Daily Record: “New Generation of Cream Rises to the Top”
Read the Daily Record’s feature article on The Music of Cream and their performance at MPAC Saturday, October 20!
Daily Record: “New Generation of Cream Rises to the Top”
By Bill Nutt
Malcolm Bruce, bassist for the Music of Cream, has a request: Please don’t call his group a “tribute band.”
True, Bruce and his bandmates – drummer Kofi Baker and guitarist Will Johns – are playing the songs associated with Cream, the pioneering blues-rock trio of the 1960s.
Bruce, Baker, and Johns perform the group’s hits, such as “Sunshine of Your Love” and “White Room,” as well as deep album cuts, including “Sleeping Time Time” and “We’re Going Wrong.”
But Bruce and the other members of Music of Cream have no interest in slavish recreations of 50-year-old recordings.
“We’re not copying what the original band did,” said Bruce. “That would be pointless. What we’re doing is being true to the spirit with our improvisation. There’s something in my voice or the way I play the bass. It’s part of our tradition.”
The members of the Music of Cream really do have Cream’s music in their DNA. Bruce’s father, the late Jack Bruce, played bass in Cream. Kofi Baker is the son of original drummer Ginger Baker, and Will Johns is nephew (by marriage) of Eric Clapton.
“It’s almost like therapy, playing this music,” said Malcolm Bruce. “It’s a way to connect to our heritage.”
Since 2018 marks the 50th anniversary of Cream’s final U.S. tour, the time is right for the Music of Cream to hold its own series of concerts. The group will play the Mayo PAC on Saturday, October 20, and the Count Basie Theatre on Tuesday, October 23.
Over the years, the younger Bruce and Baker and Will Johns have pursued solo careers, and each has made his music. But when they perform as the Music of Cream, they leave original material behind to concentrate on the Cream catalog.
Malcolm Bruce said that he and the other band members take their legacy very seriously. “The songs of Cream are an incredible body of work,” he said. “When you consider what they did in only two-and-a-half years.”
Songs like “Strange Brew” and “Tales of Brave Ulysses” that are familiar from FM radio provide a special thrill, according to Bruce. “But we love to do the obscurities,” he added. “We have the time to do some of those on this tour.”
For example, the Music of Cream makes it a point to include “Toad,” with its epic 15-minute drum solo. Bruce said he also enjoys performing “Sleepy Time Time,” a song that was inspired by a line that his mother, Janet, said to his father.
“I love what we do with the songs,” Bruce said. “Kofi and I can get into these polyrhythmic things. It’s like we’re going on a journey.”
The concerts also let the musicians share personal stories. Bruce cited “We’re Going Wrong,” which his father wrote following a fight with his wife. (Significantly, the song was one of the few times that Jack Bruce had a solo songwriting credit.)
“It’s a simple song,” said the younger Bruce. “But if you listen to it closely, it takes on a bigger meaning. Maybe it’s making a social statement. Maybe it’s making a political statement. When we pull it off, it has a profound impact on the audience.”
Bruce also pointed to the eclectic background of the original members, citing Eric Clapton’s blues influence and the fact that both his father and Ginger Baker had experience in classical music and jazz.
“Eric is a blues purist, but because of the other music that Jack and George had done, it brought something different than if Eric had played with a different rhythm section,” said Malcolm Bruce.
The Music of Cream has a similar dynamic, with Will Johns coming from the blues-rock tradition and the younger Bruce and Baker drawing from world music and jazz, among other styles.
“The dynamic among the three of us becomes greater than the whole,” concluded Bruce. “We do this out of love and respect. We try to honor our heritage, and that’s an exciting journey for us to go on with the audience.”
IF YOU GO: THE MUSIC OF CREAM: THE 50th ANNIVERSARY WORLD TOUR
WHAT: Cream, the pioneering blues-rock trio (“Sunshine of Your Love,” “White Room,” “Crossroads”) that played its final U.S. concerts in 1968, is honored by the next generation. The Music of Cream features Malcolm Bruce (son of bassist Jack Bruce), Kofi Baker (son of drummer Ginger Baker), and Will Johns (nephew by marriage of guitarist Eric Clapton).
WHEN: 8 p.m. Saturday, October 20.
WHERE: Mayo Performing Arts Center, 100 South St., Morristown
TICKETS: $29 to $59
INFORMATION: 973-539-8008 or mayoarts.org
