Clapton: A Differing View

I dunno.... I think Eric Clapton must have found some sort of goofer dust somewhere that blunts serious critical thinking. Michael Ventre's article (linked in the last post here) is one of those fuzzy paeans that EC seems to be good at getting. The decidedly hyperbolic, if not blasphemous, "Clapton is God" is an example of his knack, or luck, in getting the desired public perception.

All musical success stories contain a significant amount of "in the right place at the right time"-- but I think Clapton's does even more so. He was British at a time when you got twenty extra points for being British, & he was in with some good guys. "Disreali Gears" & "Wheels Of Fire" were Cream albums, not Clapton albums-- & I would say that he was "the third of three" in that group, whose propulsive energy and vocal coloration came mostly from the other two guys, Ginger Baker & Jack Bruce. But he played the guitar, the emblematic instrument of the rock genre, & went on to greater post-Cream success than his band mates.

"From The Cradle" was panned by some critcs as a mediocre note-for-note album of blues covers, though those reviews seemed to go largely unnoticed. A leading Philadelphia music critic cited its lack of appeal when he gave an unfavorable review to "Me & Mr. Johnson" as well.

I think Clapton is at his best with straight-ahead songs like "My Father's Eyes" & at his weakest when he tries to be a Delta bluesman. He is certainly talented & has some good songs, but he seems to have something else going for him as well.