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Disraeli Gears | 
| Artist: Cream
Label: Polydor Group
Category: Music
List Price: £5.99
Buy New: £3.47
You Save: £2.52 (42%)
New (71) Used (13) Collectible (1) from £2.76
Rating:  16 reviews
Sales Rank: 1990
Format: Original Recording Remastered
Media: Audio CD
Running Time: 33
Discs: 1
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.2
Dimensions (in): 5.6 x 5 x 0.5
MPN: 531811
UPC: 731453181120
EAN: 0731453181120
ASIN: B0000067L2
Release Date: March 9, 1998
Shipping: Eligible for Super Saver Shipping
Availability: Usually dispatched within 24 hours
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| Tracks:
| • | Strange Brew | | • | Sunshine Of Your Love | | • | World Of Pain | | • | Dance The Night Away | | • | Blue Condition | | • | Tales Of Brave Ulysses | | • | SWLABR | | • | We're Going Wrong | | • | Outside Woman Blues | | • | Take It Back | | • | Mother's Lament |
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| Editorial Reviews:
Amazon.co.uk Review
Fresh Cream, the album that introduced this seminal super-blues trio to America, was perhaps a bit too blues-based to do the advance hype ("Clapton is God!") justice. Two of its three best-known tracks, after all, were blues covers; it was Disraeli Gears that turned Cream into a "supergroup." Here they pursue the psychedelic ideals of the era with total abandon (the LP cover art still stands as one of the 1960s' most striking designs), merging these ideals with their take on the blues and adorning the amalgamation with some superb pop craftsmanship. Of the 11 originals here, four--"Tales of Brave Ulysses", "SWLABR", "Strange Brew" and "Sunshine of Your Love"--earned major airplay. This, their excess-free greatest moment, does the Cream legend proud. --Bill Holdship
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| Customer Reviews: Read 11 more reviews...
 One of the very few classic rock albums that are actually classics. August 10, 2008
1 out of 2 found this review helpful
I am 17 year old and i'm a massive fan of heavy metal, I love most types of music from Heavy Metal to Blues to abit of Indie to Instrumental rock and all types of rock from 60s 70s and 80s. 2 of my friends who have similar taste in music as me really like Eric Clapton so I checked his greatest hits and that was brilliant. Then I decided to start my Cream selection and bought this and i love it.
This awesome rock/blues album was made famous by the song Sunshine Of Your Love, which is a brilliant song but there is more to this album then that song. The best song for me here is World Of Pain it's amazing and the vocals on this album are brilliant. In conclusion, this album is brilliant and should any music lovers collection whatever music you like buy it.
You need to buy this album July 10, 2008
1 out of 4 found this review helpful
Chances are, if you've stumbled upon this page, then you know something about music. There are going to be people out there who have no interest in this album, but a lot of them will be people with a very narrow view on music, and tastes which fall into very specific confines. This album, however, is one of the most important and great albums in the history of popular music. Eric, Jack and Ginger, influenced by some of the greatest music released up until 1967, went into the studio for their second album together and recorded something that not only paid a respectful homage to the Blues legends, but something that stood near the forefront of the blossoming psychedelic scene. It remains today one of the great psychedelic albums, alongside "The Piper At The Gates Of Dawn" or "Electric Music For The Mind And Body," perhaps even the greatest, and its influence on popular music thereafter is immeasurable.
Of course, if your music collection consists entirely of electro-pop, or speed metal, it's worth noting that this album doesn't really fit into either of those genres. If, on the other hand, you appreciate many different kinds of music, or you're just a fan of Psychedelia or great Blues based Rock, then get it, I'm surprised you haven't already.
 Unsatisfactory in stereo because of the drums but one of the 'great' rock albums in mono. February 8, 2008
3 out of 4 found this review helpful
Hasn't anyone who has reviewed this apart from 'Top Cat' noticed how unnatural and lightweight the drums sound on many of these tracks when heard in stereo. The people at the record company who put out a deluxe edition in stereo AND MONO must have noticed, though rarely do these people show this sort of musical intelligence.
40 years ago when I first got to know this it was a mono copy I had - on vinyl of course. When I acquired a CD copy some years ago at first I couldn't understand why I felt so let down but I soon realized that it was the stereo mix that was to blame; it was neither the quality of sound with the transfer to digital nor the music itself thankfully, although not having heard my old copy for some years, for a short time I was uncertain whether my old estimation of it had been correct. But no, when I was able to hear my old mono pressing again I found it was as good as ever, and there are not many things in rock I can say that about. It's still not as good as the best of their live recordings but I never thought it was. And it's not as good on CD, even in mono, as it is on vinyl, perhaps because a stereo cartridge playing a mono disc seems to give you a certain amount of right left separation, but it's still pretty good. See my review of the Deluxe Edition.
