Today is Eric Clapton's 75th birthday

Yes, and most if not all variations were filmed. The film came out stunning - from what was released. This was but one of his peaks, another one right next to the Unplugged hit.

Clapton has had more career peaks than anyone I can think of. Just so many high-points to be proud of. 24 Nights he should be very proud of. And that is was filmed so nicely!!!

 

There should be an awesome filmed multi-night Blu-Ray boxset offering these 24 Nights as a Celebration, no?

 

I know awhile back Eric was having trouble with his hands.
Does anyone here have any follow up on this?

Is it an ongoing issue he works around or has he gotten some sort of treatment that helps?

I think I’ll play my Blind Faith album tonight in his honor.

 

Especially the blues night with Buddy Guy & the late Albert Collins tearing it up!

 

Saw him in Austin in 1995 with Clarence Gatemouth Brown... great show. 26 years ago... sheesh

 

recall that maybe arthritic but he did say he can't play as much as frequently which would dictate a well paced and spaced out tour I would think.

 

It's not arthritis, it's peripheral neuropathy. And major tinnitus. There seem to be plenty of articles documenting his health issues.

Eric Clapton opens up about health issues and going deaf | NME

 

Gatemouth had a great band back then. I caught him in 1997 or '98. We sat on the lawn together and watched Robert Lockwood's big band before Gate's set. He was dressed in his western clothes and smoking his pipe.

 

There is a video interview on YouTube where Eric talks about Cream playing live at the Fillmore West and how fun it was to be stoned out of your mind, playing soloing anything you wanted to play and the audience totally into it, and a psychedelic light show being projected over you as you tripped your brains out!!! Was was it really great music? No, it was not he said, just am amazing fun time up there, but not great.

He goes on to say Cream had some good songs and recordings, but that non-stop live jam thing was only really good in the moment.

I like the honesty there, and that he does like a number of their recordings - as already obvious because he has played several things live in concert for decades.

 

A little belated (I didn't see the thread yesterday), but I'm giving Layla a spin (via YouTube, although I have both vinyl and CD of the record) in his honour ...

 

I thought he was older...

 

My favorites of a few original signatures I got back in 1987 - 94 era.

 

My uncle (who wasn't in to music at all) used to go fishing with him, said he was a totally nice guy.

 

I still think he sounds ****e without Ginger and Jack behind him.

 

What a career - what a life lived to the fullest: From young guitar god to heroin & alcohol addict to stealing his friend's wife to losing his young son and that's only about half of it!
The only time I saw him live was at the Jazz Festival in Montreux 1986 but I would really have loved to see him at Long Beach in 1974. He was blitzed most of the time on this tour, but I loved the band (George Terry) and the set-lists (stand-out track: Drifting Blues>Rambling On My Mind from Long Beach. To my knowledge this sequence of acoustic Drifting > electric slide Rambling was not performed again (available on E.C. Was Here and Crossroads 2 in different/better mix).
He loves J.J. Cale and was the only one to pay tribute to the late, great songwriter - at a time when his own creativity and delivery were on the downside, he came up with a great tribute album and on the "Baloise Sessions" digital broadcast a few weeks after J.J.'s passing he played 5 of his songs including a smoking Call Me The Breeze - love him for it!
Happy Birthday E.C.

 

Superb!

 

Nice article. Now I wish they release all of these nights in a nicely box including the cd's and blurays... Perhaps it could be done for it's 30th anniversary (October).

 

I guess we can guess about the next archival release following the Cream box.I would like to see any or all of the following
-78 Budokan concert box
-24 Nights box
-rest of the RSO albums with bonus tracks in box in a follow up to Give Me Strength
-Ginger Baker concert
-the obvious Wheels Of Fire box

 

Someone on this forum mentioned rumours of the Nothing but the Blues documentary from Scorsese being worked on. I assume you refer to the the '79 Budokan gigs for the Just one Night live album. Both complete nights would be a nice treat indeed.

Other things to add to this wishlist:
- Complete 2005 reunion shows
- Complete Derek & Dominos Fillmore shows
- March '68 Cream recordings
- An official release of the Swiss 2013 Baloise Session with both nights. There shows are fabulous.

There's plenty more!

 

Hope you had a great day Eric.
Thanks for all the great music.

 

Yes....I mean all of this is filmed and recorded, transferring to HD at some point in an Archival release please!

 

Eric with Pete Townshend....playing and singing the Blues (October - 1989)

"Standing Around Crying"

​

 

Who played the slide?

 

E.C. plays acoustic then changes guitars while George Terry keeps playing rhythm then E.C. takes over on slide.

 

Thanks a lot