Eric Clapton Deluxe Edition

E.C. onstage with the short-lived Blind Faith.
photo by Don Levy

Back in the summer of 1969 Eric Clapton and his new band, Blind Faith embarked on their one and only tour of the States. Opening for the supergroup was the husband and wife act Delaney and Bonnie Bramlett. Their crack band specialized in a funky, gospel infused synthesis of rock, blues and country which immediately appealed to Clapton, who had long grown weary of the self indulgent extended guitar solos which had been expected of him in his previous band, Cream. He soon struck up a friendship with the Bramletts and before long was spending more time with them than the members of Blind Faith. Bramlett encouraged Clapton to write and sing more of his own songs. The end of Blind Faith was near.

After the tour's end Bramlett and Clapton struck up a deal. Delaney would produce a solo album for Clapton. In return Clapton would appear with Delaney and Bonnie on their upcoming European tour. The tour would be billed as "Delaney and Bonnie and Friends with Guest Star Eric Clapton". After the immense pressure and inflated expectations of the Blind Faith ordeal, sitting in with Delaney and his band was simply put, a load of fun for Clapton. He even got his good buddy George Harrison to sit in on a few dates.

As the sixties came to a close Clapton and Bramlett got to work on what would be Clapton's solo debut. As well as producing the sessions, Bramlett lent his band to Clapton which included Bobby Whitlock on keyboards, Carl Radle on bass and Jim Gordon on drums. Bonnie Bramlett and Rite Coolidge sang back up vocals and horns were provided by Bobby Keys and Jim Price. With a handful of ace songs co-written with Bramlett and a team of crack musicians ready to do his bidding, Clapton crafted an easy going yet powerful album that remains one of his strongest solo records. Highlights included the tender acoustic ballad "Easy Now", the gospel infused "Don't Know Why", a slew of laid back rockers like "After Midnight", "Blues Power" and "Bottle of Red Wine" and the album's epic closing track "Let It Rain", penned by Clapton and Bonnie Bramlett. Upon it's initial release many critics and fans expressed displeasure with the record. With the exception of "Let It Rain" the album lacked the elongated guitar solos which had made Clapton famous. And the SOUND of his guitar had changed. Gone was the beefy Gibson tone that was his trademark in the sixties, replaced with the thinner, more biting sound of a Fender Stratocaster, the weapon of choice for Chicago blues artists like Buddy Guy and Otis Rush whom Clapton so admired. The rootsy, laid back tone of the record may have confused critics of the time but it gave Clapton a foundation which he would build upon for the rest of the decade. And despite the critics' misgivings, Clapton scored his first solo hit with his cover of J.J. Cale's "After Midnight". "Let It Rain" would also recieve considerable airplay and to this day remains one of his most popular songs.

Once principal recording sessions were wrapped Clapton accompanied Delany and Bonnie on another tour, this time of the States. As they hit Stateside Delaney and Bonnie's live album "On Tour With Eric Clapton" was released. After the tour ended Clapton went back to England to do the final mixes for his solo album. He also found time to work with blues great Howlin' Wolf on "The London Howlin' Wolf Sessions" LP. Around the time Clapton had finished the Howlin' Wolf sessions he heard from Delaney's keyboard player Bobby Whitlock. The two had hit it off during Clapton's time with the group. It seems in the intervening months Delaney and his band had fallen out. At this point Clapton and Whitlock began jammin' together at Clapton's mansion known as Hurtwood Edge. Before long Delaney's former rhythm section Carl Radle and Jim Gordon were also invited to come stay at Hurtwood Edge. This band would eventually become known as Derek and The Dominos and they recorded the album now considered to be Clapton's masterpiece the world over, "Layla and Other Assorted Love Songs".

Just last month Polydor released a deluxe edition of the "Eric Clapton" album featuring both the original mix by Tom Dowd and Delaney Bramlett's previously unreleased mix. As Clapton himself put it, "I left the tapes in L.A. for Delaney to mix them, and he was waiting on me to finish one of the tracks. He didn't realize that I was waiting on him to mix the tracks and send them over. Finally, my manager got kind of impatient and told Atlantic to send the tapes to me, and I mixed them very badly. Atlantic heard 'em, didn't like 'em. Then they sent them to Tom Dowd, who mixed them again. So they were mixed three times in all. I never heard Delaney's mixes until it was too late- the record was already out." In addition to the original Dowd mix and the previously unreleased Bramlett mix, the deluxe edition contains a host of bonus tracks including a ten minute blues jam titled "Blues In A", an early version of "Let It Rain" called "She Rides" and both sides of the splendid "Comin' Home"/"Groupie (Superstar)" single, originally released in 1969 and credited to Delaney and Bonnie and Friends featuring Eric Clapton. The inclusion of these last two songs makes an already fantastic album even stronger. And of course all the tracks have been remastered for optimal sound quality. The 1970 release of "Eric Clapton" was a landmark event in Clapton's career to be sure and it remains one of his greatest albums. The deluxe edition is a must have for any self respecting fan of his solo career.