In referring to the stereo mix I am referring to all 3 stereo masterings that I have heard on CD, including the latest.
In mono I would give it 5 stars. The most important improvement made by listening in mono is the difference it makes to the drums. In stereo the drums are too isolated on the right and sound rather tentative and half-hearted. They just don't make sense in a way that makes a positive contribution to the music. They sound so light someone has described them as sounding as if Baker was using practice pads. But in mono they sound heavier and right, adding density and complexity. In stereo because they are in a separate world of their own they sound predictably regular, and instead of being contrapuntal are just distracting. This is made worse because often the lead guitar is on the extreme left, as far away from the drums as possible. But Baker's genius for using offbeats in the bar to place his stresses, and for suspending stresses where you expect them to be is clear and effective when heard in mono. This is vital in Cream. Without it a lot of the tension and release of tension is lost.
What I have said applies to the 5 most important tracks on the album, namely Sunshine, Ulysses, SWLABR, Outside Woman Blues, and We're Going Wrong. The rest of the tracks sound OK in stereo.
The stereo mix sounds alright apart from what happens to the drums. It's very sad this silly mistake was made and it really shouldn't be too difficult to put it right with another remastering.
Unfortunately the stereo engineering of 'Fresh Cream' the first album is equally bad, or in many ways worse, as almost every aspect of it is wrong. But at least the drums are loud, even if they are harmless, pushed as they are again to the extreme right, with the bass sitting right on top of them. Fortunately this means that played in mono the drums are quite capable of playing their proper part centre stage and at the same time this produces a better bass which no longer competes with the drums in their little space on the right, but expands and separates.
(This is all true of clean sounding stereo systems. In more bottom heavy or muddy ones the stereo separation may not seem so extreme.)
The same solution of combining the right and left channels does not work with 'Disraeli Gears' as the drums just aren't quite loud enough in the stereo mix, and played in mono mode they are even less loud, even if they are better placed. There is no choice, therefore, but to get the Deluxe Edition with the original mono mix.
Simply the best album of my teen years! May 21, 2006
4 out of 7 found this review helpful
If Cream recorded this album in 3 and a half days, what would it have been like given a week, or a fortnight? Maybe it would have been better, possibly, it might have been worse. Spontaneity was obviously a key factor, and this may be the reason it is an 'all time classic.' At 16 when it was released, I had the stereo copy even though the equipment used was mono, and I virtually wore it out with repeated playings. It was 'the album' of the era of Hippy-dom surrounding it, and 'tiny purple fishes runing laughing through your fingers' just about gave everyone exactly what they wanted should they be taking an LSD trip at the time. The first CD issue of this album was hastily undertaken, blatantly re-recorded from the master-tapes with little care, the background hiss of the tape source was annoyingly evident, yet perfect silence, as CD should be, between each track. Agreed, 'Mother's Lament' and 'Blue Condition' are perhaps not up to par with the other tracks, but they are a part of it, and the era, and to take them away, (rather like the mistake of adding other tracks from the same show as a later re-issue on The Who's Live At Leeds), it would ruin the whole concept of the album. There is yet another re-issue of this album on Amazon with both mono and stereo versions, plus Clapton singing 'Blue Condition,' so to those who find Ginger's vocal on this track a bit mournful, perhaps try this as an alternative. Couple this album with the 'Classic Albums' DVD where a much fuller picture can be gained about the songwriting and recording, along with comments by the band some 35 years later, and you have all you need to know about one of the best albums of all time.
Forgotten how good it is? February 6, 2006
2 out of 5 found this review helpful
If you haven't done so recently put your CD of "Disraeli Gears" into your best hi-fi system, turn it up and play it straight through. Different... you bet. Not only does the incredibly rich sound just jump out of the speakers but the sheer power of the songs played back-to-back is quite stunning. That's what it was like when you originally bought the LP, and that's how it should be heard to remember why it's one of rock's "classic" albums. Best of all you can use the wonders of modern technology to skip over its two fairly serious aberrations, "Blue Condition" & "Mothers Lament", to end up with a superb set of genuinely progressive "psychedelia meets the blues" that, on the way, features some quite breathtaking interactions between three world class musicians.
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