Ginger Baker, the outrageously talented drummer and equally outrageously volcanic human being, died at age 80 in Canterbury, England. Given Baker’s devil-may-care attitude toward health and drugs, some might say it’s incredible he would have lasted eight decades, but those more spiritually inclined might believe that neither the Lord nor the Devil wanted him nearby.
During its two-and-a-half-year run, Baker’s group Cream, the first legitimate “supergroup” (guitarist Eric Clapton, singer/bassist Jack Bruce and drummer Baker) sold millions of records featuring hits which included “White Room,” “Sunshine of Your Love” “Toad” and “Tales of Brave Ulysses” and rocked-out versions of blues standards like “Crossroads” and “Spoonful.”
As extraordinary as his jazz-inspired, innovative drumming and arresting stage presence—a relatively new role for a rock drummer—could be, Baker’s temperament and blatant self-appreciation caused problems throughout his career, ultimately hastening the breakup of Cream (he reportedly drew a knife on bassist Bruce).
Reckless gunplay, run-ins with tax and immigration authorities, bankruptcy and fractured relationships with ex-wives and children allowed him little personal life, and his penchant for burning bridges among his fellow musicians hampered his employment. He reportedly called Mick Jagger a “musical moron,” and told the Wall Street Journal, “When people put drummers like John Bonham [Led Zeppelin], Mitch Mitchell [the Jimi Hendrix Experience] and Keith Moon [The Who] in the same bag as me, it’s really insulting. I have a gift, and none of them is even on the same street as me.” On- and offstage eruptions at his bandmates were common.
When Cream reunited for a tour, in 2005, the group could only play three dates in the US because of visa problems with the tax-evading, notorious heroin addict that was Ginger Baker, and reportedly even those limited dates did not go well between Baker and Bruce.
To know Ginger Baker better, do two things: Listen to Cream and Blind Faith albums, and watch the documentary Beware of Mr. Baker.
R.I.P., Peter Edward “Ginger” Baker. And yes, Ginger, I am telling you what to do.
—Suzanne Cadgène
I went to see Cream at Stony Brook U and when the poor student MC announced that they were not going to perform , half of the huge gym beat it. The reason explained later on was, Ginger was detained at JFK for what was in his luggage.