[Slowhand] Slowhand Digest, Vol 9, Issue 93

[Apurva Parikh]

Great to hear from DN, after a long hiatus, it seems. I re-read some of 
Mel's original comments. my thoughts below..

Just a couple of comments related to a couple of recent posts by others:

1. Melvin To Selvin: Regarding Mel’s response to a “SF Chronicle” 
review by Joel Selvin, I and many others think that Selvin is spot on. 
Selvin writes what I’ve been saying all along. It’s not a putdown of 
Clapton, but it is a criticism, and I think Mel misses Selvin’s point 
entirely. My opinion is that Clapton cooked full dinners, from scratch, way 
back in his Mayall/Cream/Blind Faith days, while today he merely pops TV 
dinners into the microwave, and lets others (Trucks) do the cooking. Today 
he also sets the table, which he didn’t do back then, but every once in a 
while, he gives us a sandwich that hasn’t been microwaved, and it’s 
pretty good.



AAP: I sometimes find that Clapton sets us up to lower our expectations in 
the few interviews he has done lately, he mentions that his skills are not 
what they used to but I tend to think its a matter of necessity vs. not 
having to do it. Look at the Cream reunion, where it was all EC, rhythm, 
lead and singing all of it. He can still deliver the goods when he needs to. 
On this tour, there are all kinds of solos, Trucks, Doyle, Chris S., tim 
carmon, weeks, heck everyone has a solo depending on the song.

Selvin’s not putting Clapton down, but is criticizing him (Selvin’s a 
critic, and writes critiques) for not doing better. As I’ve written 
before, I still like Clapton, but I’ve seen him when he’s done so much 
better, played so much more passionately. I believe that he’s 
shortchanging us; it appears that he’s not trying very hard. Many others 
have written here in the Slowhand Digest this past year that EC seems to be 
merely cruising on auto-pilot, mailing in his guitar solos, getting others 
(Bramhall & Trucks) to do the heavy lifting. I think they’re both fine 
guitarists. But I want to see and hear Eric Clapton play, because he’s SO 
much better, although he usually doesn’t show us how good he is.


AAP: I think as fans, we have to see that these people reviewing EC in tour 
may not be fans and have a right to their opinion, and we should fans should 
treat it as such. One person's opinion on one night. They may not have seen 
Eric or heard him as much as we, but you have to take it with a huge mound 
of salt and not get up in arms. I've heard some of the other Eric Clapton 
shows this tour and I think the sentiment of many comes from the fact that 
each and every show seems scripted down to the setlist, to the performance, 
no words, just a very businesslike performance by EC and the gang each time 
around.

I believe that Clapton’s best days were when he concentrated on playing 
guitar, and had a bluesier overall sound to his music. Too much of his music 
today, in my opinion, is middle-of-the-road (MOR) “Adult Contemporary.” 
Now, who else is Adult Contemporary”? How about Celine Dion, Barbra 
Streisand, Barry Manilow ... yuccch!

Clapton still plays long fairly solos today, such as during “I Shot The 
Sheriff, but he seems to be merely “noodling” 99% of the time, not 
trying very hard at all ... too ”balanced,” with little passion. I 
don’t want to see and hear Clapton play “balanced” music. I want him 
to rock! I want him to play with passion, not balance, to show emotion, not 
restraint. The “balance” is the problem, and causes Clapton to hold 
back! While I still enjoy much of EC’s music, I find that he releases his 
crappy stuff (“Back Home”) rather than his better music (“Nothing But 
The Blues”). And he’s way too self-conscious about his singularly unique 
talent: playing the guitar.


AAP: I can't speak to specific technique, but if you compare EC from this 
era to any past era, his guitar soloing seems to drift between noodling and 
between playing very emotive if not dymanic solos. Again, it's hard to 
explain this but it just feels like he's holding back, but then again, all i 
need to do is pop the cream reunion cd to hear some blazing soloing.

Why do I still go see Clapton? Because I like his music. I went to the 10 
October 2006 performance in Washington, on this latest tour and I enjoyed it 
immensely. But I enjoyed his performances 38 or 40 years ago so much more, 
because I watched and listened to real artist creating magical, musical 
scenes through the sound of his guitar. It has nothing to do with nostalgia, 
and everything to do with his guitar playing.

On “The Road To Escondido,” there’s a wonderful guitar solo on track 
1, “Danger,” that is inventive, soaring, and passionate. If Clapton 
played like that a lot more often, I probably wouldn’t be typing right 
now. But no, we’ve got to settle for less than his best. In general, his 
music is good, but it could be SO much better. So, I believe that Joel 
Selvin and I are stating the same: Clapton fails to live up to his 
potential. An incredibly amazing talent, Eric Clapton decides to share it 
with us only once in a while, perhaps only by mistake, when he forgets to 
remain “balanced” and allows his passion to come through.


AAP: Ah the potential.. I guess Eric now being 62 probably doesn't feel he 
has much to say with the guitar and especially in studio, chooses to mask it 
behind cheesy production and scores of guest musicians. But live, I'm 
dissapointed again in just the scripted nature of the solos and the shows.

2. Slowhand Sidekicks: Roel Hendriksen asks about John Mayall and Jack 
Bruce. Yes, musicians who complement and push EC don’t have to be 
guitarists. In fact, Clapton earned his initial fame as THE solo guitar 
player. True, in the Yardbirds, Chris Dreja played rhythm guitar. But Chris 
Dreja really DID play rhythm guitar, and didn’t share the solos with 
Clapton. However, Clapton’s enduring reputation as a musician -- as THE 
guitarist -- was mostly earned while with John Mayall And The Bluesbreakers 
and Cream. These bands had just the one guitarist: Eric Clapton. People such 
as John Mayall -- a superb musician (keyboards and harmonica) and bandleader 
-- and Jack Bruce provided a frame for Clapton, showcasing his unique 
talent, allowing him to flower as a musician. And let’s not forget, if he 
didn’t become the world class guitarist that he is, then today Eric 
Clapton would be laying bricks or installing new windows.

               DeltaNick

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