Fresh Cream

Last updated

Fresh Cream
Fresh cream.jpg
Studio album by
Released9 December 1966 (1966-12-09)
RecordedJuly–November 1966
StudioRayrik & Ryemuse (London)
Genre Blues rock [1]
Length37:48 (LP version), 40:39 (CD version)
Label Reaction
Producer Robert Stigwood
Cream chronology
Fresh Cream
(1966)
Disraeli Gears
(1967)
Singles from Fresh Cream
  1. "Spoonful"
    Released: September 1967
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svg [2]
BBC Music (Highly Positive) [3]
Robert Christgau A− [4]
Uncut Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svg [5]
Daily Express (Positive) [6]
The 1000 Best Pop-Rock Albums Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar half.svg[ citation needed ]
Ultimate Classic Rock (Positive) [7]
MusicHound Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svg [8]

Fresh Cream is the debut studio album by the British rock band Cream, consisting of bassist Jack Bruce, guitarist Eric Clapton and drummer Ginger Baker. The album was released in the UK on 9 December 1966, as the first LP on the Reaction Records label, owned by producer Robert Stigwood. It was released in both mono and stereo versions, at the same time as the release of the single "I Feel Free". [9] The album peaked at No. 6 on the UK Albums Chart. The album was released in a slightly different form in January 1967 by Atco Records in the US, also in mono and stereo versions. [10]

Contents

The mono versions were deleted not long after release and for many years only the stereo recordings were available. The UK mono album was reissued on CD for the first time in Japan, by Universal Music, in late 2013 as part of a deluxe SHM-CD and SHM-SACD sets (both editions also contain the UK stereo counterpart). [11]

In January 2017, the album was again reissued, by Polydor, in a 4-CD box-set containing mono and stereo versions of the original UK and US release along with singles and B-sides. [12]

Background

Bass player Jack Bruce later said that the opening song "N.S.U." was written for the band's first rehearsal. "It was like an early punk song... the title meant "non-specific urethritis. It didn't mean an NSU Quickly – which was one of those little 1960s mopeds. I used to say it was about a member of the band who had this venereal disease. I can't tell you which one... except he played guitar." [13]

Reception

In 2012, the album was ranked number 102 on Rolling Stone's list of the 500 Greatest Albums of all time (the highest-ranking album by Cream on the list). [14] Uncut describes the songs as "all about playing in a band and relaxing, the joy of being young, and they walk it like they talk it, being jumping-off points for wonderful spur-of-the moment improvisations". [15] Writing for the BBC, Sid Smith notes that "blues, pop and rock magically starts to coalesce to create something brand new". [3] Stephen Thomas Erlewine of AllMusic opined that the album was "instrumental in the birth of heavy metal and jam rock". [2]

Track listing

Original UK release

Side one
No.TitleWriter(s)Lead vocalsLength
1."N.S.U." Jack Bruce Bruce2:43
2."Sleepy Time Time"Bruce, Janet Godfrey Bruce4:20
3."Dreaming"BruceBruce1:58
4."Sweet Wine" Ginger Baker, GodfreyBruce3:17
5."Spoonful" Willie Dixon Bruce6:30
Total length:18:48
Side two
No.TitleWriter(s)Lead vocalsLength
1."Cat's Squirrel" Doctor Ross, arr. Bruce, Baker, Eric Clapton Instrumental3:04
2."Four Until Late" Robert Johnson, arr. ClaptonClapton2:07
3."Rollin' and Tumblin'" Hambone Willie Newbern Bruce4:42
4."I'm So Glad" Skip James Bruce3:58
5."Toad"BakerInstrumental5:09
Total length:19:00

