn't expect them to be jumping about onstage like they were still in their 20s.  It didn't bother me one bit. I was just glad to see it all happen.
Can't wait for the DVD to come out. They were filming when I was there (and at all the other shows as well). 
 [Edited 5/6/05 11:48am] "I saw a woman with major Hammer pants on the subway a few weeks ago and totally thought of you." - sextonseven | |
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Sounds cool  | |
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 "I saw a woman with major Hammer pants on the subway a few weeks ago and totally thought of you." - sextonseven | |
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Dewrede said: Sounds cool
It was.  I still can't believe I was even there. "I saw a woman with major Hammer pants on the subway a few weeks ago and totally thought of you." - sextonseven | |
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minneapolisgenius said: Dewrede said: Sounds cool
It was. I still can't believe I was even there. Believe it! I'm glad u dug it. SynthiaRose said "I'm in love with blackguitaristz. Especially when he talks about Hendrix."
nammie "What BGZ says I believe. I have the biggest crush on him." http://ccoshea19.googlepa...ssanctuary http://ccoshea19.googlepages.com | |
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I thought it was funny that Ginger Baker wore a Cream t-shirt at the show. "I saw a woman with major Hammer pants on the subway a few weeks ago and totally thought of you." - sextonseven | |
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Royal Albert Hall, is it a nice place? I know it's legendary, I've read so much about it. What's it like? SynthiaRose said "I'm in love with blackguitaristz. Especially when he talks about Hendrix."
nammie "What BGZ says I believe. I have the biggest crush on him." http://ccoshea19.googlepa...ssanctuary http://ccoshea19.googlepages.com | |
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Jimi played there too 
he also sometimes played 'Sunshine Of Your Love'
oops crap edit [Edited 5/6/05 12:02pm] | |
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Dewrede said: Jimi played there too
Of course. Everybody who was huge, played there at one time or another. SynthiaRose said "I'm in love with blackguitaristz. Especially when he talks about Hendrix."
nammie "What BGZ says I believe. I have the biggest crush on him." http://ccoshea19.googlepa...ssanctuary http://ccoshea19.googlepages.com | |
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blackguitaristz said: Dewrede said: Jimi played there too
Of course. Everybody who was huge, played there at one time or another. So did Zeppelin. "I saw a woman with major Hammer pants on the subway a few weeks ago and totally thought of you." - sextonseven | |
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minneapolisgenius said: blackguitaristz said: Of course. Everybody who was huge, played there at one time or another. So did Zeppelin. I was going to say that, but I purposely left it open for u. SynthiaRose said "I'm in love with blackguitaristz. Especially when he talks about Hendrix."
nammie "What BGZ says I believe. I have the biggest crush on him." http://ccoshea19.googlepa...ssanctuary http://ccoshea19.googlepages.com | |
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Here's one review I found (from the first night) online. There are so many, I just grabbed one.....
