derek does it again

I'm several months late in catching Nine Lives, Steve Winwood's 2008 album, his first in several years. The album opens with a faint echo of Blind Faith, but that could just be a feeling I got because, frankly, that's the only album featuring Steve Winwood that I remember (this, needless to say, is quite unfair to the immensely talented musician). This collection of nine tracks is an overflowing pot of influences (funk, jazz, soul, R&B, Latin), but the track that prompted me to ignore (unfairly, again) the rest of the music was Dirty City. It's a long track and features a catchy groove and a nice riff on the electric guitar. The fun starts near the last minute when a guitar solo takes the fore, while Winwood continues to sing. The solo thus takes the place of a second voice and flourishes of emotionally engaging licks are traded with vocal lines. It took me back to a song several years ago that featured a similar solo, except that solo was a "solo" in the true sense, taking centre stage from an introspective lyric and melody and transporting a good song into a great one. Not surprisingly, it was the same guitarist on both these songs. Good old Slowhand, who had made While My Guitar Gently Weeps all those years ago, returns to produce in a precious few seconds what he hasn't done on his longer recent albums. The guitarist -- nay artist -- seemed to have ceded to the creative aspirations of the singer, collaborator, musical explorer and producer of harmless pop on Back Home or Road to Escondido. But this short burst on Winwood's song puts paid to any fear that Derek had lost it or given it up. That it makes you yearn for more is a testament to its effectiveness. The sting ain't gone.

a claptonian high

Yet again, the people at BMG read my mind as I thought "hmm, it's time to beef up my Clapton collection a bit". With a nice deal (and no shipping and handling), I wound up with four little nuggets: his début album, a special 2-CD remastered augmented (and diminished, in an undocumented way) release of Derek and the Dominos playing Live at the Fillmore, a special 2-CD remastered edition of Blind Faith's sole eponymous album, and finally Cream's d´but album.

The first time I had heard of Cream was when my guide/mentor for my final year undergraduate project lent me his CD. And I kept looping the thing ad infinitum soaking myself in the sounds of energetic bluesy jazzy riff-laden songs with rip-roaring solos and infectious refrains. And the day my package arrived, with my own copy of this masterpiece, I also receive an email from him saying he was moving on from his current job to something different. All the best to you D, and thanks for the unintentionally delicious "spoonful" of irony.

deification of humility

June 18, 2004. Philips Arena, Atlanta, GA. Three years plus since the last time I saw him perform. Closer to the stage than the last time around, but still a little way to go before I get up close there (succumbing to the commercial overheads of $$$-hungry Ticketmaster might get me there). Familiar faces all around: Steve Gadd on drums, Nathan East on bass. Billy Preston was to man the Hammond, but was sick, giving me a chance to catch Tim Carmon instead. Chris Stainton manned the keyboards on the right (my POV, looking at the stage). Doyle Bramhall II had opened with a clique called Smokestack in 2001. Now he was the accompanying guitarist (replacing and offering a different set of skills more suited to the song list than regular Andy Fairweather-Love). Sharon White and Michelle John provided backing vocals. Jimmy Vaughan opened with his backing band, but we caught the tail end of the act (thanks to an usher who insisted that he was right and the signs weren't!).

What a song list. An EC triviamonger's dream come true, aside from the regulars and the expected selections from the new album. And the Crash3 Fender looked really really cool. [CAVEAT: memory lapses may have affected the order of songs]

* Let it Rain: audacious. Off his eponymous début album, this track should have come as no surprise even to the casual Clapton listener who owns The Cream of Clapton. Unsteady sound levels here, but mercifully they got sorted out somewhere near the end of the second song.

* Hoochie Coochie Man. Off From the Cradle (now there's a concert I would give anything to have been able to attend!)

* Walk out in the rain: Dylan wrote this for EC's Backless (the title itself was a back-handed reference to Dylan!). Interesting pick, and a nice pleasant song (glad Dylan never sang it!)

* I Want a Little Girl: this one came off Reptile. At this point I was really impressed with the track list. A great variety, if ever, although this was probably the safest pick given that he couldn't have the Impressions back just for one number!

* I Shot the Sheriff: the last time I saw him live, EC played infectious misleading extended openers for both My Father's Eyes (thus relieving it of some of the electronica crud) and Layla. This time he did something similar by grooving into a riff that was slightly off-kilter ... just enough to marginally disguise the reggae beat. But once he dove into the classic riff, the place went up in a roar.

The laconic EC now says that they would now be playing a few Robert Johnson songs and is now seated centre stage with his acoustic guitar, Bramhall to his right, and East to his left.

* Me and the Devil Blues: o how I wish Jerry Portnoy was performing too!

* They're Red Hot

* If I Had Possession (Over Judgement Day): a switch to the electric.

* Milk Cow Blues

* Kind-Hearted Woman Blues

And with that we got back into the mainstream segment ...

* Got to Get Better in a Little While: moment to fall out of my seat. This was a track on the abandoned second Derek and the Dominos album (restored with love on the excellent Crossroads box set). Great wah-wah guitar.

