I like the Bone Thugs In Harmony mention, what a great song as well. But man, this song was awesome. I could listen to Eric Clapton/Cream all day! Check out Old Love by Eric.
It's a shame we don't know where he is buried for sure. I have seen 5 markers with his name, I think the one may be close. I spent 5 years in the Delta trying to unlock the mystery that was him. He used 4-5 aliases very hard to track him.
I'm surprised Clapton's guitar didn't burst into flames during this ferocious number .... probably the best live rock/blues guitar playing I have ever heard .... I still get chills more than a half century after it was recorded ....
@@noahm15 Thanks for your reply, Noah. I agree. I have been a big fan of Roy's for many years, and I would say that his Austin City Limits performance of 1976 ranks right up there with the best live performances I have ever seen. It's a shame his life ended when it did and the way it did ..... Truly one of the Greats!
@@alonyacar715 As a matter of fact, I did, but it's been years since I last watched that concert. I'll have to check it out again. Thanks for reminding me!
4:55 YEAH, THAT'S FUCKIN' RIGHT, IT'S LIVE!!!! Clapton's second solo here is my favorite lead guitar work of all time, on anything, from anyone. I could hum every note from memory, but each time I listen to it, it hits just as hard as the first time I heard it. So, so good.
Completely agree. It's just astonishing how nobody ever gives a mediocre opinion of this song anywhere, anytime, much less a bad review. Everybody agrees that this is as good as it gets when the electric guitar is played by anybody who can't walk on water or change water into wine.
Clapton's 2nd guitar solo is one of the greatest guitar moments ever captured on record. I still get shivers down my spine when he launches into that solo. It's ferocious. The bass and drums are incredible too.
Ginger Baker was in Washington DC about 1989-90, and was interviewed. He was asked about Clapton...Baker replied (paraphrase) “Eric could have been really good, but he wanted to be a star.” Hahahahaha!
THE greatest blues-rock song ever recorded. Powerful beyond measure, with the most coherent improv guitar solo ever taken. It has a beginning, middle, end, it tells a story, it has a perfect arc and it rocks so hard it loosens your fillings. Crossroads stands alone. Thanks for playing it!
This is the first solo vocal that Eric recorded. He was a self-described "work in progress." He later complained that his voice was "too high" on his masterpiece "Layla." His vocal skills improved by his constant touring (get better or get lost) and his ongoing vocal lessons with a coach in London. By the mid 70's, after his hiatus (drug funk) he emerged as a very good vocalist. By the late 80's and early 90's, his fully formed mature voice gave deep meaning in his remakes of the old "blues" standards that he honored so much.
One of the all time classic guitar solos from Eric Clapton! It just sings! But few people notice the incredible swinging, jazzy bass line from Jack Bruce underneath. The thing about Cream was they were always soloing together whenever they played live.
They were cookin' with gas this night! Bruce's melodic bass lines, Clapton's inspired solo and Baker keeping it rolling on out! Three guys living large!
actually it was written by cream, it's a combination of 2 Johnson songs , crossroad blues and travelling riverside blues , with modern contemporary beat and instruments , but either way the credit is still deserved to Johnson .
Don't know if Jamel has thought about this. That guy singing and jamming is the same one who also did Tears In Heaven. Clapton has aged like a fine wine.
The greatest live rock/blues performance of all time, no question. Off the charts, intergalactic level of musicianship, improvisation, tone, groove and soul. And it's just three guys playing (who were feuding a lot of the time). Unbelievable!
Jamel; this is one of the masterpieces of "power blues." No one did it better, and no one does it as well now. "The Band," "Cream;" my top 2 bands of all time. "Cream" was called the first "Super-Group," and so well deserved.
An incredible band. Bruce and Baker didn’t like each other to put it mildly, but they were one hell of a rhythm section. Clapton topped it off with the devil chords.
Have you ever heard that interview with evh when he does this solo note for note? It's on UA-cam. It sounds like either Barbara Walters or somebody is interviewing him and asked him to do it.