Cream Rise in London Rock & Roll Hall of Famers rediscover blues ancient and modern at Royal Albert Hall On November 26, 1968, Cream walked off the stage at London's Royal Albert Hall for what they fully expected to be the last time. Exhausted by infighting and non-stop touring, their rare instrumental telepathy creeping into formula and all but obliterated by arena-PA volume, rock's first supergroup -- guitarist Eric Clapton, bassist Jack Bruce and drummer Ginger Baker, already individual stars in Britain when they formed in 1966 -- held rock's first super-wake in this majestic Victorian concert hall, playing two final shows of what Clapton once described as "Blues Ancient and Modern" to audiences that literally begged them not to go, with massed cries of "God save the Cream!" Those prayers were finally answered, thirty-seven years later. At 8:10 p.m. on May 2nd, Clapton, Bruce and Baker walked back on to that stage to a standing, delirious, disbelieving ovation, opening the first of four shows this week at the Albert Hall with the perfect, galloping sentiment: the Skip James blues "I'm So Glad," from their first album, Fresh Cream. This was, admittedly, not the breakneck, juggernaut Cream of the concert half of 1968's Wheels of Fire or the post-mortem live albums. Clapton's old wall of Marshall cabinets was gone; he played through just two small tube amps, with a Leslie for that majestic bridge lick in "Badge." And Clapton has long since exchanged the assaultive snarl of his original Cream weapons -- the Gibson SG and Les Paul -- for the cleaner ring and bite of a Stratocaster. There was less assault in the music, but more air, which allowed the original swing in Cream's power blues to come through: the conversational way Bruce improvised inside Clapton's slalom runs and grinding notes during the instrumental breaks in "Spoonful" and "N.S.U."; the taut fire of Baker's snare and tom-toms under Clapton's solo in "Sleepy Time Time." Clapton's brief remarks to the crowd suggested lingering nerves and fears of overexpectation. "Thanks for waiting all these years," he said, after a rare live outing of "Outside Woman Blues," from Disraeli Gears. "I think we're going to do every song we know," quickly noting, "We'll play them as well as we can." But when Clapton pointed out that "the slings and arrows of misfortune cut us down in our prime," Bruce was having none of it. "What do you mean?" he interjected with needling glee. "This is our prime." It was a bold claim for a band, which, with the exception of a brief reunion set at their 1991 induction into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, had not played together in nearly four decades. And much that was once remarkable and unique to Cream -- the fusion and compression of jazz and blues dynamics into pop song; the instrumental democracy of the power trio; the license to jam at great length -- is now established rock & roll language and tradition. But the deliberate tautness of the performances tonight, sounding at first uncomfortably close to overrestraint, was probably closer to the way Cream first heard themselves in 1966 and early '67 -- a modern R&B trio of equal, virtuoso soloists; blues purists with futurist nerve -- before the live extremes and routines of '68 took over. Many of the highpoints were in the details: the odd bent and time of Bruce's and Clapton's twinned riffing in "Politician" against Baker's straight, anchoring motion; the heightened tension of Bruce's high, choking bass notes and Baker's tom-tom bombs under Clapton's solo in "Sweet Wine." In a stunning exhumation of the trance-rock gem "We're Going Wrong," from Disraeli Gears, Baker's mallets rolled across his tom-toms in liquid 6/4 time as Bruce sang with operatic despair over the simple, climbing tension of Clapton's strumming. And at the end of the encore, "Sunshine of Your Love," Clapton, Bruce and Baker locked into a powerful, mounting suspense, a droning, one-chord crescendo that, frankly, climaxed too soon with a final reentry into that immortal riff. The only venture outside Cream's recorded library was a cover of T-Bone Walker's "Stormy Monday," a Clapton vocal-and-guitar showcase that made clear how the balance of power and celebrity has shifted since he was the band's junior genius and the quiet mediator between Bruce's and Baker's combative tempers. "Crossroads" also bore the matured Clapton's touch, taken at the country-funk gait he has long favored in his own shows. But the surprise of the night was the focused power and undiminished strength of Baker, who sat ramrod straight as he fired off precise, provocative accents -- cymbal stings, snare gunshots and double-kick-drum eruptions -- without loosening his grip on the pulse. Even in the inevitable "Toad," he soloed with startling control, never breaking the snapping, high-hat beat as his sticks flew over the rest of his kit. And it was Baker who left the audience with the defining image of the night: stepping out from behind his drums after "Sunshine of Your Love" with a huge smile, pumping his fists in the air like a former championship boxer who had just gone twenty rounds with history -- and won. DAVID FRICKE "I saw a woman with major Hammer pants on the subway a few weeks ago and totally thought of you." - sextonseven | |
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blackguitaristz said: Royal Albert Hall, is it a nice place? I know it's legendary, I've read so much about it. What's it like?
