Another legend departs

Jack Bruce was a hero to me - and to many others. His passing yesterday came as no great surprise, given his recent health scares following his liver transplant, allied to the cancellation of his tour. He will be missed.

EC got most of the plaudits and hero worship in Cream, but to me, Jack contributed even more - he wrote the music, was the main singer and, of course, there was that wonderfully inventive bass.

Cream was relatively short-lived, but Jack had already had a career by then, playing with his arch foe Ginger Baker in the Graham Bond Organisation, then moonlighting on a couple of number ones - Manfred Mann's Pretty Flamingo and The Scaffold's Lily the Pink, of all things.

When Jack went solo after Cream, his first album, Songs for a Tailor, was a stunner - and remains a personal favourite of mine.

The eulogies will now come thick and fast, but the Sunday Times rushed this out today:

Rest assured, Jack's memory will be honoured at our Headbang on 7th November. Having played several Everly Brothers tracks when Phil died, the least we can do is the same for Jack. R.I.P.