Cream - Royal Albert Hall - 2,3,5,6 2005 [Blu-Ray] [2011]

Having had the original DVD for this since it was released shortly have these unforgettable concerts, which I was fortunate to attend back in 2005, I have been eagerly awaiting the Blu-Ray release, and I was not disappointed - the picture and sound far surpasses what I was expecting. The picture is so sharp and the sound so clear and defined that by playing this on a decent home cinema system you would think that Cream were actually performing in your living room. So this is streets ahead of the original DVD release in every respect. I was hoping that there might have been additional extras such as some footage of the Cream Reunion rehearsals, but this a minor quibble. In fact, if you wanted to show anybody who was sceptical about the difference between standard DVD and Blu-Ray this is the one I would show as an outstanding example.Furthermore this Blu-Ray release is an essential purchase for any self respecting Cream fanatic of which I know there are many ! Simply superb !

Hey!Cream fans this is a must! What a difference in quality from dvd to Blu Ray! brilliant item delivered early - recommend highly! M

Although I am the biggest Cream fan in the world I am also objective, and I have to say in all honesty that this reunion concert is very disappointing. Even the sound of Clapton's guitar and Baker's drumkit is all wrong and the bass sound is also completely different and may be one of the problems too. Apart from 'Crossroads' and 'I'm So Glad' (as long as the bass is loud and clear) and to some extent 'Spoonful', it hasn't got any real contrapuntal energy, the tension is static. In the end its just not involving enough. But on the tracks I've mentioned Clapton plays well and the only thing I can complain about is the bloated sound of the drums, especially on 'Glad', and to a lesser extent the sound of the other two. If only they had all stuck to the sound they were using on the old live recordings it would have gone some way to making this work, but ultimately it's the improvisations, and some of the singing, that disappoint.
And certainly having this on video is no help at all as they don't look at all exciting either. But at least the sound is better on the Blue-ray.
'Politician' is only fairly successful despite being Bruce's best vocal performance, because the new bass sound doesn't work for it, and Clapton is uninspired.
'Sunshine' is a disaster because it's rhythmically dead, with Baker sounding terribly tired (understandably, this was the end of the concert and we know he has also had health problems with arthritus and his back), except for the free-form coda where they really get stuck in and sound like the old Cream. There hasn't been a good performance of this number since 1968 despite it being included in all Jack's concerts and most of Clapton's - at least not on the available evidence from numerous recordings. But with the original line-up together again I was really hoping this time.
The other 'bonus' version of 'Sunshine' on the Blue-ray and DVD is no better.
'Sweet Wine' is a mess with Clapton floundering about and Bruce doing his best in the hope that Clapton will decide take it somewhere.
'NSU' is not bad but nothing like what they used to be capable of.

But the concert is still 'Cream' of sorts, and I'd still rather listen to this than almost anything else in rock, saving some of Zep and Hendrix, because there are some points of interest in the playing which make it worthwhile exploring for the Cream connoisseur - in particular the continuing connection with Indian classical music.
But be warned that the new sound of Bruce's bass, which is the most interesting thing about these concerts, does not register clearly on most hi-fi's and it's worth experimenting with equipment. His new sound has a plosive or pneumatic quality quite unlike the sound he used in the old days.
Clapton's singing is coarse and strident on his solo numbers like 'Badge'and 'Outside Woman Blues', while Bruce though still retaining the authority has lost much of it's old excitement and vigour, not surprisingly considering his liver transplant not long before the reunion. But his singing is good except for the occasional word that is delivered no better than a rough bark.

My advice is on no account buy this until you have all the original LIVE recordings - and that includes the DVD of the 1968 Farewell Concert and the more obscure ones I have mentioned in other reviews. You can find most of the authorised live recordings also on wolfgangsvault free of charge, including some which are not available anywhere else, such as another live Crossroads and another live Sunshine.

I have discovered that if the two disc CD set of this is played on a rather hard sounding stereo system it gains tremendously in the way it grabs the listener. It sounds more like the old Cream this way, much more exciting.
In a way it's obvious that this could happen from my comments about the sound above, but it's only just been now possible for me to hear it on such a hard-on-the-ears-system (or at least it would be hard on the ears with a normal sounding CD especially something 'classical'). Heard this way the best tracks mentioned work better and some marginal ones like NSU begin to work quite well. In particular the drums, guitar and Bruce's voice sound much more as if they mean business.
Heard like this it could be regarded as a useful supplement to the scanty live material available from the old Cream.