We may never know exactly what Bruce truly meant with his Ornette Coleman quip, but I immediately saw the connection when I read it. I thought I knew Cream, but the quote completely blew my mind! And it's not as if they are playing Ornette, but they were on a parallel path. The standard guitar, bass and drum trio was a guitarist with a backing band and that's not what Cream was doing. Clapton obviously understood that, but he might not have known where it was coming from the way Bruce and Baker did.
And Clapton Didn't Even Know
In one of the many tributes to Ornette Coleman I came across the following comment from Jack Bruce regarding Cream. "(Cream) was an Ornette Coleman band, with Eric [Clapton] not knowing he was Ornette Coleman, Ginger [Baker] and me not telling him."
Wow! I was blind, but now I see.
Wow! I was blind, but now I see.
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- 46 posts total
Frogman, I watched the entire documentary on YouTube this morning , and I was transfixed, as well as very sad. I have loved and admired Jack Bruce since my teens, and it was great to hear him tell his life story and hear him play and sing. I once had the pleasure of seeing him play in person when he was part of West Bruce and Laing in 1973. That was a memorable night. A few years ago, they reunited without him, but his son played bass. To me, he was a consummate musician and artist, and no one can replace him. |
Here's a partial list of guitarist that Jack Bruce was in bands with: - John McLaughlin - Eric Clapton - Larry Coryell - Leslie West - Lou Reed - Steve Hunter - Mick Taylor - Gary Moore - Clem Clempson - Robin Trower - Allan Holdsworth - Rory Gallagher - Peter Frampton - Vernon Reid - Phil Manzanera It's an impressive list, but then again, he was Jack Bruce. |
- 46 posts total