Artist: Clapton, Eric
Label: Polydor Records
Release: 1975
There’s One In Evey Crowd probably marks the point where the curve of Clapton’s cosmic journey grinds to a halt dangerously close to total creative “black out” territory, where it finally goes dark for good. Which, of course, seems hard to wrap your head around, especially given the megalomaniac success of 461 Ocean Boulevard barely a year earlier, which apparently put the final strain on the guitarist’s head, already chewed up by second thoughts and doubts. Eric’s renewed enthusiasm for reggae, which swung the doors wide open to the world with the unforeseen success of the Jamaican-rhythm I Shot The Sheriff, doesn’t pay off to a similar degree this time. Quite the opposite! There’s One In Every Crowd shows signs of aimless drifting between stylistically undefined melodic ideas, without which the vast majority of the guitarist’s fans, who had been spoiled until then by the fertile stretches of Cream, Blind Faith and later the Layla days, would probably have slept easier.
With such a wobbly, unsettled product, where on top of gospel, reggae and of course blues, a whole palette of uncomfortably whining vocal lines washes over our ears, it’s not hard to picture how lost Clapton’s mind was, especially with the openly disingenuous opener We’ve Been Told (Jesus Is Coming Soon), whose reputation, worthy of the guitarist, is rescued by Eric’s raging slide, bursting with life energy as per tradition. His exuberance quickly proves deceptive, though, since for the rest of the album Eric definitely sounds way too laid-back, even if it’s still very hard to call him disinterested. The playful bouncer Swing Low Sweet Chariot, nicely soaked in a strong Jamaican flavor, keeps those unpleasant thoughts at bay for a moment at least, hinting that Clapton’s fascination with reggae was nowhere near over once he was done borrowing Marley’s motifs. Even though the gentlemen of the legion of blues enthusiasts still don’t like to remember him as a smoky “rastaman” these days, you have to give Eric credit for the perks of this unexpected assimilation of sounds that were pretty uncharacteristic for the rather gloomy English climate. Especially with the more enterprising Dont’ Blame Me, which, alongside the always excellent take on one of the legendary blues classics, this time Elmore James’ The Sky Is Crying, proves to be one of the album’s highlights, and does so unexpectedly fast.
The presence of dangerously James-style slide playing becomes obvious for the first time in the otherwise lukewarm Singin’ The Blues, where neither a feverish Clapton nor the sensational vocals of Eric’s old pal Yvonne Elliman can help the track climb out of the gray of mediocrity. The story repeats itself in the easier-on-the-ears Pretty Blue Eyes, this time without a female voice, but with vocals heavily Beatles-tinged, if nothing else. Better Make It Through Today kindly blows away the clouds of melancholy. Armed with a pinch of monotony this time, the closing pair then threaten to finish things off with the totally expendable High and Opposites, which generously and without a shred of shame put the cherry on top of this, by far Clapton’s least convincing document.
Lineup
Eric Clapton: guitar, vocals
George Terry: guitar
Carl Radle: bass
jamie Oldaker: drums
Dick Sims: keyboards
Yvonnie Elliman: backing vocals
Production
Tom Dowd
Track list
1.We’ve Been Told (Jesus Is Coming Soon)
2.Swing Low Sweet Chariot
3.Little Rachel
4.Don’t Blame Me
5.The Sky Is Crying
6.Singin’ The Blues
7.Better Make It Through Today
8.Pretty Blue Eyes
9.High
10.Opposites
Album length: 45.15