Well? SynthiaRose said "I'm in love with blackguitaristz. Especially when he talks about Hendrix."
nammie "What BGZ says I believe. I have the biggest crush on him." http://ccoshea19.googlepa...ssanctuary http://ccoshea19.googlepages.com | |
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minneapolisgenius said: Here's one review I found (from the first night) online. There are so many, I just grabbed one.....
Cream Rise in London Rock & Roll Hall of Famers rediscover blues ancient and modern at Royal Albert Hall On November 26, 1968, Cream walked off the stage at London's Royal Albert Hall for what they fully expected to be the last time. Exhausted by infighting and non-stop touring, their rare instrumental telepathy creeping into formula and all but obliterated by arena-PA volume, rock's first supergroup -- guitarist Eric Clapton, bassist Jack Bruce and drummer Ginger Baker, already individual stars in Britain when they formed in 1966 -- held rock's first super-wake in this majestic Victorian concert hall, playing two final shows of what Clapton once described as "Blues Ancient and Modern" to audiences that literally begged them not to go, with massed cries of "God save the Cream!" Those prayers were finally answered, thirty-seven years later. At 8:10 p.m. on May 2nd, Clapton, Bruce and Baker walked back on to that stage to a standing, delirious, disbelieving ovation, opening the first of four shows this week at the Albert Hall with the perfect, galloping sentiment: the Skip James blues "I'm So Glad," from their first album, Fresh Cream. This was, admittedly, not the breakneck, juggernaut Cream of the concert half of 1968's Wheels of Fire or the post-mortem live albums. Clapton's old wall of Marshall cabinets was gone; he played through just two small tube amps, with a Leslie for that majestic bridge lick in "Badge." And Clapton has long since exchanged the assaultive snarl of his original Cream weapons -- the Gibson SG and Les Paul -- for the cleaner ring and bite of a Stratocaster. There was less assault in the music, but more air, which allowed the original swing in Cream's power blues to come through: the conversational way Bruce improvised inside Clapton's slalom runs and grinding notes during the instrumental breaks in "Spoonful" and "N.S.U."; the taut fire of Baker's snare and tom-toms under Clapton's solo in "Sleepy Time Time." Clapton's brief remarks to the crowd suggested lingering nerves and fears of overexpectation. "Thanks for waiting all these years," he said, after a rare live outing of "Outside Woman Blues," from Disraeli Gears. "I think we're going to do every song we know," quickly noting, "We'll play them as well as we can." But when Clapton pointed out that "the slings and arrows of misfortune cut us down in our prime," Bruce was having none of it. "What do you mean?" he interjected with needling glee. "This is our prime." It was a bold claim for a band, which, with the exception of a brief reunion set at their 1991 induction into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, had not played together in nearly four decades. And much that was once remarkable and unique to Cream -- the fusion and compression of jazz and blues dynamics into pop song; the instrumental democracy of the power trio; the license to jam at great length -- is now established rock & roll language and tradition. But the deliberate tautness of the performances tonight, sounding at first uncomfortably close to overrestraint, was probably closer to the way Cream first heard themselves in 1966 and early '67 -- a modern R&B trio of equal, virtuoso soloists; blues purists with futurist nerve -- before the live extremes and routines of '68 took over. Many of the highpoints were in the details: the odd bent and time of Bruce's and Clapton's twinned riffing in "Politician" against Baker's straight, anchoring motion; the heightened tension of Bruce's high, choking bass notes and Baker's tom-tom bombs under Clapton's solo in "Sweet Wine." In a stunning exhumation of the trance-rock gem "We're Going Wrong," from Disraeli Gears, Baker's mallets rolled across his tom-toms in liquid 6/4 time as Bruce sang with operatic despair over the simple, climbing tension of Clapton's strumming. And at the end of the encore, "Sunshine of Your Love," Clapton, Bruce and Baker locked into a powerful, mounting suspense, a droning, one-chord crescendo that, frankly, climaxed too soon with a final reentry into that immortal riff. The only venture outside Cream's recorded library was a cover of T-Bone Walker's "Stormy Monday," a Clapton vocal-and-guitar showcase that made clear how the balance of power and celebrity has shifted since he was the band's junior genius and the quiet mediator between Bruce's and Baker's combative tempers. "Crossroads" also bore the matured Clapton's touch, taken at the country-funk gait he has long favored in his own shows. But the surprise of the night was the focused power and undiminished strength of Baker, who sat ramrod straight as he fired off precise, provocative accents -- cymbal stings, snare gunshots and double-kick-drum eruptions -- without loosening his grip on the pulse. Even in the inevitable "Toad," he soloed with startling control, never breaking the snapping, high-hat beat as his sticks flew over the rest of his kit. And it was Baker who left the audience with the defining image of the night: stepping out from behind his drums after "Sunshine of Your Love" with a huge smile, pumping his fists in the air like a former championship boxer who had just gone twenty rounds with history -- and won. DAVID FRICKE Very cool! "Yeah, "Sunshine of Your Love" is another fave of mine. Hendrix was the inspiration for that song! I just had to throw that in! SynthiaRose said "I'm in love with blackguitaristz. Especially when he talks about Hendrix."
