“...Mean Old Frisco And Low
Down Santa Fay...”
Along with 1974's "461
Ocean Boulevard" – Eric Clapton's hugely popular and commercially
successful "Slowhand" album from 1977 was always going to be the
subject of a 2CD DELUXE EDITION set at some point in time. And chock full of
crowd-pleasers like "Wonderful Tonight", "Lay Down Sally"
and J.J. Cale's "Cocaine" that Eric plays in concert to this day
(some 40 years later) - it's surprising Universal took so bloody long in
releasing it. Yet you have to say – it's absolutely been worth the wait - with
a 2nd disc that is both thrilling and a reminder of just how good old EC was/is
in the 'live' arena. Here are the Diesel and Peaches...
UK and USA released December
2012 – "Slowhand: 35th Anniversary Deluxe Edition" by ERIC CLAPTON is
a 2CD Reissue/Remaster on Polydor 0600753407202 (Barcode 600753407202) and
breaks down as follows:
Disc 1 (53:22 minutes):
1. Cocaine
2. Wonderful Tonight
3. Lay Down Sally
4. Next Time You See Her
5. We're All The Way
6. The Core [Side 2]
7. May You Never
8. Mean Old Frisco
9. Peaches And Diesel
BONUS TRACKS:
10. Looking At The Rain – a
Gordon Lightfoot cover version, recorded 6 May 1977 - PREVIOUSLY UNRELEASED
11. Alberta – a cover
version variant of the Blues song "Alberta" by Huddie
"Leadbelly" Ledbetter – Clapton's version is more akin to
"Alberta Blues" by The Mississippi Sheiks. Recorded 4 May 1977 – it
was first issued on the 1999 Eric Clapton compilation "Blues" as an
outtake from "Slowhand"
12. Greyhound Bus – an Eric
Clapton song recorded 20 May 1977 - PREVIOUSLY UNRELEASED
13. Stars, Strays And
Ashtrays – an Eric Clapton song recorded May 1977 - PREVIOUSLY UNRELEASED
Disc 2 – Live At Hammersmith
Odeon, London, 27 April 1977 (74:42 minutes):
1. Tell The Truth (Live) –
an Eric Clapton and Bobby Whitlock Song originally on the 1970
"Layla" 2LP set by Derek & The Dominoes
2. Knocking On Heaven's Door
(Live) – a Bob Dylan cover
3. Steady Rolling Man (Live)
- originally on "461 Ocean Boulevard"
4. Can't Find My Way Home
(Live) – a Blind Faith song written by Steve Winwood – sung here by Yvonne
Elliman only
5. Further On Up The Road
(Live) – a Bobby "Blue" Bland cover version (written by Joe Veasey)
6. Stormy Monday (Live) – a
T-Bone Walker cover version
7. Badge (Live) – a Cream
cover written by Eric Clapton and George Harrison
8. I Shot The Sheriff (Live)
– a Bob Marley & The Wailers cover version
9. Layla (Live) – a Derek
& The Dominoes song
THE MUSICIANS:
Lead Guitar & Vocals –
ERIC CLAPTON
Guitar – GEORGE TERRY
Keyboards – DICK SIMS
Duet Lead Vocals – YVONNE
ELLIMAN
Duet Lead Vocals, Harmonica
and Guitar – MARCY LEVY
Bass – CARL RADLE
Percussion – SERGIO PASTORA
Drums and Percussion – JAMIE
OLDAKER
Tracks 3, 4, 7 8 and 9 are
PREVIOUSLY UNRELEASED
Tracks 1, 2 and 6 first
appeared in 1996 on the 4CD Polydor/Chronicles Book Set “Crossroads 2 (Live In
The Seventies)”
BILL LEVENSON produced the
compilation that features 16-page liner notes by noted writer DAVID HEPWORTH
(assisted by Richard Havers) with the tape research, transfers and remastering
handled by ANDY SKUROW, KEVIN REEVES and SETH FOSTER at Sterling Sound. The
booklet is a very functional affair – a few photos and paragraphs on Clapton’s
career and the huge impact tunes like J.J. Cale's "Cocaine", the love
song and perennial compilation filler "Wonderful Tonight" and the
poppy "Lay Down Sally" had on his radio popularity. The inner flaps
of the card digipak have the inner sleeve collage photos of the LP – it's good
but hardly great.