During this period Clapton was untouchable. Even one year later with Cream this song didn't even come close to this recording. Unbelievable phrasing, unbelievable tone, technique, soul, all of it.. And Bruce and Baker right there with him.
It was listening to this, in particular, riding with my brother in his 66 'stang, flying down the back roads (late 80s/early 90s) that I truly discovered the left hand path of blues and rock music.
I wasn't born yet when Cream was active, but had all their albums on cassette tapes once I was a teenager. I did get to see Eric Clapton a few times in the '80s. He opened with "White Room." Robert Cray opened at that time & jammed with him at the end- another amazing blues guitarist! One Clapton tour I saw had Phil Collins on drums (yes, he played "In the Air Tonight"). I was supposed to be at the 1990 concert at Alpine Valley in Wisconsin, but had pregnancy complications. That was the night Stevie Ray Vaughan died there in a helicopter crash after the show. Tears...
If you like these guys, check out the reunion they didlive.....three 70 year old men rocking out like no one else is able. Sunshine of your Love is my personal favorite from the live reunion.....
I'm not a huge Cream fan but it was impressive show and definitely in my collection, loved watching a big part of musical history playing one last time together.
I was so fortunate to have two older brothers when I was eight or nine years old, we all shared a bedroom, back in the sixties and I got to hear this song and so much more music like Hendrix, The Doors, Janis Joplin and of course The Beatles and The Stones and much, much more. Other Cream songs you might like are White Room, Tales Of Brave Ulysses, Strange Brew, Spoonful, Born Under A Bad Sign to name just a few.
Hey Jamel! Those original Black bluesmen knew how to build their legends, long before they passed on. 😄 Robert Johnson was the original! He only got to record a few of his songs, but those songs influenced *everyone* who came after him. ☮ out. ✌🏽
Include Son House. Johnson gets well deserved credit but he taught Johnson who a several years younger a few things. Son lived to 86 passing away in 1988. Many recordings live and studio still exist of Son . As well as video tape of performances.
if you haven't checked out White Room, Sunshne Of Your Love, Strange Brew, Tales Of Brave Ulysses, SWLABR generally I prefer the songs Jack Bruce did the vocals on Theme For An Imaginary Western is a great tune off of Jack Bruce's first solo album, as is To Isengard
What's so great about this track, is go back and listen to it once, concentrating on the bass, once on the drums, and again on Eric and the lead guitar! Disraeli Gears was, and is, one of the best albums of all time!😀
I just got throw my two cents' worth in here. I LOVED your reaction because it was exactly the same reaction that I had, only way back in 1968 when it was first released! You would have found me cranking up the volume on my Radio Shack amp, to my Koss headphones, spinning the LP on my Garrard turntable, and rocking out to it just like you did Jamal. Thanks for the smiles and glad you found this 54-year-old recording to be as much fun and fresh today as it was back then.
A total classic! Thanks for not interrupting. Nice job on the analysis. Cream was one of the few groups I ever heard live that sounded better on stage than they did on their albums. "Spoonful" is another song that's awesome, from the same live album by Cream. That whole album is amazing. Keep up the good work Jamel!
So many guitarists learned by playing along with Eric Clapton with Cream. This was one of the few songs with the group where he was the lead vocalist. I'm still hoping you will get to the album version of "Had To Cry Today" from Blind Faith , with Steve Winwood. There is a whole second half to the song with both Clapton and Winwood on lead guitars.
@@alankillian4962 Yes, a great concert, along with songs by J.Beck, Tull, and Yes. I love when he and people like Gary Moore throw in old Jeff Beck Group licks.
I have heard this so many times since the late 1960s that it is practically in my DNA. So it is REALLY fun to watch someone experience it for the first time!
THE greatest blues-rock song ever. Bar none. Without exception. Somewhere in Heaven (no the devil didn't get him, God wanted him for the heavenly choir) Robert Johnson smiles every time this song is played.
Clapton‘s guitar solo is amazing here and yet he’s still upstaged by Jack Bruce. Some of the most inspired bass jamming I have ever heard or will ever hear.
