Jack Bruce
b. John Symon Asher, 4 May 1943, Glasgow, Lanarkshire, Scotland. Formerly a piano student at the Royal Scottish Academy of Music, Bruce has utilized his brilliant bass playing to cross and bridge free jazz and heavy rock, during spells with countless musical conglomerations. As a multi-instrumentalist he also has a great fondness for the Cello, on which he is highly accomplished. At 19 years of age he moved to London and joined the R&B scene, first with A lexis Korner's band and then as a key member of the Graham Bond Organisation. Following brief stints with John Mayall's Bluesbreakers and Manfred Mann, Bruce joined with his former colleague in the Bond band, Ginger Baker, who together with Eric Clapton, formed Cream. The comparatively short career of this pivotal band reached musical heights that have rarely been bettered. During this time Bruce displayed and developed a strident vocal style and considerable prowess as a harmonica player. However, it was his imaginative and sometimes breathtaking bass playing that appealed. He popularized an instrument that had previously not featured prominently in rock music. Dozens of young players in the '70s and '80s would cite Bruce as being the reason for them taking up the bass guitar. Upon the break-up of Cream, Bruce released an exemplary solo album, SONGS FOR A TAILOR.A host of top jazz/rock musicians were present on what was his most successful album. On this record he continued the songwriting partnership with Pete Brown that had already produced three of Cream's classics, White Room, Politician and SWLABR (She Was Like A Bearded Rainbow). Brown's imaginative and surreal lyrics were the perfect foil to Jack's furious and complex bass patterns. Evocative songs such as Theme For An Imaginary Western and The Weird Of Hermiston enabled Bruce's ability as a vocalist to shine, with piercing clarity. 
Throughout the early '70s, a series of excellent albums and constantly changing line-ups gave him a high profile. His involvement with Tony Williams's Lifetime and his own ‘supergroup’ West Bruce And Laing further enhanced his position in the jazz and rock world. A further aggregation, Jack Bruce And Friends, included jazz guitarist Larry Coryell and former Jimi Hendrix drummer Mitch Mitchell. During this busy and fruitful period Bruce found time to add vocals to Carla Bley's classic album ESCALATOR OVER THE HILL, and Bley also a member of the 1975 version of the Jack Bruce Band. In 1979 he toured as a member of John McLaughlin's Mahavishnu Orchestra. The '80s started with a new Jack Bruce Band which featured former Bakerloo, Colosseum and Humble Pie guitarist Dave ‘Clem’ Clempson and David Sancious. They found particular favour in Germany and played there regularly. The ill-fated heavy rock trio BLT formed in 1981 with guitarist Robin Trower and drummer Bill Lordan but folded after two badly received albums. During the '80s Bruce kept a low profile after having experienced drug and alcohol problems in the '70s. In 1987 the perplexing album AUTOMATIC appeared. This obviously low-budget work had Bruce accompanied by a Fairlight machine, an odd coupling for a musician whose previous collections had consistently teamed him with highly talented musicians. Much more impressive was 1990's A QUESTION OF TIMEWHICH attempted to get Bruce's now lapsed career back to former glory. Other than his long-term admirers Bruce has found it difficult to reach a wide new audience. Those that have followed his career understand his major shifts from jazz to heavy rock, but his position in today's musical climate is hard to place. His vocal work accompanied by his emotional piano playing has been his particular strong point of late. Bruce remains, however, (probably because of Cream) the most renowned and respected of rock bassists.