Original U.S. version

Side one
No.TitleWriter(s)Lead vocalsLength
1."I Feel Free"Bruce, Pete BrownBruce2:52
2."N.S.U."BruceBruce2:43
3."Sleepy Time Time"Bruce, Janet GodfreyBruce4:20
4."Dreaming"BruceBruce1:58
5."Sweet Wine"Baker, GodfreyBruce3:17
Total length:15:10
Side two
No.TitleWriter(s)Lead vocalsLength
1."Cat's Squirrel"Ross, arr. Bruce, Baker, ClaptonInstrumental3:03
2."Four Until Late"Johnson, arr. ClaptonClapton2:07
3."Rollin' and Tumblin'"NewbernBruce4:42
4."I'm So Glad"JamesBruce3:57
5."Toad"BakerInstrumental5:09
Total length:18:58

Later U.S. release

Original reissues in the U.S. on RSO/Polydor use the same track listing as the original UK edition given above in which "I Feel Free" is replaced with "Spoonful" on Side 1. Polydor's original CD release from the 1980s combines the UK and US track lists but also includes "The Coffee Song" and "Wrapping Paper," which were removed from subsequent CD releases starting in the 1990s. [16] [17]

Scandinavian release

An edition released originlly only in Scandinavia was a 12-track release, It had the same ten tracks as the UK version plus added two tracks: "Wrapping Paper", written by Jack Bruce and Pete Brown, and "The Coffee Song", written by Tony Colton and Ray Smith. Both vinyl and cover were made in Germany and exported to the Swedish market only – the German original had the same 10 tracks as the UK. The group didn't want "Coffee Song" to be issued at all, but a mono version was mixed and coupled with "Wrapping Paper" as a single. There were no plans at this stage to release it in stereo, so for the Swedish issue, a crude stereo mix was used. This was made during the sessions in early August 1966 for instructive purpose – the whole track as basic mono is mixed far right and a solo guitar overdub far left. Never intended for release, this mix was soon lost and for later stereo issues a new one was made.

The front cover and record no. (623 031) are the same as the German issue, but three different back covers exist. The first listed the correct 12 tracks, the second listed 10 tracks, and a third where the 12 track listing has been "glued" over the 10 track listing.

Side one
No.TitleWriter(s)Lead vocalsLength
1."N.S.U."Jack BruceBruce2:43
2."Sleepy Time Time"Bruce; Janet GodfreyBruce4:20
3."Dreaming"BruceBruce1:58
4."Sweet Wine"Ginger Baker; GodfreyBruce3:17
5."Spoonful"Willie DixonBruce6:30
6."Wrapping Paper"Bruce, BrownBruce2:24
Total length:21:12
Side two
No.TitleWriter(s)Lead vocalsLength
1."Cat's Squirrel"Doctor Ross, arr. Bruce, Baker, ClaptonInstrumental3:03
2."Four Until Late"Robert Johnson, arr. ClaptonClapton2:07
3."The Coffee Song"Ray Smith, Tony ColtonBruce2:45
4."Rollin' and Tumblin'"Hambone Willie NewbernBruce4:42
5."I'm So Glad"Skip JamesBruce3:57
6."Toad"BakerInstrumental5:09
Total length:21:43

This version of Fresh Cream was also released by Polydor (2384 067) in the UK in 1974 under the title "Cream".

This version of Fresh Cream was released by RSO (2658 142) & Polydor (2658 142) in Germany during 1981 as a boxset under the title "Cream". [18]

Personnel

Cream

Technical

Charts

Chart (1966–1967)Peak
position
Australian Albums (Kent Music Report) [20] 10
Finnish Albums (Soumen Virallinen) [21] 4
French Albums (SNEP) [22] 20
UK Albums (OCC) [23] 6
US Billboard 200 [24] 39

Certifications

RegionCertification Certified units/sales
Australia (ARIA) [25] Gold35,000^
United Kingdom (BPI) [26] Gold100,000^
United States (RIAA) [27] Gold500,000^

^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

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References

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  3. 1 2 Smith, Sid (17 April 2007). "Cream Fresh Cream Review". BBC Music . Retrieved 27 September 2011.
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  18. https://www.discogs.com/release/597930-Cream-Cream Discogs.com Retrieved 25 October 2023
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