Robert Johnson was only 27 when he passed away in 1938 yet is regarded as one of the godfather's of modern Blues and one of the most influential musicians of all time. Many of his original songs became huge hits for bands like Cream, The Yardbirds, Lez Zeppelin, The Rolling Stones, Fleetwood Mac and many others.
'Crossroads' is easily in my top 5 songs of all time! This version just tears it up!!! A person cannot help but play air-guitar to this song!! It's definitely a banger!!! Great reaction and thanks for playing it!!👍🍀
This song is THE legend in Rock and Roll, penned and performed by the great Robert Johnson. The song is a tale of robert going to the crossroads in Rosedale, Mississippi to sell his soul to the Devil in exchange for greatness on the guitar. Robert was also the original member of the 27 club
Glad to see you sticking with Cream! Both the instrumental sections of this live recording always amaze me. All three of them are riffing and no one is holding down the beat. In the hands of lesser musicians, even very good ones, that would fall apart into gibberish so quickly. They're just so good that it can work. There is plenty of live Cream to visit, and some of their longer live songs will be just as rewarding as some of the Dead or Yes longer tracks you have taken the time to experience. In the late 90s Jack Bruce and Gary Moore toured together and their live versions of 'Sitting of top of the World' are worth a listen.
From the story where Robert Johnson "went down to the crossroads" and made a deal with the devil; came back with amazing talent. That's the story (myth) anyway. Cream does it great.
So glad you finally got to this one....and you picked the right version!! In my humble opinion, this is the greatest recorded live rock performance in history...and Eric Clapton's greatest recorded guitar solo.
Good ole SLOW HAND.... I've loved Eric Clapton for about 44 years now! Never get tired of hearing him play or sing! I don't know much about music, but I do know talent when I hear it! Great song and reaction!
Finally. Thanks. This version still gives me chills. Cream at their best. Fire in Claptons playing. Very very inspiring. The interplay betwwen the guitar and drums..wow. Bass is amazing too
Fun fact, this name derived from his time in the yardbirds when he would change broken strings in the middle of gigs and the audience would do a slow clap to fill
Blues Rock at its finest. In E.C.'s search to find the source of his beloved Blues, he dug down to the roots and discovered a man named Robert Johnson who wrote and recorded Cross Road Blues in 1936. Thirty years later Eric, Jack, and Ginger gave us this astounding interpretation.
Need to check out Harry Nilsson. Without You, Everybody's Talking and Jump Into Fire. His album "The Point" is a treat as well. Perhaps too long to react to but definitely worth a listen. It's a story album about a boy and his dog and their adventures in a land where having a point is mandatory. Great stuff.
I saw Eric Clapton perform live, 2 days before the UK went into full Lockdown exactly 1 year ago today! He's still got that magic, still got the most gorgeous sound!
I'm 69. Watching you listen to some of this great music that I have listened to for years, is almost like hearing it for the first time - you are so authentic. Yes, the story you relate is reportedly how Clapton knew it and could relate as he was in some ways a very tortured soul (Robert Johnson going to the "crossroads" and making a deal with the devil). I think there may have been a bit more to it - a woman was somehow involved as many would be in Eric's life and reportedly in Robert Johnson's life as well. Please keep doing what you are doing - you are bringing a fresh perspective to much of this music.
I saw them back in the day. Baker & Clapton were heroin addicts for years, but despite that they played like amazingly. I grew up on all these original fantastic bands. (Cream, Led Zeppelin, Pink Floyd, Stones, Beatles, etc.) The best music to me...brings back so many memories. So many of the great musicians of that time are gone. It's sad, even up to the nineties. Sigh...such talent...gone too soon...
Love that you listened to it all the way through w/o stopping. Sometimes you gotta. That was recorded in California, San Francisco’s Winterland Ballroom. Doesn’t exist anymore.
All this music from three guys. Cream had a significant impact on the Rock/Blues scene, while being together only a couple year. There were one of the best.
