I am giving this a mint rating because it is sealed and looks as if it just came from the factory.It is the double vinyl CREAM WHEELS OF FIRE on RSO(-2-3802)A true gem for any collector.It is a U.S release-1977.Here is some info about the album:

[edit] Background

After the release of Disraeli Gears in November 1967, Polydor Records and Atco Records, planned for Cream's third album to be a double album, on which Atco Records' producer Felix Pappalardi and the group wanted to include several live performances.[5]

[edit] Recording

The group and Pappalardi had, in July and August 1967, recorded studio material at IBC Studios in London, and at Atlantic Studios in New York City during September and October of the same year.[1] Additional studio material was recorded at Atlantic Studios in January and February 1968, during a break from the band's heavy tour schedule.[1][5] The following month,[1] Pappalardi ordered for a mobile recording studio in Los Angeles to be shipped to the Fillmore auditorium and the Winterland Ballroom in San Francisco.[5] Six shows were recorded in San Francisco by Pappalardi and recording engineer Bill Halverson,[1] and extra performances not included on Wheels of Fire ended up on Goodbye, Live Cream, and Live Cream Volume II.[5]

[edit] Production and artwork

The sessions for Wheels of Fire were one of the first to use eight-track tape recorders at a time when four-track recorders were the standard.[5] The recording engineers on disc one were Tom Dowd and Adrian Barber, while the songs on disc two were recorded by Bill Halverson, and the performances on the second disc were re-mixed by Adrian Barber. The artwork for the album was done by Martin Sharp,[1] who had also done the artwork for Disraeli Gears. The photography was done by Jim Marshall.[1]

[edit] Songs

The band's drummer Ginger Baker co-wrote three songs for the album with pianist Mike Taylor. Bassist Jack Bruce co-wrote four songs with poet Pete Brown. Guitarist Eric Clapton contributed to the album by choosing two cover songs.

For the second disc Felix Pappalardi chose "Traintime" because it featured Jack Bruce performing a harmonica solo. "Toad" was chosen because it features Ginger Baker's drumming. The songs "Spoonful" and "Crossroads" were used to feature Eric Clapton's guitar as the songs focus.[5]

[edit] Track listing

[edit] Disc one: In the Studio

1. "White Room" 3 (Jack Bruce, Pete Brown) – 4:58
2. "Sitting on Top of the World" (Walter Vinson, Lonnie Chatmon; arr. Chester Burnett) – 4:58
3. "Passing the Time" 13 (Ginger Baker, Mike Taylor) – 4:37
4. "As You Said" (Bruce, Brown) – 4:20

1. "Pressed Rat and Warthog" (Baker, Taylor) – 3:13
2. "Politician" 3 (Bruce, Brown) – 4:12
3. "Those Were the Days" 3 (Baker, Taylor) – 2:53
4. "Born Under a Bad Sign" 3 (Booker T. Jones, William Bell) – 3:09
5. "Deserted Cities of the Heart" 23 (Bruce, Brown) – 3:38

Performers are "the Cream quartet" consisting of Clapton, Baker, and Bruce together with Felix Pappalardi, who plays many different instruments and is also credited with production.

^Note 1: Some pressings of this album contain an alternative version of "Passing the Time". This "long version" is extended by 67 seconds, but also differs from the "extended version" included on Those Were the Days, which is longer by a further 8 seconds.

^Note 2: Original US pressings of Wheels of Fire incorrectly listed the running time of "Deserted Cities of the Heart" at 4:36.

^Note 3: Side 1 tracks 1 and 3 and Side 2 tracks 2, 3, 4 and 5 of the studio album were processed with the Haeco-CSG system. Also processed was "Anyone For Tennis", which was recorded at the same sessions and appears on some versions of the album. Haeco-CSG was intended to make stereo recordings that were fully compatible with mono playback equipment. The unfortunate side effect is that it "blurs" the stereo imaging of musical parts mixed to the phantom centre channel. Using modern digital audio processing software it is possible to reverse the Haeco-CSG effect and restore the original intended sound quality.

[edit] Disc two: Live at the Fillmore

1. "Crossroads" (Robert Johnson, arr. Clapton) – 4:13 (recorded 10 March 1968 at Winterland, San Francisco, CA. (1st show))
2. "Spoonful" (Willie Dixon) – 16:43 (recorded 10 March 1968 at Winterland, San Francisco, CA. (1st show))

1. "Traintime" 4 (Bruce) – 7:01 (recorded 8 March 1968 at Winterland, San Francisco, CA. (1st show))
2. "Toad" (Baker) – 16:15 (recorded 7 March 1968 at The Fillmore, San Francisco, CA. (2nd show))

During the 10 March first set, "Spoonful" preceded "Crossroads", and though it seems as though "Traintime" aurally precedes "Toad", "Traintime" was recorded a day later, and expertly edited to seamlessly blend into the introduction to "Toad".

While the disc is labelled Live at the Fillmore, only "Toad" was recorded at The Fillmore. The other tracks were recorded live at the Winterland Ballroom in San Francisco.[6]

^Note 4: Original album pressings list "John Group" as the author of "Traintime." The "John Group" appellation dates back to Jack Bruce's tenure with the Graham Bond Organisation (with whom Bruce originally recorded the song in 1965), and was used by that band to ensure that members other than Bond received songwriting royalties.[7] The song is based on a vintage blues by Peter Chatman.

[edit] Personnel

Per liner notes[1]

• Jack Bruce – vocals, lead vocals, bass, cello, harmonica, calliope, acoustic guitar, recorder
• Eric Clapton – guitar, vocals
• Ginger Baker – drums, percussion, bells, glockenspiel, typanic, spoken word on "Pressed Rat and Warthog"
• Felix Pappalardi – viola, bells, organ, trumpet, tonette
• Tom Dowd – recording engineer on disc one
• Adrian Barber – recording engineer on disc one, re-mix engineer on disc two
• Joseph M. Palmaccio – digital remastering
• Martin Sharp – art
• Jim Marshall – photography

[edit] Charts