The 1966 Drum Solo That Made Cream's Ginger Baker A Rock Legend

The legendary hard rock trio Cream may have only existed for two short years, but from the moment they formed in 1966, they were immediately pushing boundaries in the studio. All three members — guitarist Eric Clapton, bassist Jack Bruce, and drummer Ginger Baker — were virtuoso musicians whose abilities are plain to see on the band's debut album, 1966's "Fresh Cream." But it was Baker's incendiary performance on the closing track "Toad" that really got rock aficionados talking, thanks to a boundary-pushing solo that made him a legend.

An extended instrumental drum solo accompanied only by bass and guitar in the song's opening and closing bars, "Toad" sees Baker shift through various passages that seem to tell a story, all while showcasing his immense talents as a drummer. Hugely innovative, there had been nothing like it in rock before, and its impact on Baker's fellow rock drummers was immediate — and some say it has never been bettered.

Jazz listeners had been treated to extended drum solos on albums for years before Ginger Baker's solo on "Toad." But the Cream drummer was the first musician to include one on a rock album, and was arguably the first musician to combine the technicality of jazz drumming with the raw power of rock. The track still has incredible power; despite the reputation for self-indulgence that such solos came to attract in rock circles, the way "Toad" builds has the listener on the edge of their seat.

The drum solo opened the gates for future rock drummers to enjoy their moment in the spotlight, both during live shows and on albums. The most obvious inheritor of Baker's "Toad" is "Moby Dick," the epic solo performed by drummer John Bonham on Led Zeppelin's 1969 album "Led Zeppelin II," which also became a cornerstone of the band's live shows before Bonham's tragic death in 1980.

But while "Toad" has a special place in the hearts of rock fans and drum solo aficionados, the truth is that the unprecedented track may have held a clue as to why Cream soon imploded (much to the relief of Eric Clapton). Before "Toad," few drummers would have ever thought of convincing their bandmates to give them an extended drum solo on wax, and while there is an argument that its inclusion on "Fresh Cream" was intentionally pushing the bounds of the rock genre, the truth is it is also reflective of Ginger Baker's famously forceful personality and the difficulties other musicians had with him as a bandmate.

The problem for Cream was that the trio was full of big personalities, and in the case of Baker and Jack Bruce, there was a clash. Bruce was the band's principal songwriter and vocalist, who wanted to lead the band in a direction that would see them producing more conventionally structured songs. Baker, on the other hand, prized jams and improvisation, both of which allowed him to better showcase his skills. 

With this in mind, "Toad" then seems to herald Baker's intention to take a large portion of the spotlight. By 1968, tensions had grown to the point at which Cream realized they could no longer work together. Nevertheless, they left four amazing studio albums behind them, while "Toad" represents a high point in Baker's long career and the history of rock drumming.