‘JUST BE A GOOD HUMAN’ Shirts and More, Enter Promo Code ‘Jamel’ jamel-aka-jamal-youtube-store.creator-spring.com
Please check out “Marooned” by Pink Floyd
I like the Bone Thugs In Harmony mention, what a great song as well. But man, this song was awesome. I could listen to Eric Clapton/Cream all day! Check out Old Love by Eric.
Being humble has nothing to do with being a good person.
Rush covered Crossroads on their " Feedback", CD. Some other 60s stuff they like.
This is a cover of a Robert Johnson song.
Robert Johnson smiles in his grave every time this is played.
Just learned about Johnson.
Sold his soul to the devil to be a great blues guitarist. Safe to say his legacy lives on!
Give "colter wall - devil wears a suit and tie" live a sun king brewery a listen, if you like the Robert Johnson story.
Thank you. He doesn't get enough credit! RIP
It's a shame we don't know where he is buried for sure. I have seen 5 markers with his name, I think the one may be close. I spent 5 years in the Delta trying to unlock the mystery that was him. He used 4-5 aliases very hard to track him.
I'm surprised Clapton's guitar didn't burst into flames during this ferocious number .... probably the best live rock/blues guitar playing I have ever heard .... I still get chills more than a half century after it was recorded ....
Check out the legend Roy Buchanan!
@@noahm15 Thanks for your reply, Noah. I agree. I have been a big fan of Roy's for many years, and I would say that his Austin City Limits performance of 1976 ranks right up there with the best live performances I have ever seen. It's a shame his life ended when it did and the way it did ..... Truly one of the Greats!
@@Itsmattz I think you're right
Did you see Texas Flood (El Mocambo) - Stevie Ray Vaughan? Highly recommended. Best blues performance I have ever watched.
@@alonyacar715 As a matter of fact, I did, but it's been years since I last watched that concert. I'll have to check it out again. Thanks for reminding me!
4:55 YEAH, THAT'S FUCKIN' RIGHT, IT'S LIVE!!!! Clapton's second solo here is my favorite lead guitar work of all time, on anything, from anyone. I could hum every note from memory, but each time I listen to it, it hits just as hard as the first time I heard it. So, so good.
Completely agree. It's just astonishing how nobody ever gives a mediocre opinion of this song anywhere, anytime, much less a bad review. Everybody agrees that this is as good as it gets when the electric guitar is played by anybody who can't walk on water or change water into wine.
Clapton's 2nd guitar solo is one of the greatest guitar moments ever captured on record. I still get shivers down my spine when he launches into that solo. It's ferocious. The bass and drums are incredible too.
Yes great build up and timing😂
Eric Clapton, Jack Bruce and Ginger Baker were an amazing band back in the day
ABSOLUTELY!!!!!!!!!!!!!,
In any day. Any universe. Peace.
The first power trio supergroup?
I can't think of another.
@@they_9569 yes they were!!
RUSH, The Police, Grand Funk Railroad all follow in their footsteps!!
@@BRO77TX although I will argue that Rush kicked it up 11 notches.
The original supergroup and power trio
Cream of the crop you could say
Clapton was at his best when he was with Cream.
Three incredibly talented musicians to say the least.
What do Ginger Baker and black coffee have in common? They both suck without Cream.
@@joeday4293 on the contrary. About the coffee I mean
@@NLBrown-gz2qe Heh. Me too. Still a good joke.
@@joeday4293 but hey man I can listen to Cream all day
Ginger Baker was in Washington DC about 1989-90, and was interviewed. He was asked about Clapton...Baker replied (paraphrase) “Eric could have been really good, but he wanted to be a star.”
Hahahahaha!
THE greatest blues-rock song ever recorded. Powerful beyond measure, with the most coherent improv guitar solo ever taken. It has a beginning, middle, end, it tells a story, it has a perfect arc and it rocks so hard it loosens your fillings. Crossroads stands alone. Thanks for playing it!
👍 "Loosens your fillings . . . ." Damn right!
Jack Bruce's bass playing was incredible!
