Best Clapton Style?

[Larry F]

When I was 16, in 1968 or 69, a college-age guy came up to me outside a dance and told me that he heard my band a few weeks earlier. He told me that I sounded like Clapton. There are a few things that people say in life that have a profound effect on one, as that did with me. We had played some Cream songs and I was into soloing like mad. I remember trying hard to build up my strength to do a whole-step bend with a vibrato on top. Once I had that, I could get a singing tone at will. Naturally, I got that from Clapton. When I later heard Freddie, I thought, that's where I want to be.

My favorites are: Stormy Monday from the Mayall era (I remember reading in Rolling Stone that a reviewer called his playing on that "tasteless." I think that is one of the best compositions of any era or style.) The other is Crossroads from Wheels of Fire. That is perfection of another type. I like a lot of other stuff, including Presence of the Lord. But I felt betrayed when he did the JJ Cale thing. I felt he was afraid of what lay ahead and he backed off. I am not sure about that now, but I felt that way for a long time. Now that I have had a lifetime career in music, I can better appreciate fear and how powerful it is. I think Hendrix hurt him badly and he felt humiliated. I admire his decision to go to the American, rural route, although I don't like much what he did with it.

I haven't listened to albums in a long time, but I do know that the YouTube videos that Scorsese made, where Clapton plays the blues standards on a 335, are things that I like a lot.

There are many musicians and composers that influenced me throughout my life, and he is right up there with Beethoven and others for me. His solos are god-like. I just caught myself when I started to write the word "god", only then realizing the historical meaning for Clapton. But that's what I typed without thinking of that. What more can I say?

[colorado]

I actually like his tone on the Creanm reunion from a few years ago. But I'm less a fan of his MOR stuff of late. Concert for George sounded great (Isn't It a Pity). Cream era and the first solo album after Derek. Not so crazy about Beano (there I said it).

[colorado]

Follow up. When he plays his sixties influenced stuff (much of which he created!) I am just blown away. When he does his more recent straight "blooz" less so. Not that he isn't a monster player on everything he does and probably my biggest influence.

[SPUDCASTER]

Sorry, can't limit myself to one era, it's all good!

Saw him in '77 riding the 461 album. Santana was the warm up act...magical!

[63dot]

Originally Posted by pondcaster

With Derek & brother Duane.

+1

I like Cream for it's infectious pop music style as well as some of solo Clapton's well written top 40 tunes like Wonderful Tonight and Tears in Heaven. This shows off Eric as the rock star and hit song maker.

While I don't consider Derek so much as well written for a popular song focus or sheer accessibility to the masses, his guitar tone and technique is completely untouched here in this guitarists album. It was Clapton's finest hour to quote Guitar Player magazine.

Clapton never felt he really was able to showcase his guitar playing in the Bluesbreakers, Cream, or Yardbirds and that's the reason he took total control of a project he could direct and the product was Derek and the Dominoes. While some early solo stuff and his famous unplugged sessions showed off some of his greatest playing, it never captured the sheer emotion to guitar ratio the Layla album had. What sets Derek apart from his earlier stuff is that with the Layla sessions, he built solos which were not based on scales and cliches like his earlier stuff. That being said, for the "Mr. Cliche" stuff he was scoffed for by some musicians, he played those cliches so well and with such smoothness.

As an example of a pure solo style without the crutch of rehashing scales, listen to his Derek rendition of Little Wing or his work in Bell Bottom Blues. The guitar tells a story with its note choice (like a well crafted jazz solo) and Clapton fell upon the right amount of technique and real wrenching life issues at the time and the result was captured on vinyl. It's so brilliant I can't really find words to describe it or how much better than it was than anything else he did. Where Clapton sometimes has the common trap of overplaying and rehashing back and forth, he shows amazing restraint with the Layla album. It's as if he was trying to write a love letter with his fingers! (refer to solo break at 2:19 which I think is his single best guitar moment).

While not only Clapton who was going through both love and guilt with "Layla", the rest of the band were hell bent on self destruction and earned their stripes to be called a full fledged blues band who have actually lived the blues. Drugs, drink, death, and insanity plagued everybody in that band and a combination of such angst would not be felt by another band like that for a very very long time.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BKAYGVIkbok

[Big_Bend]

Clapton has aged remarkably well, considering everything. I love his latest stuff the most actually. He is showing amazing restraint, feel, touch, tone. Check out this Voodoo Chile with Steve Winwood.