nammie "What BGZ says I believe. I have the biggest crush on him." http://ccoshea19.googlepa...ssanctuary http://ccoshea19.googlepages.com | |
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blackguitaristz said: blackguitaristz said: Royal Albert Hall, is it a nice place? I know it's legendary, I've read so much about it. What's it like?
Well? Are you quoting yourself now? Damn hang on a minute!
Ok, RAH is actually bigger than I thought, once you get in there. It's just really tall/high and round. It's very beautiful though. I just kept thinking about all the people that have performed there.
Mostly Hendrix and of course Zeppelin and the show they did from '70 that's on the DVD.  "I saw a woman with major Hammer pants on the subway a few weeks ago and totally thought of you." - sextonseven | |
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I guess Kirk Hammett was there the night I went. Also Roger Daltry and Brian May as well, but they may have gone the first night. Still no idea if/when Page showed up. I can't imagine him NOT going to check it out. Well, they're 10 minutes into the last gig right now as I type this.  "I saw a woman with major Hammer pants on the subway a few weeks ago and totally thought of you." - sextonseven | |
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Who is Kirk Hammet ? 
Actually i hardly know any of their songs unfortunately
But what i heard was | |
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Dewrede said: Who is Kirk Hammet ?
Actually i hardly know any of their songs unfortunately
But what i heard was Guitarist for Metallica.
You should check them out though. (Cream I mean)"I saw a woman with major Hammer pants on the subway a few weeks ago and totally thought of you." - sextonseven | |
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OK | |
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minneapolisgenius said: I guess Kirk Hammett was there the night I went. Also Roger Daltry and Brian May as well, but they may have gone the first night. Still no idea if/when Page showed up. I can't imagine him NOT going to check it out. Well, they're 10 minutes into the last gig right now as I type this.
Damn! My boy Brian May was there?! Yeah, I can't imagine Pagey NOT going to check the show out, either. Damn, imagine if u had ran into Page. SynthiaRose said "I'm in love with blackguitaristz. Especially when he talks about Hendrix."
nammie "What BGZ says I believe. I have the biggest crush on him." http://ccoshea19.googlepa...ssanctuary http://ccoshea19.googlepages.com | |
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blackguitaristz said: minneapolisgenius said: I guess Kirk Hammett was there the night I went. Also Roger Daltry and Brian May as well, but they may have gone the first night. Still no idea if/when Page showed up. I can't imagine him NOT going to check it out. Well, they're 10 minutes into the last gig right now as I type this.
Damn! My boy Brian May was there?! Yeah, I can't imagine Pagey NOT going to check the show out, either. Damn, imagine if u had ran into Page. Um, yeah. It would have been mayhem. It's possible that he's going tonight, and is watching them as we speak, or that he did go the night I went and was sitting right underneath me the whole time! 
