Artist: Clapton, Eric
Label: Polydor Records
Release: 1977
Eric Clapton’s career, which after the breakup of Cream and later Blind Faith, from the baptism by fire of the guitarist’s self-titled debut onward, kept swinging between triumph and shipwreck all through the seventies, hit the peak of its turbulent odyssey in 1977 with the famous Slowhand. The album’s success, especially on the commercial side, surely owes the most to three simple songs that, after three dry years, crowned Eric Clapton’s genius once again with the status of trendsetter in popular music for his era. But Slowhand is definitely more than just the carrier of a trio of all-time hits, because with its sensational material, backed by outstandingly dynamic and inventive playing, it gives us Eric Clapton’s band at the height of its powers.
When we talk about the impact of Clapton’s sound, we obviously can’t skip J. J. Cale’s Cocaine, which went from a shy little thing to a wicked viper precisely under the baton of Eric’s famous take on it. Clapton sinks his teeth into Cale’s creation with serious aggression and a heaping dose of self-confidence, which you can plainly hear in the straightforwardness of the guitarist’s solos, following one another in impressive, inspired waves. Cocaine is surely one of Eric’s strongest songs, a beauty of guitar playing that, after a good three decades, is still bursting with youthful energy. The mood shifts with Wonderful Tonight, a vivid showcase of the subtlety of Clapton’s expression. Thanks precisely to its emotionally charged idealization of Pattie Boyd, it once again impresses with its remarkable breadth. Another radical genre turn follows with Lay Down Sally, one more in a long line of Clapton’s country experiments, which blues fans, even after all these years, surely still find grating. Still, Eric deserves another round of congratulations here for an exceptionally convincing interpretation, since with the warmth of its Southern character the song confirms Clapton’s role as one of the leading interpreters in the world of popular music.
The more accessible side of Slowhand surely also includes Next Time You See Her, We’re All The Way and the melancholic instrumental Peaches And Diesel. All three are adorned with the fusion of melodiousness and minimalism we’ve heard from Eric before, which over time has been polished down to the last detail and even become one of the more recognizable elements of the guitarist’s message. Clapton then stirs up the passion with the simply built rocker The Core, a nearly ten-minute improvised cut-loose jam graced by a thrilling vocal collaboration between Eric and his passionate partner-in-crime Yvonne Elliman. From rock & roll quickly over to the blues, this time courtesy of the mighty slide gem Mean Old Frisco, one of Clapton’s most “heavy-laden” blues numbers. Arthur Crudup’s standard, much like the far more famous Cocaine, gets a second spring under Eric Clapton’s fatherly hand.
Slowhand is a first-rate masterpiece, packed with tense musical action caught in the grip of dynamic arrangements, which, despite stiff competition from Backless and 461 Ocean Boulevard, has managed to keep the stamp of the strongest Eric Clapton album of the seventies. By increasingly abandoning traditional blues values and gradually embracing more conventional approaches, Clapton keeps maturing creatively. Time has been more than kind to Slowhand, which, given the brilliance the album carries, of course comes as no surprise.
Lineup
Eric Clapton: vocals, guitar
George Terry: guitar
Carl Radle: bass
Dick Sims: keyboards
Mel Collins: saxophone
Marcy Levy: vocals
Yvonne Elliman: vocals
Jamie Oldaker: drums
Production
Gyln Johns
Track list
1.Cocaine
2.Wonderful Tonight
3.Lay Down Sally
4.Next Time You See Her
5.We’re All The Way
6.The Core
7.May You Never
8.Mean Old Frisco
9.Peaches And Diesel
Album length: 39.13