Truth
you are so correct
This is the first solo vocal that Eric recorded. He was a self-described "work in progress." He later complained that his voice was "too high" on his masterpiece "Layla." His vocal skills improved by his constant touring (get better or get lost) and his ongoing vocal lessons with a coach in London. By the mid 70's, after his hiatus (drug funk) he emerged as a very good vocalist. By the late 80's and early 90's, his fully formed mature voice gave deep meaning in his remakes of the old "blues" standards that he honored so much.
Clapton, Bruce and Baker. What a supergroup! True epicness!
One of the all time classic guitar solos from Eric Clapton! It just sings! But few people notice the incredible swinging, jazzy bass line from Jack Bruce underneath. The thing about Cream was they were always soloing together whenever they played live.
Jack was incredible.
Jack's bass MADE the solo, really. It always feels like he's pushing Clapton, they're playing off each other for sure.
Jack used to say in interviews he told Eric he was joining a blues band, but in actual fact Jack & Ginger were playing Jazz riffs 😀
It was like war between 3 guys
My dad would joke that it was three people taking a solo at the same time.
For blues rock,it doesn’t get much better than this,3 musicians at their absolute peak!
They were cookin' with gas this night! Bruce's melodic bass lines, Clapton's inspired solo and Baker keeping it rolling on out! Three guys living large!
Ginger Baker on the drums...he was a nut case but a hell of a drummer. Heavily influenced by the African sound and beat
Yes! He always considered himself a Jazz drummer.
Beware of Mr Baker is a great documentary about him.
TRUE DAT!!
You bet
If Ginger had a long career with one band he's be recognized and regarded as highly as Neil Peart.
“ White Room “ and “ Tales of Brave Ulysses” should be on any Cream
playlist.
Don't forget SWLABR and Strange Brew.
As well as my personal favorite "BADGE". 😉
Badge!
don't forget Politician!
I agree & would add "Outside Woman Blues"
Cream’s live stuff never ceases to amaze me. Clapton’s best work.
Rita may, another great song
ALWAY'S HEAR SOMETHING NEW, EVEN AFTER ALL THESE YEARS
Robert Johnson. 1930ish. He's the genesis/epitome of making a deal with the devil to be a 'star'.
And I believe the charter member of the sadly named "27 club"
You beat me to it. Much different tempo, but both great songs.
just released as a movie , Crossroads , starring Ralph Machio, looks really good
actually it was written by cream, it's a combination of 2 Johnson songs , crossroad blues and travelling riverside blues , with modern contemporary beat and instruments , but either way the credit is still deserved to Johnson .
My favorite robert Johnson song is 32 20 blues.
Don't know if Jamel has thought about this. That guy singing and jamming is the same one who also did Tears In Heaven. Clapton has aged like a fine wine.
The greatest live rock/blues performance of all time, no question. Off the charts, intergalactic level of musicianship, improvisation, tone, groove and soul. And it's just three guys playing (who were feuding a lot of the time). Unbelievable!
Jamel; this is one of the masterpieces of "power blues." No one did it better, and no one does it as well now. "The Band," "Cream;" my top 2 bands of all time. "Cream" was called the first "Super-Group," and so well deserved.
I recommend Badge for the George harrison connection and it's a great song.
Damn good song I’m pretty sure he reacted to it on this channel if I’m not mistaken
@@thehunterscorner2.011 your right 5 months ago
That bass run in Badge is a beast.
Actually I think James has already done that one. It's my absolute favorite from Cream.
...and Ringo who contributed the "swans" line
I request I'm so glad by cream and tales of Ulysses. These songs are uplifting and INCREDIBLE
An incredible band. Bruce and Baker didn’t like each other to put it mildly, but they were one hell of a rhythm section. Clapton topped it off with the devil chords.
Nobody liked Baker
The constant conflicts between the members ironically as it may seem contributed to the band's success.
@@bluebird3281 John Lydon did! They used to go out drinking when Baker did his two album stint with PiL.
Arguably one of the greatest guitar solos on record...and this was live!
The best rock song of all time. All time.
After hearing this song hundreds of times I still don't know what's better, the guitar solos or the lead bass playing...
One of the greats! Fun fact: this was EVH's favorite solo and as a kid learning guitar he slowed down the record to learn it note for note.
