REVIEWS AS SEEN IN: JACK BRUCE: COMPOSING HIMSELF By Harry Shapiro [Jawbone Books]

BOOK Jack Bruce was arguably the most influential bass player of his time. One could easily make the case that it was his unbridled improvisational explorations with Cream in the late 1960s (along with bandmates Eric Clapton and Ginger Baker) that led directly to the birth of fusion music in the early ’70s. Before Jaco Pastorius, before Victor Wooten, there was no one flashier on the four-string than Bruce—and the guy could sing up a storm, too. It’s surprising, then, that nobody has written an authoritative book about this seminal talent up “Composing Himself is until now. British author Harry Shapiro provides a thorough grounding in the life and times of the mercurial bassist, singer highly recommended for and composer (including a complete discography and a list of live performances), and does not shy away from topics such bass players everywhere, as as his little-known heroin addiction and the problematic Cream reunion of a few years ago. But this is an authorized biography, well as anyone interested written with Bruce’s cooperation and participation, and you can almost sense his hand in the abundance of peripheral facts about in the inner workings of a family and musical colleagues. The most compelling writing consummate musician.” comes towards the end, with a vivid description of Bruce’s horrifying experience receiving a liver transplant while fully conscious. (He suffered through a rare and dangerous condition known as “anesthesia-awareness” while on the operating table.) In the months afterwards, post-surgical complications brought him to the brink of death. Composing Himself is highly recommended for bass players everywhere, as well as anyone - M Music & Musicians interested in the inner workings of a consummate musician. March/April 2010 – Howard Massey