Jack's 1977 album,
How's Tricks, is a total gem. It flows seamlessly for the most part. There is only one song out of place on the album, a tune by guitarist, Hughie Burns, on which Burns sings - not a bad song but not one that fits on the disk. The album passed almost entirely unnoticed, peaking at 153 on Billboard's charts. Yet it is a great album. The problem is that Jack is sui generis. Where does he fit between the arbitrary plastic genre dividers in a music shop rack? Is the album rock? Hmmmmm. Is it Jazz? Hmmmm. Is it blues? Hmmmm. Is it pop music? Hmmmmm. Is it show/theatre (Brecht) tunes? Hmmmm. Is it 20th century art/classical song? Hmmmmm. As Larry Coryell has observed, Jack is a composer - Coryell didn't refer to him as a singer, a bass player, a member of Cream, or a rock musician - he called him the Scottish composer, Jack Bruce. Jack's works often have orchestral-like movements that change, flow and develop. There may be affinities to a certain genre, but the work will change and go somewhere quite different. There are harmonic peculiarities. Key changes. Unusual middle 8s or more. Go back to the Cream records and actually listen to the tracks between the hits - there is some seriously unusual stuff there. Just where does it all fit? Unfortunately there wasn't a category of music called Jack Bruce.
Unlike Clapton, Jack couldn't turn his eccentricity/talent off and confine himself to commercial, but well-crafted/well-done, pedestrian radio-friendly pop/rock fare - often good stuff but a major underemployment for the full range of Clapton's talents. When Jack tried to be normal, whatever that may be, the results were things like the disastrously bad
Jet Set Jewel album.
There are only two tracks available from
How's Tricks on Youtube, the lead offs from side one and side two respectively. Both are great, I think. But .... radio play? Even FM radio play? Just where do they fit?
Without a Word
How's Tricks
http://youtu.be/C3_HYD1ax_0
Line up
Jack: Bass, harmonica, lead vocals
Hughie Burns: Guitars, lead vocal on "Baby Jane"
Tony Hymas: Keyboards, vibraphone, vocals
Simon Phillips: Drums, glockenspiel, vocals