Following its tenth birthday celebration this weekend with Fatboy Slim, Nick Warren and Seb Fontaine, the Liverpool superclub Cream will close.
"In order to compete in today's clubbing market, running a weekly nightclub or event is just not viable these days," says Cream managing director James Barton. "It seems to us that young people today are more turned on by large scale events, whether its Creamfields or Ibiza . . . and at the moment we've made the decision based on that."
Inspired by the developing dance scene in the U.K., Barton founded the club a decade ago with Darren Hughes on a shoestring budget. The two formed friendships with like-minded music fans, including Tom Rowlands, who went on to become one half of the Chemical Brothers.
"Cream was special to us, because for many years it was run by two people -- James and Darren -- who we had got to know on the dance floors at clubs around Manchester," Rowlands says. "It was pretty unique in that you could play experimental music to a big, up-for-it crowd. We loved playing there over the years, and it's part of our history -- playing live, DJing, breaking new music. There was always an incredible atmosphere up there."
Cream built up its patronage over the years, growing into the three-roomed venue Nation, located in Liverpool's city center. Here they handpicked and hosted rising DJ and dance stars including former residents Warren, Steve Lawler, LTJ Bukem, X-Press 2, and perhaps the most well known, Paul Oakenfold, who held court from 1997 to 1999.
"Cream was the club that put Oakenfold on the map in England," says British DJ Sasha, who got his own start at Manchester's legendary Hacienda. "It kind of took him from one level to kind of being the biggest DJ in the country. And Seb Fontaine, he went from being a certain level, to [playing] Cream and the next minute he had the BBC Radio 1 [show], which is a big deal in England. [Cream has] launched a lot of people."
Cream also gave many U.S. DJs their first U.K. booking. "Cream was legendary," Texas DJ D:Fuse says. "Even when the underground scene club scene in Texas was in its beginning phases, people still knew about Cream and the DJs who were playing there. It was the club as far as we knew. Playing on those decks last year was an unbelievable experience. The place had such an amazing history. I don't think I've ever been that nervous."
Though its weekly clubbing endeavor is over, Cream will continue to function as a brand. Creamfields, the festival-sized version of the club will hit Argentina in November. Cream is also planning some North American events, and is branching out into British radio and TV programs. "I'm very positive about the future," Barton says. "We feel very proud of the fact that we ran the best club in the U.K. and probably the most famous club in the world successfully for the last ten years. This being our tenth anniversary, [it] gives us a really good opportunity to make some changes and create the next ten years."
JOLIE LASH
(October 8, 2002)