Have you ever heard that interview with evh when he does this solo note for note? It's on UA-cam. It sounds like either Barbara Walters or somebody is interviewing him and asked him to do it.
Me too, note for note...
That bass makes me want to get down on the floor and scratch like a dog. 🐶🎶
LOL!!!
Hilarious!!!
😂😅
During this period Clapton was untouchable. Even one year later with Cream this song didn't even come close to this recording. Unbelievable phrasing, unbelievable tone, technique, soul, all of it.. And Bruce and Baker right there with him.
It was listening to this, in particular, riding with my brother in his 66 'stang, flying down the back roads (late 80s/early 90s) that I truly discovered the left hand path of blues and rock music.
I wasn't born yet when Cream was active, but had all their albums on cassette tapes once I was a teenager. I did get to see Eric Clapton a few times in the '80s. He opened with "White Room." Robert Cray opened at that time & jammed with him at the end- another amazing blues guitarist! One Clapton tour I saw had Phil Collins on drums (yes, he played "In the Air Tonight"). I was supposed to be at the 1990 concert at Alpine Valley in Wisconsin, but had pregnancy complications. That was the night Stevie Ray Vaughan died there in a helicopter crash after the show. Tears...
If you like these guys, check out the reunion they didlive.....three 70 year old men rocking out like no one else is able. Sunshine of your Love is my personal favorite from the live reunion.....
I'm not a huge Cream fan but it was impressive show and definitely in my collection, loved watching a big part of musical history playing one last time together.
we're going wrong
Scotland is extremely proud of jack Bruce genius
My opinion, this was Clapton’s best solo 😎 and Bruce’s Bass lines. Ginger is outstanding Geezus
I was so fortunate to have two older brothers when I was eight or nine years old, we all shared a bedroom, back in the sixties and I got to hear this song and so much more music like Hendrix, The Doors, Janis Joplin and of course The Beatles and The Stones and much, much more. Other Cream songs you might like are White Room, Tales Of Brave Ulysses, Strange Brew, Spoonful, Born Under A Bad Sign to name just a few.
Hey Jamel! Those original Black bluesmen knew how to build their legends, long before they passed on. 😄 Robert Johnson was the original! He only got to record a few of his songs, but those songs influenced *everyone* who came after him. ☮ out. ✌🏽
Include Son House. Johnson gets well deserved credit but he taught Johnson who a several years younger a few things. Son lived to 86 passing away in 1988. Many recordings live and studio still exist of Son . As well as video tape of performances.
27 to be exact
The music talent in Britain in that era and the sheer volume of all time great bands is unsurpassed & on another level from the rest of the world ! 🇬🇧
if you haven't checked out White Room, Sunshne Of Your Love, Strange Brew, Tales Of Brave Ulysses, SWLABR
generally I prefer the songs Jack Bruce did the vocals on
Theme For An Imaginary Western is a great tune off of Jack Bruce's first solo album, as is To Isengard
One of the most infamous and legendary songs in Rock and Blues history. This song is the pinnacle of Blues Rock.
Jack Bruce revolutionized the way bass was played...entire group was incredible
What's so great about this track, is go back and listen to it once, concentrating on the bass, once on the drums, and again on Eric and the lead guitar! Disraeli Gears was, and is, one of the best albums of all time!😀
This was on Wheels Of Fire
Amazing that you're just getting around to this one. Such a classic.
I just got throw my two cents' worth in here. I LOVED your reaction because it was exactly the same reaction that I had, only way back in 1968 when it was first released! You would have found me cranking up the volume on my Radio Shack amp, to my Koss headphones, spinning the LP on my Garrard turntable, and rocking out to it just like you did Jamal. Thanks for the smiles and glad you found this 54-year-old recording to be as much fun and fresh today as it was back then.
This is, in my opinion, the best version of this song ever recorded. Yes, including Robert Johnson.
