Cream Bass Player Jack Bruce Dead at 71

Jack Bruce, bass player, singer, and songwriter for the 1960s rock trio Cream, has died at 71 of liver disease. The British band, which also featured Eric Clapton and drummer Ginger Baker, sold 35 million albums in just two years, breaking up despite their popularity in 1968. The band was the first ever to receive a platinum disc, the Herald reports. Bruce wrote hits like "Sunshine of Your Love" and "I Feel Free," the BBC reports.

Prior to playing in Cream—which the BBC calls "one of the most important bands in rock history"—he was a member of groups like Manfred Mann and John Mayall's Blues Breakers. After Cream broke up in 1968, his reputation continued to grow as one of the industry's top bassists. "The world of music will be a poorer place without him, but he lives on in his music and forever in our hearts," his family says. (More rock music stories.)