Jack Bruce, bassist with classic rock trio Cream, dead at 71

Jack Bruce, whose muscular yet melodic bass lines helped power the bluesy British rock trio Cream, died Saturday at 71, according to a post on the musician’s Facebook page.

“It is with great sadness that we, Jack’s family, announce the passing of our beloved Jack: husband, father, granddad, and all round legend,” the note reads. “The world of music will be a poorer place without him, but he lives on in his music and forever in our hearts.” Rolling Stone reported that Bruce’s publicist said the bassist died at his home in Suffolk, England.

Best known for such late-’60s hits as “White Room” and “Sunshine of Your Love,” Cream featured Bruce (who also sang) along with singer-guitarist Eric Clapton and drummer Ginger Baker; each had previously established himself in the British blues-rock scene, leading many to regard the band as a so-called super group.

It worked quickly: “Fresh Cream,” the trio’s first studio album, came out in 1966, followed by “Disraeli Gears” in 1967 and “Wheels of Fire” in 1968. “Goodbye,” the band’s final disc (with several live tracks recorded at the Forum in Inglewood), appeared in 1969, though by that time the group had already broken up.

Bruce then began a long solo career before reuniting with Cream in 1993, when the band was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, and again in 2005 for concerts at London’s Royal Albert Hall and New York’s Madison Square Garden. Bruce’s most recent solo album, “Silver Rails,” came out in March.

Twitter: @mikaelwood