E.C. Was Here
click the image to get it in cd-cover size
| Release Date: |
November 30, 1974 |
| Label: |
Polydor / Pgd |
| Rating: |
4.5 |
Description: A 1975 live album that found Clapton at--if you'll pardon the expression--a crossroads,
E.C. Was Here marks the line of demarcation between the guitar hero of the past and more song-oriented player he'd become for the second half of the '70s. Clapton breaks out on a couple of old Blind Faith numbers--"Presence of the Lord" and "Can't Find My Way Home"--that reflect his soulful, spiritual side, while "Further On Up the Road" rocks out and Charles Brown's "Drifting Blues," restored to its full eleven-and-a-half-minute length on the CD's newly remastered version, presents another instrumental showcase. There are only six tunes here, but E.C. leaves his indelible mark on each of them.
--Daniel Durchholz
Tracklist of E.C. Was Here
Reviews:
Clapton is good on this one
Clapton has had a number of career paths: innovative-but-purist bluesman in the early 60s, avant garde rock star with Cream, and then laid back singer-songwriter where he played his guitar less and less in the 70s, and then, in the last decade, he has returned (sort of) to the blues. Well even though this is in the 70s here he has the blues and by god he actually plays lead...a lot! "Have you ever loved a woman?" is just superb and he duels mightily with George Terry. Clapton has done a number of versions of the Freddie King original and this is probably my second favorite version (the first being the live version with the Bluesbreakers). This one is really aggressive and he and Terry really stab their leads into the song with the kind of passion that Clapton generally lacked in the 70s. The Blind Faith material is also just very pleasant - good tunes well played and Presence of the Lord has him wailing on his guitar in a most uncharacteristic way - very much more like Steve Winwood. "Rambling on my Mind" has the ascending key changes throughout which is very effective for pushing up the excitement, and passion level. "Further on up the Road" is also a very good version - his best cover of it in fact. This is by far his best live album - much superior in many ways to "Just One Night" or his stints at the Royal Albert Hall. The album is short but in many ways this is its strength. His band have a great sound, and play wonderfully together. Is it the world's greatest album? Of course not; but it is a coherent statement, and Clapton has a passion in his playing that is absent from the majority of his other post-Cream performances.
ec was here
this is my anthem. i've had a very fortunate life and this cd is part of it now. i'm home but i can't find my way there. the perfect album if you have the blues.
Great band
If you want to hear what a real "shuffle" is supposed to sound like just take a listen to Eric's version of "Further on down the road" and you will know. This is truly what a live concert should be like.
