I've heard this album was a bit of a recording departure for Clapton. He and his engineers and producers apparently took creative license via studio trickery.

I've studied Slowhand's playing style for decades, and I've always had a nagging feeling that the solo to "One Chance" was a cut-and-paste job.

I know a lot of solos are, but this sounds like stuff was thrown together, collage-style, and the result is what we hear on the album.

Anyone know for sure? And, if you can hear what I'm getting at, lemme know.

Thanks.

carlcranshaw said:

"... Simon is a genius at that stuff. He can construct a solo from a bunch of different takes, and I'll listen to it and say, "That's really good." But in my heart, I don't quite believe it. I admire it, but I don't believe it."

That's my take on it, too...

Thanks, man!

Having heard some of Clapton's improvised solos, it wouldn't surprise me if he used cut and paste solos on his records..

Sorry, I'm just not a fan!

I bought Joe Bonamassa's new DVD (Live At The Royal Albert Hall) this week and Clapton guests on "Further On Up The Road" - Bonamassa blows him off the stage, he's SO much better!

rocknrolldave said:

That's fine. I am a fan of EC's, and "One Chance" always seemed suspect to me.

never heard the song/album, but I will say Clap has got to be thee most overrated guitarist of all time.

abigail05 said:

Absolutely agree there. Another poster mentioned Joe Bonamassa, now there's a great guitar player. Someone played me his cover of Led Zeppelin's Tea For One and i was floored. It's incredible and surpasses the original.

WildheartXXX said:

I'm not familiar with JB, beyond the duet with Clapton someone mentioned here earlier.

Clapton might be overrated, but he's a master in his genre.

I mean, I think Prince is an overrated soloist (especially in recent years), but that wouldn't stop him from wiping the stage with me if we had a guitar battle.

ThreadBare said:

Terry Kath was the best i have ever heard hands down, despite having a short lived career before his death, this guy was doing shit that made Hendrix go "damn i need to improve" Kath was never given props, much like his band was never given the merit deserved.

clapton overrated yeah right
listen to this video:
http://www.clevver.com/mu...-live.html

Clapton here plays with such urgency and fire

thats live rendation of my fathers eyes

A kewl player. The late Shawn Lane.

he CAN play them though. isn't it quite customary to take the best takes of any part on a major label record?

lastdecember said:

Not the best i've ever heard, but he was very good for the time period.

Regarding Hendrix, he reportedly said to CTA's manager at the time (James Guercio), "You know I am pretty good but this cat blows me away."
And to CTA saxophonist Walter Parazaider, "Your guitar player is better than me."

Jimi thought enough of the group, after hearing them at the Whisky A Go Go (Los Angeles), to take them on tour as an opening act in 1968.

Terry Kath wrote a tribute to Hendrix on the Chicago VIII album (Thank You Great Spirit).


tA

Tribal Disorder

http://www.soundclick.com...dID=182431

ThreadBare said:

A few years ago I saw Joe Bonamassa as the opening act for a show Robben Ford headlined.
Very good player. Joe had one of the best bridge pickup Les Paul tones i've heard.

Ford's group included Michael Landau as the second guitarist (no slouch himself).


tA

Tribal Disorder

http://www.soundclick.com...dID=182431

Cinnie said:

yaoming? once he hits the stage he can play it... that's just a different way of writing a solo

theAudience said:

Indeed, Landau's a GREAT player. tA! What's happenin', mayne!!!

ThreadBare said:

Busy as hell.
Hoping all is well with you.

Here's a couple of other guitarists whose new material i've been listening to lately that you'd probably dig (Wayne Krantz & Oz Noy)


tA

Tribal Disorder

http://www.soundclick.com...dID=182431

To keep this from being a "Rag on Clapton" thread. Here are two clips of Eric and Jeff playing together.

In the first one Jeff kicked Eric's butt.



In this this one Clapton fares much better with a beefier tone and his playing sounds good. Jeff in 2009 isn't "playing" quite as much a he used to. It's mostly whammy bar stuff and it's sometimes disjointed. Stuff by Jeff like "Nadia" and "A Day In the The Life" sound good.

I prefer his Bluesbreaker (Les Paul-Marshall combo)...



...Hideaway & Steppin' Out



Cream (SG-100 watt Marshall stacks) sound....





...I Feel Free, Strange Brew, Swlabr & Sitting On Top Of The World


I would've prefer to have included Politician and Badge in the Cream set but the studio versions weren't available on YouTube.



tA

Tribal Disorder

http://www.soundclick.com...dID=182431

Clapton with the Gibson sounds way better than his Strat tones. If he still wants to use a Strat I don't see why he doesn't slap a humbucker in it.




[Edited 10/5/09 4:51am]

The Lace Sensor pickups in his signature model are stacked humbuckers, if I'm not mistaken.

thebanishedone said:

I don't hear any "urgency" or "fire" in there myself, just a middle-aged mam sounding like a middle-aged man.

The solo does sorta sound like it was put into a sampler/keyboard somewhat, but more to the point, the track "Circus", clearly rips the melody from Dire Straits' excellent track "Love over gold".

I cant find the studio version of "Circus", but this MTV unplugged version sounds roughly the same:



Now unfortunately, I cant find the album version of 'Straits "Love over gold" either, and this live version is a), no way near as good as the album version and b), is harder to spot the "Steal".:-



Listen around 2:53 mark. Its not a sample, but its clearly a steal somewhat. Not a huge deal mind and its hard to compare them off these 2 live versions, but the little excerpt of Mark's solo around the 2:53 mark onwards, is repeatedly used as the melody for "Circus". Anyone else see it?


Anyway, not a huge fan of that album, but "broken hearted" is one of my all time favs. Cool to see producer Simon Climie went on to do other things after the short lived Climie Fisher duo.
[Edited 10/7/09 17:26pm]