Search - Cream :: Inside Cream

Not Really "Inside Cream"

Othercarib | 09/30/2005

(3 out of 5 stars)

"This story of Cream is told as a retrospective years later mostly by music journalists (who may or may not have been even writing reviews at the time), producers, with the occasional chord demonstration by a guitarist who was probably in diapers in the '60s. There is minimal performance footage and only occasional snatches of an interview with Jack Bruce. The title is a misnomer and misleads you into thinking it's an inside story from back in the day. A more approriate title would be "Cream As Remembered by People Who Were or Were Not There." The focus is on these people rather than the music or the musicians."

Thinking of Buying This? Don't - You Can Do Better!

Gibson EB3 | USA | 12/28/2005

(1 out of 5 stars)

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If I could, I would give this a zero star rating.



The really sad thing about this DVD is that the producers had the oportunity to interview Cream's chief lyricist, Pete Brown, a guy who, after the band members themselves, was probably in a better posistion than anybody to tell the true "inside" story of Cream. Brown does appear on this disc, but unfortunately he has to share screen time with "a leading team of music critics, musicologists and working musicians" whose "authoritative review[s]" are, at best, of dubious value. A far better use of the time and effort that went into the making of this "film" would have been to turn the cameras on Brown for an hour and let him talk about his personal experiences with the group; how he began working with them, the songwriting process, the personalities involved, etc. Instead, we mostly get the opinions of critics who, as far as I can tell, have no more "inside" information than does your average Cream fan, unless you want to call "inside information" one critics claims that Ginger Baker threw drumsticks at Eric Clapton's head onstage, that all three band members were so stoned during some concerts that it was a miracle that they could still play, or that Bruce, Baker and Clapton grew to hate each other. If Pete Brown said any of this on camera I would give these statements some creedence, but instead they come from a critic who seems eminently confident that they are true, and expects us to believe him on his word alone.



As far as I'm concerned a music critics opinion is of no more value than yours or mine or anybody else's, and what the critics on this video have to say isn't particularly well informed or informative. For example, one glaring oversight is the failure of any of them to mention that "Wheels Of Fire" was the first-ever Platinum-selling album. Unless you really care what non-musicians have to say about Cream's music then I suggest you pass on this video.



What influenced me to buy "Inside Cream" was the claim that I would find "rare film and television archive material". I didn't. All of the live footage on this disc is available elsewhere, none of the television clips are complete and all clips either have someone talking over them and/or very intrusive texts plastered over them indicating what album the songs originally appeared on. Rather than waste your money on this glop I suggest you buy the DVD of the 1968 Farewell Concert instead. All of the live footage and most of the interviews with Bruce, Baker and Clapton on "Inside Cream" come from this film. Also more worthy of your money and attention are the videos "Cream '05 Royal Albert Hall Concert", "Strane Brew" and "Fresh Live Cream" which feature complete archival footage, the band members telling their own stories, and MUSICIANS (like blues giant Buddy Guy)telling you that Cream was influential rater than some non-mucical pen jockey.

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Don't waste your money

Luther J. | MA, USA | 11/18/2005

(1 out of 5 stars)

"The only redeeming factor for this DVD was a chance to hear commentary by Pete Brown. One hour of people babbling about Cream interspersed with the same old tired clips we have been seeing for decades (nothing new here)was a true dissappointment. I also can't figure out why "journalist" Steve Rosen was allowed on this DVD due to his Clapton bashing. What a complete twit. Another thing regarding the film clips was why does the camera only appear to focus on their faces and not how they are playing their instruments? This DVD will serve me well into the future as a coffee table coaster."