Cream Singles Collection

Not too far removed from Traffic are Cream (through the Powerhouse / Blind Faith connections). After the passing of Jack Bruce we'll never see Cream perform ever again. I first heard live recordings of them on Dutch radio in late 1966. I didn't hear their debut "Wrapping Paper" until later, but "I Feel Free" made a deep impression. Not the least through the reputations of both Eric Clapton (the John Mayall Bluesbreakers album was hot at the time) and Jack Bruce (during his stint in Manfred Mann he claimed to be the world's best bass player.........). Cream never quite fulfilled its promise, probably due to the pressure of constant touring and the lack of sufficient original material. But listening to all their Dutch/German singles certainly proves they were one of the all-time best bands. Despite strange sidesteps like "Anyone For Tennis" and "Wrapping Paper".

Wrapping Paper / Cat's Squirrel - Polydor Int. 421 059 {1966}

I Feel Free / NSU - Polydor 59058 {1966}

Strange Brew / Tales Of Brave Ulysses - Polydor 59106 {1967}

Sunshine Of Your Love / SWLABR - Polydor 59165 {1967}

Anyone For Tennis / Pressed Rat And Warthog - Polydor 59206 {1968}

White Room / Those Were The Days - Polydor 59235 {1968}

Crossroads / Passing The Time - Polydor 59259 {1969}

Badge / Doing That Scrapyard Thing - Polydor 59206 {1969}

Lawdy Mama / Rollin' And Tumblin' - Polydor DP 1741 {1970}

Rating: *****

Balla Balla b/w Ju Ju Hand by The Rainbows (CBS 2117)

Of the four non songs here this is the ultimate non song of the 60's. It was "composed" by producer Horst Lippok who had German band The Rainbows record it. Like with Cadillac a series of covers followed. Of those covers the version by Chubby Checker and Dutch band De Maskers was the most interesting. When Checker was confronted with the song he was about to record, he was apparently appalled by the non song level of the composition and decided to write some extra verses to get the song out of the non song category. He didn't succeed, but his version is the best of the bunch. Manchester beat band The Scorpions (not to be confused with the Battersea instrumental combo or the later German 'Wind of Change' hard rockers) made an absolute mess of it. But ultimately to make a non song even more of a non event was an achievement in itself, so their version should be regarded "the most successful".
Rating: **

Michelle b/w Girl by The Beatles (Parlophone HHR 139)

Two beautiful ballads from Rubber Soul on one single. After the single We can work it out b/w Day tripper, which was strangely dominated by Paul McCartney, Dutch record company Bovema decided to give Lennon a b-side here. This was released when the cover version by the Overlanders started rising in the Top 40. Messy chart practices of the 1960s counted different versions of the same song together, thus Michelle reached the top spot when the sales of the Beatles and The Overlanders singles (and to a lesser extent the version by David & Jonathan) were added together. This prevented the Golden Earrings from becoming the first Dutch band to have a number hit with That day. They would have to wait more than two years to reach the top of the charts. Needless to say that after the release of the Beatles original the Overlanders' version hardly sold another copy.
Rating: *****

That day b/w The words I need by The Golden Earrings (Polydor International 421 023)

This band became world famous in the 1970s with Radar Love, by which time they'd dropped the s from their name. But in the 1960s they were quite an eclectic pop group. They started out with strong Beatles influences, from 1967 they seemed to be mainly influenced by The Who, but they also did excursions into folk rock (Daddy buy me a girl) and bubblegum (Dong dong diki diki dong). In the late 60s they changed to hard rock (the album Eight miles high) and continue to this day as the most successful and most enduring band of the 1960s wave.
This single was recorded in London and that was clear from the intro. This single sounded much better than most Dutch pop productions until then. This single reached #2 in the Top 40, only narrowly missing out on being the first Dutch band to reach the top of the charts. That fate was in store for the rather silly Dong dong diki diki dong in 1968.
Rating: ****

Baldheaded woman b/w Lonesome town by The Hep Stars (Polydor International 421 007)

Dutch band the JayJays had released a single in January 1966 comprising two songs from the Kinks' debut album: Baldheaded woman b/w So mystifying. I managed to get both songs in the 1966 winter sale on two separate singles by Swedish band the Hep Stars. Their star was lead singer Svenne Hedlund, but little did I know it would be their keyboard player Benny Andersson who would rise to world fame in the 1970's with Abba. In hindsight their version of Baldheaded woman was a bit lame. The b-side, a Ricky Nelson song later covered by Paul McCartney, showed they were better at ballads.
Rating: **

No response b/w So mystifying by The Hep Stars (Polydor International 421 014)

Again a bit of a lame cover compared to The Kinks' original (I actually went out and bought the Kinks debut album when it was released in the budget Golden Guinea series to get the originals of Baldheaded woman and So mystifying). Later in 1966 the Hep Stars had an international hit with Sunny girl, written by Benny Andersson. That was clearly more their niche.
Rating: **