* Have You Ever Loved a Woman: a song that benefits from EC's maturing voice while still staying cheekily relevant to his past (... But all the time you know/She belongs to your very best friend). Another great soloing break.

* Badge: Yeah, Cream time. The backing riff sounds as open as it did on the other live recordings I've heard. I somehow liked the cleanness of the studio take on the riff ...

* Wonderful Tonight: Time for couples to dance and be captured on the large screens overhead ...

* Layla: EC dove straight into this without any misleading prelude or soloing. Bramhall did a decent job on the slide, but was unable to make up for Duane Allman's absence. And this song must rank as the *best* rock song ever (Stairway to Heaven builds up to a crescendo; this song goes the other way around, grabbing you from the opening riff, before gently simmering down into the extended piano segment).

* Cocaine: The closer boasted another great EC solo. Just watching him play is both an inspiring and humbling experience for aspiring guitarists.

* Encore/Sunshine of your Love: Yep, it had to be. Am proud to say I clapped for every second from the band's exit to the moment they reappeared. Red palms and aching arms. But it was worth it.

* Encore/Sweet Home Chicago: Jimmie Vaughan joined the band for a solo exchange jam. Tim Carmon even played one back at EC by keying out a guitar-toned solo on the ivories.

By the time I was out of the place, the burgeoning perspiration clogging my collar didn't matter much. Even waiting for the train in a crowd didn't seem to be a problem. Someone was holding up a "Clapton is God" poster on the other side of the platform. Truer words were never spoken.

the problem with biographical tomes

After having finished reading both Ray Coleman's official biography (Clapton!) and Michael Schumacher's journalistic exploration of Clapton's life and music (Crossroads, the 1996 edition), it's interesting to note that the little nuggets of informtion that have delighted F&M triviamongers are the ones most in shadow -- the origin of his nickname "Slowhand" being a good example. Both books, however, make for interesting reading, although the Schumacher book wins for covering more detail on the albums. Clapton has always thought of himself as a bluesman, and like some of the legendary bluesmen, he has had his share of personal tragedies (the destruction of his marriage to Patty, the loss of his son Conor) and downfalls (the years of drug addiction followed by the years as an alcoholic). What shines through is an unflinching dedication to his music, his willingness to explore different kinds of music and melding them with his vision, and the simply breathtaking expanse of his collaborations with the cream (no pun intended) of his time -- Sonny Boy Williamson, Howlin' Wolf and Muddy Waters, the Beatles, Sting, every group he was part of (the Yardbirds, the BluesBreakers, Cream, Blind Faith, Derek and the Dominos). And the man refuses to stop (his collaboration with B B King being a very good example). A good shot in the arm for my desire to procure all his albums.

me and mr johnson {see also: clapton returns to his roots ... again}

Lots of familiar riffs (especially the one used on Unplugged's Before you accuse you featuring on When You Got a Good Friend) and there's a strong sense of Rollin' and Tumblin', which finally surfaces near the end of Travelling Riverside Blues. I must confess I seem to prefer Led Zeppelin's cover (perhaps for the atmospheric riff), but this is a nice purchase, and a welcome addition to the collection.

clapton returns to his roots ... again

My favourite Eric Clapton albums have always been the ones he peppers (or inundates) with his interpretations of the blues songs that inspired him and his music. His latest release Me and Mr Johnson pays tribute to his key inspiration, blues master Robert Johnson. Caught a few samples online, and it already feels like a welcome sibling to From the Cradle and Riding with the King.

almost-sir eric clapton and a censorious kher

Eric Clapton is one step closer to a knighthood as he made a CBE in the New Year Honours List. Despite the controversy surrounding a few inclusions, it's in the way that you use it;)

Anupam Kher adds irony to his position as the chief of the CBFC by featuring in a forthcoming "film with a message" called Hot Girl: Dream of Everyone. This used to be a 1997-98 film called Nadani, but the producers changed it to Hot Girl only to attract an audience (predictably!).

Running on 58/straw dogs

Eric Clapton turned 58 yesterday. Yay!

The Criterion Collection has released Sam Peckinpah's controversial (banned in the UK till recently) shocker Straw Dogs as a 2-disc feature-rich collector's item. MUST_OWN (well, someday). Wonder what happened to the Miramax-sponsored adaptation (with Edward Norton standing in for Dustin Hoffman) Fear Itself?

more lyrical irony

It's happened again. Breaking Point off Eric Clapton's Journeyman starts off echoing feelings I experience at a fairly higher regularity these days:


Well I just don't get it

Can't make the pieces fit

I might just as well forget it

But my heart won't let me quit

Musical Instrument for the Week: The Kazoo

Where may you hear it? Try San Francisco Blues on Eric Clapton's Unplugged. There's a nice little audience-wowing kazoo solo there.

The Kazoo: A Historical Perspective {from the House of Musical Traditions}

The Kazoo in Popular Music

The History of the Kazoo

All Things Kazoo