The remasters are fantastic
– warm, clear and not over trebled for the sake of it. The big riff of
"Cocaine" hits you with a wallop – immediately followed by the
"...it's late in the evening...she's wondering what clothes to
wear..." smooch of “Wonderful Tonight” which despite being overplayed
still has the power to make the old soft machine feel a little more mushy. I
must admit I never much cared for the throwaway pop of "Lay Down
Sally" then and it remains that way now – but I've always loved the jaunt
of Don Williams' "We're All The Way" – a genius choice cover version
which Clapton makes his own through arrangements. The big rock track of the
album "The Core" was co-written with Marcy Levy (as was "Lay
Down Sally") and features Yvonne Elliman on Duet Vocals. It dominates Side
2 for nearly nine minutes and yet doesn’t overstay its welcome made interesting
with crafty chord changes and that bounce-off vocal. I dare say Scotland’s John
Martyn put a few kids through college on the royalties from “May You Never” – a
beautiful ballad from his 1973 classic "Solid Air" on Island Records.
Clapton keeps the simple melody but again makes it feel like it was an EC song
all along. We then get the album’s only Blues outing – a cover of Arthur
"Big Boy" Crudup's "Mean Old Frisco" – that EC arranges
into an irresistible combo of Electric Slide Guitar alongside high string Dobro
fills and a muscle doubled-vocal. It's a winner. The album ends on
"Peaches And Diesel" – an instrumental I always felt is lightweight
re-run of “Wonderful Tonight” but not in a good way (the remaster of it though
is gorgeous). I'd have to say that the Bonus Tracks on Disc 1 are largely
disappointing and it's pretty obvious why his dreadful "Stars, Strays And
Ashtrays" stayed in the can (his vocal is awful and he sounds stoned).
Better is the pretty cover of Gordon Lightfoot's "Looking At The
Rain" – a nice outtake – as is the washboard harmonica drive of
"Greyhound Bus" (sweet duet vocals with Elliman). The Bluesy and
acoustic "Alberta" – which first turned up on the 1999
"Blues" Box Set – is the best of the bunch (great audio and vocals
too). But all that pales into the distance when you get to the shock of Disc
2...
Although live inclusions are
seen by fans as convenient filler in these DE's - the 'Live' Disc here from
April 1977 in England's Hammersmith Odeon is a sensation – making mincemeat of
the four insipid outtakes that end Disc 1. The band (the same line-up he had on
the album minus Saxophonist Mel Collins) is on fire and each version of each
song is infused with energy and playing that is amazing ("Further On Up
The Road" rocks like a mother and receives a warm audience response). If
this had been released as a definitive 2LP set in the late Seventies – it would
stand up as a winner to this day. A major bummer is that there's amp feedback
prevalent throughout the 13-minute Blues of "Stormy Monday" which
really detracts (especially in the solos) - but it's still a great purist
performance. Better is "Badge" which gets slightly funked up and
elicits crowd handclapping and cheers. Running to 14 minutes - the
Reggae-Funk-Rock of Bob Marley's "I Shot The Sheriff" sees the band
cooking on all fronts – the vocals, rhythms, drum solos and guitars – it's
wickedly good. Disc 2 ends (as it had to do) on the crowd-pleaser
"Layla" where the guitars rock out. Apart from that terrible feedback
problem on "Stormy Monday" – it's a cool addition and actually worth
of the moniker 'Bonus'.
Even though the booklet
could have done with some serious beefing up (photos, memorabilia, interviews)
– the great remaster and that live bonus material make this a DE winner. I'd
love to see the underrated "Backless" from 1978 receive the same
treatment - and for that matter the equally underrated and forgotten
"Another Ticket" from 1981. Once more unto the tape vaults Mister
Levenson...
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