Jack Bruce, Songs for a Tailor (side A)

In 1969, when Songs for a Tailor came out, Jack Bruce had parted ways with Cream, but had not yet joined Tony Williams' Lifetime. Songs for a Tailor reflects the transitional era from which it came. There are obvious jazzy elements here in the complex structures, rhythms, and chord progressions. In other ways, the lyrics, vocal melodies, and instrumentation draw from Cream. While the horn charts are harmonically complex, their use in the songs resembles rock or soul far more than jazz (it's certainly an atypical place to find Harry Beckett's trumpet). Songs for a Tailor is a curious record that sounds both of and out-of-place for its time.