Cream

Twice upon a time in the valley of the tears
An auctioneer is bidding for a box of fading years
And the elephants are dancing on the graves of squealing mice
Anyone for tennis? Wouldn't that be nice?
And the ice creams are all melting on the streets of bloody beer
While the beggars stain the pavements with fluorescent Christmas cheer
And the Bentley-driving guru is putting up his price
Anyone for tennis? Wouldn't that be nice?
And the prophets in the boutiques give out messages of hope
With jingle bells and fairy tales and blind colliding scopes
And you can tell that all they're saying underneath the pretty lies
Anyone for tennis? Wouldn't that be nice?
The yellow Buddhist monk is burning brightly at the zoo
You can bring a bowl of rice and then a glass of water too
And Fate is setting up the chessboard while Death rolls out the dice
Anyone for tennis? Wouldn't that be nice?

The members of this power trio, formed in the autumn of 1966, were all veterans of the blues revival. Guitarist Eric Clapton was the same prodigy who revealed himself with the Yardbirds, and who had contributed to the legendary recording of Bluesbreakers with John Mayall. Drummer Peter “Ginger” Baker, skilled at many forms of percussion, had already played, in 1960, with the Nigerian musician Fela Anikulapo Kuti, and in 1962 with Alexis Korner and the Graham Bond Organisation. Scottish bassist Jack Bruce had traveled some of the same roads as Baker, before joining Manfred Mann. Bruce and Clapton had met each other in the Powerhouse, a short-lived lineup put together by John Mayall, that also included Steve Winwood at the keyboard. With Cream these three virtuosos simply brought to fruition the experience that they developed in the London clubs, bringing to the rock concert stage long, electric, high volume improvisations.

Cream popular songs

Anyone for Tennis (The Savage Seven Theme)Cream

Cream