Clapton is just cooler 'n hell.

[Paul in Colorado]

I saw Cream the night they recorded "Crossroads." Changed my life. I'm partial to his tone on Fresh Cream, but I like his tone on the "One More Rider" DVD and the Cream reunion as well.

In the early 2000's my sweetie took me to see him. I hadn't seen him live since Cream. I was amazed at how good he played and sounded. He was playing through a Vibro-King stack (and a Tweed Twin for one song). It made me a fan all over again.

[Drubbing]

Originally Posted by telex76

I liked him best when he was pretending to be Freddie King.
He was great when he was pretending to be J.J. Cale also.

Same here. Tried hard to love the guy, just can't. Could listen to JJ all day though, he can get into a groove that EC just goes too slow and moody to hold.

EC practically had to ambush the guy during recording Escondido, as JJ just wanted to help out and play a bit, maybe write a few tunes...

Some of both their best work on that disc IMO, and a grammy to boot.

[Heyen86]

Wish I knew what parts Clapton played on Harrison's All Things Must Pass....


Love that album.

[telex76]

Originally Posted by Heyen86

Wish I knew what parts Clapton played on Harrison's All Things Must Pass....


Love that album.

He didn't play slide.

[telex76]

This is my favorite Clapton vocal performance.

[Heyen86]

Who loves Lay Down Sally? I have to say its one of my favorite Clapton songs. His style crosses over wonderfully.

[garyd5158]

Originally Posted by elihu

I liked his Derek and the Dominos live tone...Strat and Tweed i think...i think his playing on this was at least equal to the John Mayall era.

This is perfect to my ears.

[garyd5158]

[garyd5158]

While I'm partial to this, I think EC's demonstrated something great in every era.

[PeterVV]

Originally Posted by telex76

I liked him best when he was pretending to be Freddie King.
He was great when he was pretending to be J.J. Cale also.

+1 he owed both soooooo much.....

[dmarcus30]

Originally Posted by elihu

I liked his Derek and the Dominos live tone...Strat and Tweed i think...i think his playing on this was at least equal to the John Mayall era.

Agreed, that his playing on the live "Why Does Love.." it positively incendiary!

[fezz parka]

Originally Posted by garyd5158

I think EC's demonstrated something great in every era.

IMO, Clapner is always pretty damn good.

[dmarcus30]

Originally Posted by Larry F

When I was 16, in 1968 or 69, a college-age guy came up to me outside a dance and told me that he heard my band a few weeks earlier. He told me that I sounded like Clapton. There are a few things that people say in life that have a profound effect on one, as that did with me. We had played some Cream songs and I was into soloing like mad. I remember trying hard to build up my strength to do a whole-step bend with a vibrato on top. Once I had that, I could get a singing tone at will. Naturally, I got that from Clapton. When I later heard Freddie, I thought, that's where I want to be.

My favorites are: Stormy Monday from the Mayall era (I remember reading in Rolling Stone that a reviewer called his playing on that "tasteless." I think that is one of the best compositions of any era or style.) The other is Crossroads from Wheels of Fire. That is perfection of another type. I like a lot of other stuff, including Presence of the Lord. But I felt betrayed when he did the JJ Cale thing. I felt he was afraid of what lay ahead and he backed off. I am not sure about that now, but I felt that way for a long time. Now that I have had a lifetime career in music, I can better appreciate fear and how powerful it is. I think Hendrix hurt him badly and he felt humiliated. I admire his decision to go to the American, rural route, although I don't like much what he did with it.

I haven't listened to albums in a long time, but I do know that the YouTube videos that Scorsese made, where Clapton plays the blues standards on a 335, are things that I like a lot.

There are many musicians and composers that influenced me throughout my life, and he is right up there with Beethoven and others for me. His solos are god-like. I just caught myself when I started to write the word "god", only then realizing the historical meaning for Clapton. But that's what I typed without thinking of that. What more can I say?

I, too, got my vibrato and bend-to-pitch from EC.
Eric has always been a chameleon and mimic, whether it's Robert Johnson or JJ Cale he's emulating. He has the ability to synthesize styles into his own thing.
I was badly disillusioned to read that his iconic 'Crossroads' solo is actually comped from two different nights. It seems to me that the spot in the second solo (second chorus, measure 8) where he jumps an octave now sounds like an edit to me.

[Chris Browne]

I like hearing him play acoustic myself. His unplugged album taught so many people the rudiments of acoustic blues.