Blues Power (Derek and The Dominos) (LP 120)

Derek and The Dominos In Concert (Vinyl - RSO, 1973) ****

Genre: Blues

Places I remember: Real Groovy (Auckland)

Fab, and all the other pimply hyperboles: Roll It Over




Gear costume: Tell The Truth

Active compensatory factors: Recorded at the Fillmore East, In Concert is the only other surviving record from the Derek and Layla period (apart from Layla and Other Assorted Love Songs, of course).

Interestingly, only three songs in the nine song set actually come from Layla: Why Does Love Got To Be So Sad; Have You Ever Loved A Woman; Tell The Truth. And Layla itself is conspicuous by it's absence.

For me, this is one of Clapton's peak periods and he's had a few hasn't he.  With the combination of Bobby Whitlock's organ, Jim Gordon's flamboyant drumming, Carl Radle's bass anchor, and Eric in great firey form, this foursome is tight!!

Where do they all belong? Eric would shed the pretense of being someone other than who he was and release 461 Ocean Boulevard next - which I've already blogged about. So, I think it'll be some back tracking with Cream next, if that's okay.

Just about to lose my mind (Eric Clapton) #88-89

Eric Clapton (sic) Layla/ Layla Part 2 (Polydor 2058 263, 1972)

Eric Clapton Tulsa Time/ Cocaine (RSO POLY 81, 1980)

Everyone now knows the Layla soap opera story concerning Slowhand's obsession with Patti Boyd, Hari Georgeson's wife, but back in 1972 I had no access to hindsight so my reaction to Layla was purely on a musical level.

And back in 1972 the guitar riff was king! This is one of the best and most easily recognisable riffs in all of rockdom. Air guitar glory!

The NZ version of this single dispenses with the Derek and The Dominos thing, probably due to incompetence, and tells it like it is - Clappers back in form and control. Little did I know how wrong that impression was but I wouldn't have cared anyway back in the day. Pre social media, it was all about the music maan.

Tulsa Time is Clapton in laid back mode. Nuff said. I have no idea why I own this single.

Hidden gems: The Layla B side is the slow coda to the song and on its own without the rip snort bust of the first part it's pretty anaemic as a B side.

Cocaine is well known. It's a great loping song but I've always been disturbed by the lyric which seems to advocate for the drug. Unlike Jackson Browne's song about cocaine (now I'm losing touch with reality and I'm almost out of blow) there appears to be no irony in J J Cale's song. She don't lie? Really?? On its own it may have a case but repeated again and again throughout the song?
Nope.