 |  | Riddle me this: When is a remaster NOT the one to buy? |  |
...when it is remastered by the chucklehead who did "Goodbye" by Cream (the latest remaster). Don't get me wrong this is a fine album and unlike some people here, I feel that the trio of studio tracks demonstrated continued growth for the band. Eric Clapton and George Harrison's "Badge" features a sublime melody for the chorus and Harrison himself reused the bridge of the song (which is how it got its title--Clapton read "bridge" as "Badge")for "Here Comes the Sun" for The Beatles' "Abbey Road" (in fact all of the guitar playing up until the solo is Harrison playing rhythm guitar). Jack Bruce and Peter Brown's "Doing That Scrapyard Thing" is wonderfully eccentric and points to the direction of his second solo album (although it was released first--confused? So were fans!)"Songs for A Taylor" and Ginger Baker checks in with one of his most accomplished songs the tense "What A Bringdown" closing out the album.
What's really interesting are the live cuts that open the album. All three feature Cream at the top of their game and compliment the other live tracks from "Wheels of Fire", "Live Cream Volumes 1 & 2". In fact I personally feel that these are among the strongest live cuts that the band committed to record (along with "Live Cream II")but your milage may vary.
This remaster sounds a bit shrill, harsh and compressed to me. If you can find an original first CD issue go with that or as another choice the Mofi Gold Edition (which isn't the best one admittedly but it's pretty darn good). Both are better than the latest CD editions that have been littering the stores. The music is the most important part of course but also keep in mind HOW it is presented in terms of sound also can be important as well.
July 21, 2008This is the final release of new material along with live tracks by the late great Cream.I bought this on vinyl when it came out and it has had a special place in my heart ever since.The live tracks,I'm So Glad,Politician and Sitting on Top of the World are excellent.Apparently I wasn't the only budding guitar player to dig this album as a kid.I saw both Eddie Van Halen (1984 tour) and Yngwie Malmsteen (Trilogy tour) quote the opening phrases and the first cycle of the solo to Sitting on Top of The World as part of their Spotlight Solos.Of course I was in Git-nut heaven both times.A Wikipedia search revealed that Joe Bonamassa listed Goodbye as one of the records he was most influenced by.I also like the studio tracks,Badge being the hit but What a Bringdown smokes as well(I love the breakdown here,good headbanging material-ha).I also was impressed with the mastering of the CD reissue.I always felt the level was a bit low on vinyl(especially the live tracks) and this was corrected for the CD.The sound is totally full bodied and present.Cream is gone but not forgotten.
June 13, 2008I picked this up because it was the last of the original four of Cream's albums, and was dissappointed. I loved the mixture of studio and live music on Wheels of Fire (my favorite), and so I thought this would be wholly worthwhile. To my dismay, I found that the live recordings were uninspired, boring, and unimaginative. The vocals aren't powerful and the jams don't go anywhere. That's where the live material differs from that of Wheels.
Also, the studio material was far from spectacular. Badge is very good, but the others are so-so. I got the version with Anyone for Tennis, and it's pretty good also; it's along the lines of Coffee Song and Wrapping Paper.
All in all, I have no clue as to the reason this album exists. The live material is so much worse than that of Wheels (which I find outstanding) and the studio songs should be outtakes for Wheels at best (whether or not they were recorded in this era). Badge is the only exception. I gave this three stars because it's still Cream, but compared to their other releases, it deserves a two at best. If you don't have Fresh Cream, Disraeli Gears, and/or Wheels of Fire, get those first. If you have all three, you'll probably get this anyway, and you'll see what I mean...
March 26, 2008This is an all time classic. If you a younger type looking for "finds", this would be one of them. Every song is excellent.
March 11, 2008It's always a strange album that features both live and studio recordings, as it so clearly shows the capabilities of a band in both settings. Some bands were studio masters while others were only truly captured on stage. And, though they did some very good studio work, Cream is clearly one of the latter, as this album shows. The live effort is very good...bluesy, soulful, and possessing a very rich, full sound. The studio work, on the other hand, isn't up to par with their best material, and sounds out of place after the live tracks.
It adds up to a bi-polar album, but one that is still worth spinning.
February 2, 2008More reviews at Amazon.com ...
(31 reviews)