Cream

Cream was a British power trio consisting of Eric Clapton (guitar), Jack Bruce (bass/vocals), and Ginger Baker (drums) that existed from 1966 to 1968 and is widely considered the first blues-rock supergroup. Their repertoire drew heavily from the American blues tradition: their versions of Skip James's 'I'm So Glad,' Robert Johnson's 'Crossroads,' Muddy Waters's 'Rollin' and Tumblin',' and Willie Dixon's 'Spoonful' introduced these songs to a massive rock audience while extending them into extended improvisatory vehicles. Clapton's guitar work with Cream, particularly on the 'Wheels of Fire' album, established the template for blues-rock guitar and demonstrated the possibilities of the blues as a framework for virtuosic extended performance.