I realized that my record collection is leaning quite heavily toward's the 80's. Nothing wrong with that, but it's important to bring things back where they belong for a while. Back in August, when this was Vinyl Friday, I showcased an Eric Clapton classic, Slowhand. This time we're going back further to 1974. Eric Claptons 2nd solo album, 461 Ocean Boulevard.
If you can fathom an album that for it's time in 1974 would set a standard for Blues Rock that wasn't quite established by Led Zeppelin, The Rolling Stones, and Stevie Ray Vaughn. Sure it existed, but now when you hear the term Blues Rock, Clapton defines it, and this album was instrumental in making that case.
Part of the reason people stood up and took note of this album came from Claptons cover of I Shot The Sheriff. One of the session guitarists on this album had played with Bob Marley and The Wailers and suggested that a blues version of I Shot The Sheriff be made and included on the LP. Add to it Steady Rollin Man (A classic Robert Johnson tune) and the riffs from Willie and the Hand Jive and you have a fairly complex album that alters between heartfelt blues and enough rock to groove to.
Eric Clapton - Let It Grow
With few exceptions I can't think of any Clapton album that you would ever WANT to listen to that's not on vinyl. You'll never hear master level production quality nor will you get the types of analog mid-ranges that made you want to concentrate on what you were listening to when the record dropped. This release is an original 1974 picked up from Dave's Records in Chicago IL.
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