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BBC Sessions

Cream - BBC Sessions Audio CD

A fair review of the Cream "BBC Sessions" Audio CD. Please note that the below review is the views of the authors, and authors only. You can get a complete list of all Cream reviews here, or go back to the Cream tabs.

Band: Cream
Title: BBC Sessions
Rating:

Release Date: 2003-03-25
Media: Audio CD

Tracks: 1: Sweet Wine [#] 2: Eric Clapton Interview, No. 1 [#] 3: Wrapping Paper [#] 4: Rollin' and Tumblin' [#] 5: Steppin' Out [#] 6: Crossroads [#] 7: Cat's Squirrel [#] 8: Traintime [#] 9: I'm So Glad [#] 10: Lawdy Mama [#] 11: Eric Clapton Interview, No. 2 [#] 12: I Feel Free [#] 13: N.S.U. [#] 14: Four Until Late [#] 15: Strange Brew [#] 16: Eric Clapton Interview, No. 3 [#] 17: Tales of Brave Ulysses [#] 18: We're Going Wrong [#] 19: Eric Clapton Interview, No. 4 [#] 20: Born Under a Bad Sign [#] 21: Outside Woman Blues [#] 22: Take It Back [#] 23: Sunshine of Your Love [#] 24: Politician [#] 25: Swlabr [#] 26: Steppin' Out

OK - but lacks intensity.
Kinda disappointed. Being a big-time Cream fan, I eagerly waited to receive this CD in the mail. Sure, the good tracks are all there, but what do you gain over the studio versions? - Ans: Not much. The versions here lack any real intensity like what you hear in the Cream Live Vols. 1 and 2, and the live tracks from Wheels of Fire. The singing is not that great, and the leads are, in general, just OK. I would suggest you get this only if you really need to hear everything that they recorded. Otherwise, don't waste your time. Most of the tracks lack inspiration.

An Unvaluable Document

Thank God Cream existed
HM . Brithis Broadcasting Company made the best desition to register this amazing sessions and preserve to release them after more than 30 years, this recordings show how Cream improved amazingly in time and interviews offer a glimpse of a young Clapton before stardom when music were all that used to matter, here listening "politician" , "sunshine of your love", "Swarlb" we can realize why Cream were early pioners of hard rock and stabilished the bases for Heavy Metal.

Great Music / Horrendous Sound Quality
In his last interview in Guitar Player magazine, Kossoff commented on a recent Clapton concert he witnessed by saying "He whipped up quite a storm. Eric Clapton asked Free guitarist Paul Kossoff "How the hell do you do that" referring to Kossoff's signature vibrato. "
Two guitar legends, two sound qualities. Free's BBC recordings are crisp and sharp. I simply could not believe how muddled the Cream recordings sounded,
Now I will ask the question to the persons responsible for making Cream sound muddled in 2007: "How the hell do you do that?" Were you afraid to spend a few more pennies to clean up the sound of these recordings?
Inexcusable. Clapton and Kossoff forever. .

PUT A CHERRY ON TOP OF THIS CREAM, AN INCREDIBLE BBC SESSIONS RELEASE............
The sound of this cd is fine despite 1960s primitive technology. I was not going to get this cd because of the bad reviews regarding its sound quality, but decided to try this Cream release out. This "BBC Sessions" cd covers the years 1966-1968. You will hear well known Cream songs in a different way. Cream gave their best effort because some of these songs were not released yet, and they wanted to give an incredible performance to show off their young skills to the world. The songs are plentiful as you hear tracks from "Disreali Gears" being performed before the album was released in Nov. 1967,Disraeli Gears,Cream is raw and energetic with immense energy. On BBC Sessions you hear each Cream track being disected, as some of the tracks were only recently created. Like with the "Who BBC sessions" you really are transported back to the 1960s to a swinging England. The linear notes are a very facinating look into a real young genuine Psychedelic blues rock band. The linear notes were an all out effort in research. Kudos to Kevin Howlett, Howlett Media Productions for his in depth research into this cds literature booklet. "Cream BBC Sessions" is a well thought out researched production and is highly recommended listening to all.

Organic Cream with Roasted Squirrel !!
Well I'm delighted to find that overall the sound is very good, given the BBC's recording capacity and the age of the tapes. I bought this CD recently, a gamble given that some reviewers had reservations about the sound quality, and one sad chappie had rated it as a waste of time and nothing new.

Any deficiency is more than compensated by the spirit of the performance. BBC live broadcasts were very popular and the reputation of a band could not be risked by poor performance, and in fact these recordings show the musical intelligence of a group that was able to develop and improve on the initial studio performance - check out the powerful break in "I'm So Glad" with it's use of the Spoonful bass note anchor and - I couldn't believe it - the 1812 ???

OK there are a few tracks with thin sound, for example, Wrapping Paper the first single, but even that is fascinating with Jack's rough edged tough vocals and the confident arrangement.

You must be thankful that these recordings are now available, lawdy mama we must be thankful !! Turn it up and play it loud. Give it some stick in the traffic. The power of Ginger's drumming and Jack's bass come through well on most tracks and Eric's guitar sound, while lacking studio `creaming' of double tracking, has good tone and is lyrical and precise. Jack's vocals are strong and the group's harmonies even in this live context come through well.

The performances are spirited, raw and inventive, and fascinating in their window to the mid sixties and the development of this primal band. There are some interesting early versions such as "Crossroads" which is not quite the standard of the later live recording but still good, "Politician" which is hot off the press, being completed in the BBC studio with an additional verse, "Traintime" which is more concise than on the live side of "Wheels Of Fire" and very fiery, and "Born Under a Bad Sign" prior to it's release on the studio "Wheels Of Fire".

"Tales of Brave Ulysses" has just been released as a "B" side at the time of the BBC recording, and Eric states that it is preferred by the band to "Strange Brew". Their performance of this song is great, as is "Sunshine Of your Love", "SWLABR", the aforementioned "I'm So Glad", "Outside Woman Blues", "Traintime" and the second version of "Stepping Out", to name highlights. I must admit that the CD rekindled my enthusiasm for Ginger's drumming which could be declamatory by comparison to, say, Mitch Mitchell - but then Mitch was too light on some of Jimi's live stuff. Ginger's drumming on these recordings has attack and imagination - "We're Going Wrong" is astounding.

These tracks are essential in my estimation to anyone with an interest in the development of rock, to anyone awed by the power and imagination, the possibilities of a three piece rock unit, and to anyone who hasn't heard 60's radio presenter Brian Matthew pronounce the word "squirrel", seemingly unimpeded by the limitations of the human voice box. This last is worth the price of admission alone, and I doubt it can be achieved today without the aid of digital technology or a small animal implant. Absolutely fab, groovers !! .

You can see a complete list of all Cream discography, or go back to the Cream tabs. There is also a good guide on how to read guitar tabs here.