One of a few overtly psychedelic songs to have aged gracefully, "Tales of Brave Ulysses" is indeed a Cream classic. Based on a simple but effective C/B flat/F chord pattern (which was later utilized for "White Room"), the song has a powerful, unrelenting mid-tempo groove that defined Cream's finest songs of the period. Lyrically, it's a relatively factual and colorful rendering of the great Greek tragedy Ulysses. Taking a classic tale like this to the psychedelic audience was a stroke of genius, and this song is indeed one of the band's most lasting efforts. Aside from the definitive studio version (Disrali Gears), a fabulous live version also appears on Live Cream, Vol. 2.
Cream
Tales of Brave Ulysses
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Song Review by Matthew Greenwald
Appears On
| Year | Artist/Album | Label | Time | AllMusic Rating | |||
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1967 | Polydor | 2:49 | ||||
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1969 | Karussell | |||||
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1983 | 2:47 | |||||
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1983 | Polydor / Universal International | 2:48 | ||||
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1988 | Polydor | 2:48 | ||||
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1990 |
Various Artists
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Time / Life Music | 2:48 | |||
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1991 |
Various Artists
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RCA | ||||
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1991 |
Various Artists
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Rhino | 2:46 | |||
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1995 | Polydor / Chronicles | 2:46 | ||||
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1996 |
Various Artists
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Débutante | 2:48 | |||
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1997 | Polydor | 4:43 | ||||
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2000 | Polydor / Universal | 2:50 | ||||
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2005 | Polydor | 2:49 | ||||
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2005 | Polydor | 2:49 | ||||
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2011 | Polydor | 2:47 | ||||
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2011 | Polydor | 2:47 |