Nah.... EC will say and has said he wishes he had RJ'S talent
A total classic! Thanks for not interrupting. Nice job on the analysis. Cream was one of the few groups I ever heard live that sounded better on stage than they did on their albums. "Spoonful" is another song that's awesome, from the same live album by Cream. That whole album is amazing. Keep up the good work Jamel!
Went to the " Goodbye Cream tour" in '68 @ the fabulous forum in Los Angeles. 10th row on the floor. Absolutely amazing and so memorable
So many guitarists learned by playing along with Eric Clapton with Cream. This was one of the few songs with the group where he was the lead vocalist. I'm still hoping you will get to the album version of "Had To Cry Today" from Blind Faith , with Steve Winwood. There is a whole second half to the song with both Clapton and Winwood on lead guitars.
#R.Gray
Joe Bonamassa does a incredible live version of Had To Cry Today. Live @ the Rockpalce in Europe as a 3 piece.
@@alankillian4962 Yes, a great concert, along with songs by J.Beck, Tull, and Yes. I love when he and people like Gary Moore throw in old Jeff Beck Group licks.
Dig into some blues - Muddy Waters, Howlin Wolf, BB King, Albert King & Freddie King.
All three of those gents went absolutely HAM, at the same time!!! Never gets old.
Hear the Jack Bruce bass throbbing all through this performance.
I have heard this so many times since the late 1960s that it is practically in my DNA. So it is REALLY fun to watch someone experience it for the first time!
Finally, a reaction to the proper version.
THE greatest blues-rock song ever.
Bar none.
Without exception.
Somewhere in Heaven (no the devil didn't get him, God wanted him for the heavenly choir) Robert Johnson smiles every time this song is played.
Clapton‘s guitar solo is amazing here and yet he’s still upstaged by Jack Bruce. Some of the most inspired bass jamming I have ever heard or will ever hear.
Robert Johnson was only 27 when he passed away in 1938 yet is regarded as one of the godfather's of modern Blues and one of the most influential musicians of all time. Many of his original songs became huge hits for bands like Cream, The Yardbirds, Lez Zeppelin, The Rolling Stones, Fleetwood Mac and many others.
"Tell my friend po Wiillie Brown" Robert Johnson was one of the absolute greatest bluesmen. Most all rock n roll music can be traced back to him.
'Crossroads' is easily in my top 5 songs of all time! This version just tears it up!!! A person cannot help but play air-guitar to this song!! It's definitely a banger!!! Great reaction and thanks for playing it!!👍🍀
Yes, been playing air guitar on this incomparable song for 54 years ..
Strange Brew and White Room are also great Cream songs. Thanks for keeping great music alive.
I remember in the late 60s getting the double vinyl album Wheels Of Fire by Cream. Crossroads is on that album, plus so many other great tracks.
Awesome song choice Jamel. You, sir, are a national treasure!
This song is THE legend in Rock and Roll, penned and performed by the great Robert Johnson. The song is a tale of robert going to the crossroads in Rosedale, Mississippi to sell his soul to the Devil in exchange for greatness on the guitar. Robert was also the original member of the 27 club
Do "Sunshine of Your Love".
Glad to see you sticking with Cream!
Both the instrumental sections of this live recording always amaze me. All three of them are riffing and no one is holding down the beat. In the hands of lesser musicians, even very good ones, that would fall apart into gibberish so quickly. They're just so good that it can work.
There is plenty of live Cream to visit, and some of their longer live songs will be just as rewarding as some of the Dead or Yes longer tracks you have taken the time to experience.
In the late 90s Jack Bruce and Gary Moore toured together and their live versions of 'Sitting of top of the World' are worth a listen.
From the story where Robert Johnson "went down to the crossroads" and made a deal with the devil; came back with amazing talent. That's the story (myth) anyway. Cream does it great.
So glad you finally got to this one....and you picked the right version!! In my humble opinion, this is the greatest recorded live rock performance in history...and Eric Clapton's greatest recorded guitar solo.
Just the phrase Crossroads is literally history. Robert Johnson. The old blues. And he just read it. Cool. And "rider" is a guitar.
