Released June 1967 (1967-06) Length 2:46 | Format 7-inch 45 rpm | |
B-side "Tales of Brave Ulysses" Recorded Atlantic Studios, New York City, May 1967 Genre Blues rock
psychedelic rock | ||
"Strange Brew" is a song released by the British rock band Cream in June 1967, from their second studio album Disraeli Gears. The song features Eric Clapton on lead vocals rather than the usual lead by Jack Bruce. The single peaked at number 17 on the UK charts in July of that same year. The UK single release was the last Cream single to be released by Reaction Records.
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Background
After the Murray "the K" Show, Cream recorded a song called "Lawdy Mama" with Ahmet Ertegun at Atlantic Studios in New York. When Cream was working on the sessions for Disraeli Gears, producer Felix Pappalardi took the tape of "Lawdy Mama" and with help from his wife Gail Collins transformed the song into "Strange Brew" which according to Eric Clapton "created a pop song without completely destroying the original groove."
Chart history
The song "Strange Brew" first appeared on the UK Singles Chart on 10 June 1967 at #43. It hit its highest position on 15 July at #17, and then left the charts on 5 August at #35 having spent a total of 9 weeks on the chart. The song later appeared on the soundtrack of the 1979 feature film, More American Graffiti.