Jack Bruce, Cream bassist, dies at 71
Jack Bruce, the Scottish bassist and singer best known for his work with 1960s hard rock pioneers Cream, died on Oct. 25 at his home in Suffolk, England. He was 71.
Bruce's death was announced by his family on his official website. No cause of death was cited. "It is with great sadness that we, Jack's family, announce the passing of our beloved Jack: husband, father, granddad and all 'round legend," the brief statement read.
Though he maintained substantial renown within musical circles both before and after his stint with Cream, the band's four-album run was nonetheless the commercial high point of Bruce's career. A supergroup composed of Bruce, Eric Clapton on guitar and Ginger Baker on drums, the band played a pivotal role in the development of hard rock and heavy metal, and along with fellow power trio the Jimi Hendrix Experience, set new standards for instrumental virtuosity in rock music.
Featuring Bruce on lead vocals, the band's originals like "Sunshine of Your Love," "White Room" and "I Feel Free" would quickly become standards, and the group's third album, "Wheels of Fire," was the first double-LP to go platinum, effectively legitimizing the format.
Cream was burdened by interpersonal combustion almost from the start, and the band broke up after a farewell tour and a fourth album, appropriately titled "Goodbye," was released in 1969. Bruce stayed extremely busy in the years following, recording solo album "Songs for a Tailor" that same year, forming another short-lived power trio, West, Bruce and Lang, in the early 1970s, and playing with everyone from John McLaughlin to Lou Reed and Frank Zappa.
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