Eric Clapton (album)

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Eric Clapton
Eric Clapton Album Cover.jpg
Studio album by Eric Clapton
Released August 1970
Recorded November 1969 – March 1970
Genre Rock · blues · blues rock
Length 35:11
Label Atco · Polydor
Producer Tom Dowd • Delaney Bramlett
Eric Clapton chronology
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(1970)		 461 Ocean Boulevard
(1974)461 Ocean Boulevard1974
Singles from Eric Clapton
  1. "After Midnight"
    Released: October 1970
  2. "Blues Power"
    Released: 1970
  3. "Let It Rain"
    Released: 1972

Eric Clapton is the eponymous debut studio album from British rock musician Eric Clapton, released in August 1970 under Atco and Polydor Records.

Background and artwork

After being successful with bands including The Yardbirds, John Mayall & the Bluesbreakers, Cream and Blind Faith, Clapton decided to record his own album in late 1969 and early 1970. The album cover shows Clapton sitting in a room which is going to be decorated and in which a ladder, a chair and some carpets are placed. Clapton holds a cigarette in his right and has his Fender Stratocaster Brownie electric guitar with him.

Recording

Clapton recorded some tracks in November 1969 at Londons Olympic Studios and went on to record more songs in 1970 which was divided into to sessions; one in January 1970 at the Village Recorders Studio in West Lost Angeles and a second session in March the same year at the Island Studios in London. A large amount of musicians that worked with Clapton on the album had been working with the band Delaney & Bonnie, which previously backed the Blind Faith gigs. In an interview from 2006, promoting The Road to Escondido, Clapton recalled that he was very happy making this album and was pleased with the results of the recording sessions, but also noted that "the only thing [he] didn't like about the album is [his] voice", because it sounds so "high" and "young", which Clapton disliked, because he "always wanted to sound like an old guy".[1]

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
Source Rating
AllMusic 4.5/5 stars[2]
Robert Christgau B[3]

AllMusic critic Stephen Thomas Erlewine awards the release 4.5 of five possible stars and recalls that on the album Clapton "sounds more laid-back and straightforward than any of the guitarist's previous recordings. There are still elements of blues and rock & roll, but they're hidden beneath layers of gospel, R&B, country, and pop flourishes. And the pop element of the record is the strongest of the album's many elements". Erlewine finished his review by stating "it's encouraging to hear him grow and become a more fully rounded musician, but too often the album needs the spark that some long guitar solos would have given it. In short, it needs a little more of Clapton's personality."[2] Music critic Robert Christgau rates the album with the "B" mark and notes: "I blame a conceptual error, rather than Clapton's uncertain singing, for the overall thinness. As a sideman, Clapton slipped into producer Delaney Bramlett's downhome bliss as easily as he did into Cream's blues dreamscape, but as a solo artist he can't simulate Delaney's optimism".[3]

Track listings

Side One
No. Title Writer(s) Length
1. "Slunky"   Delaney Bramlett · Bonnie Bramlett · Eric Clapton 3:34
2. "Bad Boy"   D. Bramlett · B. Bramlett · Clapton 3:34
3. "Lonesome and a Long Way from Home"   D. Bramlett · B. Bramlett · Leon Russell 3:29
4. "After Midnight"   J.J. Cale 2:51
5. "Easy Now"   Clapton 2:57
6. "Blues Power"   Clapton · Russell 3:09
Total length:
 17:56
Side Two
No. Title Writer(s) Length
1. "Bottle of Red Wine"   Clapton 3:06
2. "Lovin' You Lovin' Me"   D. Bramlett · B. Bramlett · Clapton 3:19
3. "Told You For the Last Time"   D. Bramlett · B. Bramlett · Steve Cropper 2:30
4. "Don't Know Why"   D. Bramlett · B. Bramlett · Clapton 3:10
5. "Let It Rain"   D. Bramlett · B. Bramlett · Clapton 5:02
Total length:
 17:11

Personnel

Charts positions

  1. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  4. ↑ "Norwegiancharts.com – Eric Clapton – Eric Clapton". Hung Medien. Retrieved August 16, 2015.
  5. ↑ "Eric Clapton | Artist | Official Charts". UK Albums Chart Retrieved August 16, 2015.
  6. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
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