But of course, I would have "felt" it if he was there.  "I saw a woman with major Hammer pants on the subway a few weeks ago and totally thought of you." - sextonseven | |
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minneapolisgenius said: blackguitaristz said: Damn! My boy Brian May was there?! Yeah, I can't imagine Pagey NOT going to check the show out, either. Damn, imagine if u had ran into Page. Um, yeah. It would have been mayhem. It's possible that he's going tonight, and is watching them as we speak, or that he did go the night I went and was sitting right underneath me the whole time!
But of course, I would have "felt" it if he was there. yeah u would. SynthiaRose said "I'm in love with blackguitaristz. Especially when he talks about Hendrix."
nammie "What BGZ says I believe. I have the biggest crush on him." http://ccoshea19.googlepa...ssanctuary http://ccoshea19.googlepages.com | |
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minneapolisgenius said: Here's one review I found (from the first night) online.
Glad you grabbed this one as it had the exact info I was curious about... Clapton's old wall of Marshall cabinets was gone; he played through just two small tube amps, with a Leslie for that majestic bridge lick in "Badge." And Clapton has long since exchanged the assaultive snarl of his original Cream weapons -- the Gibson SG and Les Paul -- for the cleaner ring and bite of a Stratocaster. Glad you had a great time.
Thanks, tA tA  Tribal Disorder
http://www.soundclick.com...rmusic.htm "Ya see, we're not interested in what you know...but what you are willing to learn. C'mon y'all." | |
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theAudience said: minneapolisgenius said: Here's one review I found (from the first night) online.
Glad you grabbed this one as it had the exact info I was curious about... Clapton's old wall of Marshall cabinets was gone; he played through just two small tube amps, with a Leslie for that majestic bridge lick in "Badge." And Clapton has long since exchanged the assaultive snarl of his original Cream weapons -- the Gibson SG and Les Paul -- for the cleaner ring and bite of a Stratocaster. Glad you had a great time.
Thanks, tA Ness want stratocaster..
tA Tribal Disorder
http://www.soundclick.com...rmusic.htm | |
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TheRealFiness said: Ness want stratocaster..
Don't be hunching all over it... 
...like this.
tA Tribal Disorder
http://www.soundclick.com...rmusic.htm "Ya see, we're not interested in what you know...but what you are willing to learn. C'mon y'all." | |
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theAudience said: TheRealFiness said: Ness want stratocaster..
Don't be hunching all over it...
...like this.
tA Tribal Disorder
http://www.soundclick.com...rmusic.htm nah but i always dug that vest... | |
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theAudience said: minneapolisgenius said: Here's one review I found (from the first night) online.
Glad you grabbed this one as it had the exact info I was curious about... Clapton's old wall of Marshall cabinets was gone; he played through just two small tube amps, with a Leslie for that majestic bridge lick in "Badge." And Clapton has long since exchanged the assaultive snarl of his original Cream weapons -- the Gibson SG and Les Paul -- for the cleaner ring and bite of a Stratocaster. Glad you had a great time.
Thanks, tA tA Tribal Disorder
http://www.soundclick.com...rmusic.htm I know. Many people were pretty pissed about that actually. "I saw a woman with major Hammer pants on the subway a few weeks ago and totally thought of you." - sextonseven | |
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Ah ha! HERE is the review thread. I knew that...honest...
Cool review
PS Tues 3rd May was my birthday...don't supposed Clapton lead the crowd in a chorus of "Happy Birthday To You" in my honour, by any chance.....?  Thought not. Bloody bearded, four-eyed twat.
J/K [Edited 5/9/05 8:48am] | |
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Slash said: Ah ha! HERE is the review thread. I knew that...honest...
Cool review
PS Tues 3rd May was my birthday...don't supposed Clapton lead the crowd in a chorus of "Happy Birthday To You" in my honour, by any chance.....? Thought not. Bloody bearded, four-eyed twat.
J/K [Edited 5/9/05 8:48am] why on earth would anyone sing YOU happy birthday  | |
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