Bruce Spreengsteen

Released just after Jack Bruce's 65th birthday, the six-disc box set from Esoteric Recordings chronicles the astounding journey of this eclectic, gifted singer/bassist/songwriter, from 1962 to 2003. Covering pretty much every phase of his career, it includes his work with early British bluesmen like Alexis Korner, Graham Bond, and John Mayall; his psychedelic milestones with Cream; the art-rock-troubadour sounds of his early solo albums; and much more. Collaborating with everyone from P-Funk keyboard wizard Bernie Worrell to British blues-rocker Robin Trower and jazz drummer extraordinaire Tony Williams, Bruce effortlessly bounded back and forth from rock to blues to jazz and beyond, and "Can You Follow?" shows you just how these impressive feats were accomplished. The box set includes a 68 page book featuring Jack's recollections and many photographs.

With a live version of "Crossroads" going Top 30 for Cream, Songs for a Tailor was released in 1969, showing many more sides of Jack Bruce. George Harrison (again using his L'Angelo Misterioso moniker) appears on the first track, "Never Tell Your Mother She's Out of Tune," though his guitar is not as prominent as the performance on "Badge." The song is bass heavy with Colosseum members Dick Heckstall-Smith and Jon Hiseman providing a different flavor to what Bruce fans had become accustomed to. Hiseman drums on eight of the ten compositions, including "Theme From an Imaginary Western," the second track, and Jack Bruce's greatest hit that never charted. With "just" Chris Spedding on guitar and Jon Hiseman on drums, Bruce paints a masterpiece performing the bass, piano, organ, and vocals. The song is so significant it was covered by Mountain, Colosseum, and a Colosseum spin-off, Greenslade…