Editing Cream (band) (section)

===Formation (1966)===
By July 1966, [[Eric Clapton]]'s career with [[the Yardbirds]] and [[John Mayall & the Bluesbreakers]] had earned him a reputation as one of the premier [[blues]] guitarists in Britain.<ref name="Unterberger">{{cite web |url={{AllMusic|class=artist|id=p3983|pure_url=yes}} |title=Cream: Biography |last=Unterberger|first=Richie |website=[[AllMusic]] |access-date=30 June 2008}}</ref> Clapton, however, found the environment of Mayall's band confining, and sought to expand his playing in a new band. In 1966, Clapton met [[Ginger Baker]], then the drummer of [[the Graham Bond Organisation]], for which [[Jack Bruce]] had played bass guitar, harmonica and piano. Baker felt stifled in the Graham Bond Organisation and had grown tired of [[Graham Bond]]'s drug addictions and bouts of mental instability. "I had always liked Ginger", explained Clapton. "Ginger had come to see me play with the Bluesbreakers. After the gig he drove me back to London in his Rover. I was very impressed with his car and driving. He was telling me that he wanted to start a band, and I had been thinking about it too."<ref name="GW">{{Cite magazine |last = McDermott |first = John |title = Strange Brew |magazine=[[Guitar World]] |date=November 1997}}</ref>

Each was impressed with the other's playing abilities, prompting Baker to ask Clapton to join his new, then-unnamed group. Clapton immediately agreed, on the condition that Baker hire Bruce, who had joined [[Manfred Mann (band)|Manfred Mann]] since leaving Graham Bond, as the group's bassist;<ref name="classic"/> according to Clapton, Baker was so surprised at the suggestion that he almost crashed the car.<ref name="Clapton">{{cite book| last = Clapton| first = Eric | author-link = Eric Clapton | title = Clapton: The Autobiography| url = https://archive.org/details/claptonautobiogr00clap| url-access = registration| publisher=Broadway Books| year = 2007| location = New York City| pages = [https://archive.org/details/claptonautobiogr00clap/page/74 74], 77| isbn = 978-0-385-51851-2}}</ref> Clapton had met Bruce when the bassist/vocalist briefly played with the Bluesbreakers in November 1965;<ref name="classic">{{cite video|title = Cream: Classic Artists|medium = DVD|publisher=Image Entertainment|date = 2007}}</ref><ref name="Hjort">{{cite book| last = Hjort| first = Christopher| author-link = Christopher Hjort| title = Strange Brew: Eric Clapton & the British Blues Boom, 1965–1970| publisher = Jawbone Press| year = 2007| location = London| pages = [https://archive.org/details/strangebrewericc00hjor/page/29 29, 54]| isbn = 978-1-906002-00-8| url = https://archive.org/details/strangebrewericc00hjor/page/29}}</ref> the two also had recorded together as part of an ''ad hoc'' group dubbed [[Eric Clapton and the Powerhouse|Powerhouse]] (which also included [[Steve Winwood]] and [[Paul Jones (singer)|Paul Jones]]). Impressed with Bruce's vocals and technical prowess, Clapton wanted to work with him on an ongoing basis.

In contrast, while Bruce was in Bond's band, he and Baker had been notorious for their quarrelling.<ref name="White">{{cite web|url=http://classicrock.about.com/od/bandsandartists/p/Cream.htm|title=Cream|last=White|first=Dave|publisher=[[about.com]]|access-date=27 June 2008|archive-date=7 July 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110707075006/http://classicrock.about.com/od/bandsandartists/p/Cream.htm|url-status=dead}}</ref> Their volatile relationship included on-stage fights and the sabotage of one another's instruments.<ref name="White"/> After Baker fired Bruce from the band, Bruce continued to arrive for gigs; ultimately, Bruce was driven away from the band after Baker threatened him at knifepoint.<ref>Tobler, John and Frame, Pete: Jack Bruce interview, Zigzag # 22, autumn 1971</ref>

Baker and Bruce tried to put aside their differences for the good of Baker's new trio, which he envisioned as collaborative, with each of the members contributing to music and lyrics. The band was named "Cream", as Clapton, Bruce, and Baker were already considered the "cream of the crop" among blues and jazz musicians in the exploding [[Music of the United Kingdom (1960s)|British music scene]]. Before deciding upon "Cream", the band considered calling themselves "Sweet 'n' Sour Rock 'n' Roll".<ref name="BBC"/> Of the trio, Clapton had the biggest reputation in England; however, he was unknown in the United States, having left the Yardbirds before "[[For Your Love]]" hit the [[Billboard Hot 100|American Top Ten]].<ref name="Unterberger"/>

The band made its unofficial debut at the [[Twisted Wheel Club|Twisted Wheel]] on 29 July 1966.<ref name="classic"/><ref name="Clapton"/> Its official debut came two nights later at the Sixth Annual Windsor Jazz & Blues Festival.<ref name="classic"/><ref name="Clapton"/> Being new and with few original songs to its credit, they performed blues reworkings that thrilled the large crowd and earned it a warm reception. In October the band also got a chance to jam with [[Jimi Hendrix]], who had recently arrived in London. Hendrix was a fan of Clapton's music and wanted a chance to play with him onstage.<ref name="classic"/>

It was during the early organisation that they decided Bruce would serve as the group's lead vocalist. While Clapton was shy about singing,<ref>{{cite video|people = Ertegun, Ahmet|title = Classic Albums: Cream – Disraeli Gears|medium = DVD|publisher=Eagle Rock Entertainment|date = 2006}}</ref> he occasionally harmonised with Bruce, and in time, took lead vocals on several Cream tracks including "[[Four Until Late]]", "[[Strange Brew (song)|Strange Brew]]", "World of Pain", "[[Outside Woman Blues]]", "Crossroads", and "[[Badge (song)|Badge]]".