Eric Clapton is and was a genius. But there is a thing about that genius.
Some people say that Clapton is like coffee: it's no good without Cream.
To which I say, you just have to have Blind Faith.
But the truth is, that Eric Clapton, at his late-60s peak, was a band player.
He was great as an individual, but far, far better as a part of a greater whole.
Far, far better as part of a great band.
And a few of those bands struck magic, and it is no coincidence that so many of Eric Clapton's late-60s early 70s bands struck magic, time and time again.
And two of those bands struck such a deep, glorious, sublime magic!
Bands that were, collectively, every bit the equal even to Jimi Hendrix himself!
Bands that even The Beatles and The Beach Boys would be awed by!
And that was Cream and Blind Faith, bands that were responsible for at least 3 albums that stand alongside the likes of Sgt. Pepper's and Beethoven's 9th.
Legendary, incredible albums.
If you are new, I suggest that you start with Cream's Disraeli Gears, and then move on to Wheels of Fire and Blind Faith. All three are incredible.
And just to prove that Eric Clapton was a band player, the other track that stands against any of those is his track with The Beatles, George Harrison's While My Guitar Gently Weeps.
And the other thing about Eric Clapton is that after the early 70s, he no longer had the energy or the interest to keep up the Cream-Blind Faith-Derek and the Dominoes career, and devoted his time to something completely different that he also did very well that is just very, very different from his Cream-Blind Faith years.
And as part of that career, he discovered Bob Marley and Reggae and brought it to the world.
And that is legendary too!
Thank you, Eric!
God loves you!
Sincerely,
David S. Annderson