Monthly Archives: August 2016

The album, which was recorded March 15, 2007, at San Diego’s iPayOne Center, features several appearances—and compositions—by JJ Cale. At the time, Clapton and Cale—Clapton’s buddy and mentor—were casually supporting their recent studio effort, 2006’s Road to Escondido.

“This is the realization of what may have been my last ambition: to work with the man whose music has inspired me for as long as I can remember,” Clapton said of Road to Escondido in 2006. Cale died July 26, 2013.

Other featured performers include Derek Trucks—who handles the late Duane Allman’s slide parts on the album’s Derek and the Dominos tunes—plus Doyle Bramhall II and Robert Cray, who guests on “Crossroads.” Trucks also is heavily featured on “Motherless Children,” and it’s downright fun to watch Clapton and Trucks open up their bottomless bags of tasty slide licks in the clip below.

From a personal standpoint, Clapton’s 2007 backing band was his best ever (as a solo artist). As heard on Live in San Diego, their versions of Derek and the Dominos tracks—especially “Tell the Truth”—are unparalleled.

The original version of “Motherless Children,” one of the strongest opening cuts on a Clapton album since Cream’s Wheels of Fire, features Clapton on slide guitar, and it burns from the get-go. The song, which finds the guitarist delivering a playful variation of the melody during the twin guitar solos, was arranged by Clapton and his Derek and the Dominos band mate bassist Carl Radle. The song also features fine playing by second guitarist George Terry and drummer Jamie Oldaker.

Live in San Diego will be available September 30 as a two-disc CD, a three-disc vinyl set and as a digital album. If you pre-order the album at ericclapton.com, you’ll receive “Anyway the Wind Blows” (watch it here) immediately, plus two additional songs before the album’s release date. The album also is available for preorder via iTunes.

Eric Clapton, Live in San Diego Track Listing

“Tell the Truth”
“Key to the Highway”
“Got to Get Better in a Little While”
“Little Wing”
“Anyday”
“Anyway the Wind Blows”
“After Midnight”
“Who Am I Telling You?”
“Don’t Cry Sister”
“Cocaine”
“Motherless Children”
“Little Queen of Spades”
“Further on Up the Road”
“Wonderful Tonight”
“Layla”
“Crossroads”

I first saw Doyle play on the DVD Sessions for Robert J., which is also an album that Eric Clapton put out in 2004.  I saw this guy playing slide, left handed, on a right handed strat, upside down, with the strings strung backwards (look at the photo above).  I’d never seen anyone play like that.  The heavy strings are on the bottom and the light strings are on the top.  The only other person that I had heard of who played like this was Albert King (one of the three Kings – BB King, Albert King and Freddie King).

I saw Doyle play at the Bull Run restaurant in Shirly, MA (the place is fantastic and only 45 minutes away).  He was absolutly on fire that night.  He’ll be playing Portland, ME soon as well as Tupelo Music Hall in Londonderry, NH later this year.  His latest album, “Rich Man” will be released later in September.  I can’t wait to hear it…

“Rich Man,” the album’s title track, says Bramhall, “is about living for the day, recognizing it’s all we have and finding strength and personal spirituality. It’s about gratitude for spiritual and personal peace.” It also plays on the word “lowly”: “It has a dual meaning. It expresses the difficulty in achieving spiritual peace and gratitude, and represents getting close to the earth and the truth of who you are as a human being- in that state, you have everything you need.”

Here is a video that I love of Doyle playing “Cry”, featuring Alice Smith…

Matt Becker

Live from Matt’s House