Good ole SLOW HAND.... I've loved Eric Clapton for about 44 years now! Never get tired of hearing him play or sing! I don't know much about music, but I do know talent when I hear it! Great song and reaction!
Haven't heard this song for awhile. It still sounds good to me.
love this song, I played bass in a band for a while and this was always opening song for us.
The movie Crossroads was based on this idea. Ry Cooder did the soundtrack, with lots of great guest performers.
Finally. Thanks. This version still gives me chills. Cream at their best. Fire in Claptons playing. Very very inspiring. The interplay betwwen the guitar and drums..wow. Bass is amazing too
Sadly, Clapton IS the only one still here, be thankful for EVERY day we still have him.
Bless you for not stopping that music.
Eric Claprton was called "slowhand" but was not slow on this guitar solo.
That's like calling the biggest of your friends 'Tiny'.
Fun fact, this name derived from his time in the yardbirds when he would change broken strings in the middle of gigs and the audience would do a slow clap to fill
Blues Rock at its finest. In E.C.'s search to find the source of his beloved Blues, he dug down to the roots and discovered a man named Robert Johnson who wrote and recorded Cross Road Blues in 1936. Thirty years later Eric, Jack, and Ginger gave us this astounding interpretation.
Song is fire! Thanks Jamel! 🔥✌️
My dad's old band used to play this. Love Cream! great memories of my dad's band too.
Always a first time for everything Jamel did a no pause
Woooooo! So sweet.. everything they touched
Need to check out Harry Nilsson. Without You, Everybody's Talking and Jump Into Fire.
His album "The Point" is a treat as well. Perhaps too long to react to but definitely worth a listen. It's a story album about a boy and his dog and their adventures in a land where having a point is mandatory. Great stuff.
I saw Eric Clapton perform live, 2 days before the UK went into full Lockdown exactly 1 year ago today! He's still got that magic, still got the most gorgeous sound!
RIP JACK AND GINGER...
One of the greatest guitar performances in the history of rock music.
Eric fucking Clapton.
That's it, that's the post.
I'm 69. Watching you listen to some of this great music that I have listened to for years, is almost like hearing it for the first time - you are so authentic. Yes, the story you relate is reportedly how Clapton knew it and could relate as he was in some ways a very tortured soul (Robert Johnson going to the "crossroads" and making a deal with the devil). I think there may have been a bit more to it - a woman was somehow involved as many would be in Eric's life and reportedly in Robert Johnson's life as well. Please keep doing what you are doing - you are bringing a fresh perspective to much of this music.
Recommend “Hush” by Deep Purple
He’s done it already
For sure!
I saw them back in the day. Baker & Clapton were heroin addicts for years, but despite that they played like amazingly. I grew up on all these original fantastic bands. (Cream, Led Zeppelin, Pink Floyd, Stones, Beatles, etc.) The best music to me...brings back so many memories. So many of the great musicians of that time are gone. It's sad, even up to the nineties. Sigh...such talent...gone too soon...
Check out the 2005 reunion version at the royal Albert hall👍🏻 it’s out of this world 👌🏻
Yes! Yes! Yes!
This just might be your best reaction ever. Thanks so much!
LYNYRD SKYNYRD DOES A GOOD VERSION ON THEIR LIVE ALBUM ONE MORE FROM THE ROAD WITH 3 LEAD GUITARIST.
One of the best live recordings EVER !!!!
Jack Bruce's bass playing on this track is so off the chain I can't wrap my brain around it.
Love that you listened to it all the way through w/o stopping. Sometimes you gotta. That was recorded in California, San Francisco’s Winterland Ballroom. Doesn’t exist anymore.
One of the many reasons why I stick to my guns on Clapton being the goat
All this music from three guys. Cream had a significant impact on the Rock/Blues scene, while being together only a couple year. There were one of the best.
this is when Clapton still used a Gibson and before he burned out on drugs..
"White Room" by Cream was a landmark hit.....great drumming........bass playing!!!!
Love Cream Great Reaction!!
How about a reaction to The Stooges - I wanna be your dog
Or The Byrds - Eight Mile High
RIP Ginger Baker
RIP Jack Bruce