Can you believe Eric Clapton is 80 today? Proof that heroin addiction and alcoholism needn’t shorten your life!
Obviously given his long life, there have been, what we will euphemistically call ‘issues’ with race and abuse along the way. Rock Against Racism being at least partly formed to challenge his embarrassing racist drunken rant on stage. Something he has since said is ‘humiliating’. And there have been other things.
But let’s face it, can you imagine what it’s been like being him for 80 years? Not to excuse the worst of it for a minute, but it’d be surprising if it didn’t drive you bonkers. In what other walk of life does someone like him… or anyone, have a 120 million pound fortune while being a drunk or smack head?
And more remarkable, I would argue, is that he hasn’t released an even, excellent album since the brilliant 461 Ocean Boulevard 51 years ago, though I have them all released on vinyl. I do like EC Was Here and Just One Night.
I can’t think of anyone else who had 10 genre, epoch-making years and then a half century of just alright. Because from the Yardbirds to 461, it’s all brilliant, whether with John Mayall, Cream, Delaney and Bonnie, Blind Faith and Derek and the Dominos (spelled wrong), it’s all fantastic. I recently played the Blind Faith record and marvelled at how good it was. I mean Presence Of The Lord is brilliant. His first solo album is probably his best solo effort. Songs like Let It Rain, Blues Power and After Midnight are stone cold classics and are some brilliant playing.
The BBC also had an Old Grey Whistle Test concert from 1978 with Marcy Levy and Yvonne Elliman, which featured some excellent playing. The version of Tell The Truth was especially good. I saw him live around this time and he refused to play Layla, which I was glad about being already over familiar with the song. I also had a cassette of a radio broadcast gig from Texas. Still got it, actually. Live he was excellent, though when I saw him, obviously very drunk. How do you play drunk? I can’t even walk!
Clapton was one of my earliest rock heroes and those early records were never off my turntable and helped me understand what blues rock was and where it came from.
