Jeff, why Jack Bruce?

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consectaneus

consectaneus

Sep 23, 2016
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#1
I understand you have a "tribute" album or recording planned of Jack Bruce. I would like to know what it is about his playing that inspires you to do this. He was always known as a busy player...perhaps even the father of the "lead bass" style. Some thoughts or a written appreciation of his playing and what you are hearing that someone less knowledgeable wouldn't notice would be enlightening.
 
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#6
consectaneus said:
I understand you have a "tribute" album or recording planned of Jack Bruce. I would like to know what it is about his playing that inspires you to do this. He was always known as a busy player...perhaps even the father of the "lead bass" style. Some thoughts or a written appreciation of his playing and what you are hearing that someone less knowledgeable wouldn't notice would be enlightening.
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When I was 14, I already was into the Beatles and other 60's rock bands. But, Wheels of Fire just took my head off. I knew at age 14 that playing was my future, my life. Jack was the first electric bass virtuoso in music history. He was the first bassist that moved the harmony under Clapton's one chord harmony. He created a whole new bass sound. And later, his solo albums were filled with marvelously diverse and harmonically rich music. He simply was, and still is, the only bass player to open up a door for me to enter into. To this day! I just reviewed a live Cream track called Sweet Wine which is on Live Cream. For me, there isn't a rock bass performance to equal it.

We were friends and I am glad to have know him and am grateful for his one of a kind musical vision that gave me a light to follow.
 
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#7
Thanks for that. Sometimes I can take even great players for granted since they have been around since I can remember. Going back to listen to Sweet Wine was everything you said it was...an epic performance and like a mini encyclopedia of what he was about. I know Clapton said that after the first time he played with Jack, he was never the same. As you say, no one else was doing what he was at that time. Then you consider that he co-wrote most of their lyrics, and sang lead while filling all the holes in a trio format with his melodic style, and you have a true bass icon.

I look forward to what comes of your Jack Bruce project.
 
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#8
Jack Bruce's lines while Clapton soloed in White Room still has me stumped after learning and performing the song since 91. Same with the last verse of Badge. And how he sang on Swlabr and played those breaks? Cream's version of Born Under a Bad Sign is still my favorite and i will never tire of jamming along to it.

Jack Bruce: Such a phenom!

@JeffBerlin I've read that Jack played with Holdsworth - was any of that recorded and released? missing Allan so much :thumbsdown:
 
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#9
JeffBerlin said:
When I was 14, I already was into the Beatles and other 60's rock bands. But, Wheels of Fire just took my head off.
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I was 12 when WoF came out and it blew me away then. But I really got into Cream at 14, which was when I started getting serious about guitar. Jack Bruce was the first "rock" player who really made me listen to the bass lines. Even Badge, one of Jack's simpler songs, is a masterpiece.
 
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#10
I got into Jack Bruce after I had already been playing for quite awhile. But man the live crossroads. Geez. That’s 3 piece going all in no prisoners. It just doesn’t get any better than that. Then I got major into cream and everything Jack Bruce played on that I could find. It changed my whole approach to music and bass. That tone on the live stuff. Man.

He played on John McLaughlin’s “electric guitarist” album and Zappa’s “apostrophe”, West Bruce and laing, BLT with Trower and it’s just awesomeness. We associate lead bass now as a lot of slapping and speed and all but jack was just on his own asteroid. And he sang was a multi instrumentalist composed and led a band too. Huge huge influence on me. Can’t say enough about JB.

It’s an honor to post where mr Berlin will see this. I remember as a kid reading your guitar player articles. And how you spray painted jack Bruce’s name on your wall. :D Thank you mr Berlin for your art and furthering the bass guitar. As well as encouraging all you encounter.
 
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#11
JeffBerlin said:
Jack was the first bass virtuoso in music history.
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Well, I started to flatly disagree with my pal Jeff about that. In my mind, James Jamerson was the first electric bass virtuoso, and the first true innovator, on the instrument in music history. Jack Bruce was the first bass virtuoso in rock music history.

But then I thought it prudent to check out the dates of key recordings before shooting my mouth off.

I'm not familiar with Jack Bruce's work before December, 1966, which was the release date of "Fresh Cream." So I'm taking that as a benchmark. Then, looking at the discography of Motown, I find that Jamerson had turned regularly to the electric bass before that date and had, by then, created the bass tracks on I Can't Help Myself, You Can't Hurry Love, Uptight (Everything's Alright) and perhaps most significantly, Reach Out I'll Be There." His greatest work was still ahead of him. Of course, so was Jack Bruce's.

I still lean toward Jamerson. But I suppose it doesn't much matter when considering two such colossal innovators.

With the other things Jeff says, I agree. Especially the part about the "marvelously diverse and harmonically rich music" on Jack's solo albums. And I must add a word about his superb and utterly distinctive vocalizations. What a great talent he was!
 
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#12
mistahlee said:
Well, I started to flatly disagree with my pal Jeff about that. In my mind, James Jamerson was the first electric bass virtuoso, and the first true innovator, on the instrument in music history. Jack Bruce was the first bass virtuoso in rock music history.

But then I thought it prudent to check out the dates of key recordings before shooting my mouth off.

I'm not familiar with Jack Bruce's work before December, 1966, which was the release date of "Fresh Cream." So I'm taking that as a benchmark. Then, looking at the discography of Motown, I find that Jamerson had turned regularly to the electric bass before that date and had, by then, created the bass tracks on I Can't Help Myself, You Can't Hurry Love, Uptight (Everything's Alright) and perhaps most significantly, Reach Out I'll Be There." His greatest work was still ahead of him. Of course, so was Jack Bruce's.

I still lean toward Jamerson. But I suppose it doesn't much matter when considering two such colossal innovators.

With the other things Jeff says, I agree. Especially the part about the "marvelously diverse and harmonically rich music" on Jack's solo albums. And I must add a word about his superb and utterly distinctive vocalizations. What a great talent he was!
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I'd agree, but would add first electric bass virtuosos in music history. By the 60's, there had been plenty - Ray Brown, Milt Hinton, Paul Chambers, Jimmy Blanton, etc, etc, etc. And that doesn't begin to address classical music.
 
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#13
mistahlee said:
And I must add a word about his superb and utterly distinctive vocalizations. What a great talent he was!
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I was just reading an interview of him. Clapton wanted him as the singer from the beginning, and Bruce wanted Eric to be the singer. He feels he ended up the primary singer by default because Eric's wishes won out! It's amazing because I agree--I love his singing and can't imagine Cream without it!

This thread really has me revisiting him with new ears. So melodic and supportive at the same time. Great musician.
 
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