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Saw this on iPlayer yesterday and if you haven't seen it then do so, regardless of if you like the music or not it is an amazing story.
I never knew what he had experienced, and the speed in which he did it(the first 10 years must have been a blur!)
One of the best documentaries I've seen I think.
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I suggest that, for a brief period, Clapton was innovative insomuchas he was one of the very first recording artistes to plug a Gibson Les Paul Standard into a cranked Marshall amplifier. He had studied American electric Blues sufficiently to convince audiences unfamiliar with the genre that he had some authenticity.
In my opinion, Clapton's less studious immediate contemporaries, in failing to clone Albert King and Buddy Guy, arrived at their own styles. Obvious exemplar, Peter Green. (Blues with feeling but not directly copying anyone else.)
For me at least this is the whole point.
I was familiar with the music of Clapton, not an expert by any stretch, but not a fan. Watching this documentary was all about the story, not the music.
In much the same way that if you read his autobiography, no tunes come out of it when you turn the pages.
The problem then would be, how do you represent these artistes? One concert or a compilation of live performances, segued together to create an impossibly good show? e.g. - The 2005 Cream Royal Albert Hall DVD or the Zappa "You Can't Do That Onstage Anymore" series. In the latter case, some of the titles are intercut performances, by different ensemble line-ups, from years apart.
I'm not familiar with the other program the BBC showed last night, but the problem with a video compilation of Clapton is that there's precious little footage of some of his best work, e.g. the Bluesbreakers and Derek and the Dominoes*.
So the Beeb will end up showing one clip of the Yardbirds, Cream miming to I Feel Free, a tiny bit of Crossroads from the farewell concert, then some clips of a bored and drunk Eric on Whistle Test and then a bored and drunk but smartly dressed Eric in the 80s at various multi artist events, then maybe some unplugged and Jools clips.
*There is the Johnny Cash TV show set on youtube, never seems to make it into the clip shows though....but that's without Duane
Sadness and tradgedy followed him (or he caused it) through much of his life, but other respected guitar players made special moments available to him over the years. Pete Townsend threw a concert to help him get off the booze at one stage.
I enjoyed the Documentry (again), not so much the Sunday Clapton at the BBC program.
Back then there were really only the NME and Melody Maker and the newspapers reporting things and "Eric being absent" didn't convey the full meaning of how absent he was. He was in a right state and the film gives much more content to that period.
Seeing the look of pain in his eyes when he sat on the couch after having his hair forceably cut and his guitar broken was painful to watch. His Mothers rejection and disdain for him must have been so very painful for him at that age when all he wanted was a Mother to love him.
No wonder he immersed himself obsessively with music.
I'm not much a fan of his music anymore as it's re-hashing "the blues" but I do have a great respect for what he has been through and the Man he has now become.
He's paid his dues and he's helping others that are paying theirs.