Record #0887: Hello Old Friend / All Our Pastimes – ERIC CLAPTON

RSO 861 (original), Canada, October 1976
Words & Music by:  Side A – Eric Clapton; Side B – Eric Clapton, Rick Danko
Musicians: Side A - Eric Clapton (lead vocals, lead guitar), GeorgeTerry (guitar), Carl Radle (bass on side A), Rick Danko (bass and vocals on side B), Jamie Oldaker (drums), Dick Sims (keyboards), Richard Manuel (keyboards on side B), Garth Hudson (keyboards on side B), Sergio Pastora Rodriguez (percussion on side A), Yvonne Elliman and Marcy Levy (backing vocals)
Recording sessions: Produced by Rob Fraboni at Shangri-La Studios, Malibu, CA in December 1975 – May 1976
Highest chart positions:  Side A – Canada #37, US #24, Australia #54, Japan #87; Side B – none

Both sides are from Clapton’s 4^th solo album, “No Reason To Cry” (RS-1-3004), which included an impressive roster of visiting musicians like George Harrison, Bob Dylan, Billy Preston and Ron Wood, plus three members of The Band.

"Hello Old Friend" was not originally expected to be a major single, yet it became Eric Clapton's highest-charting US solo hit since "I Shot the Sheriff" in 1974. It reached number 24 on the Billboard Hot 100 in late 1976.

During the exact same “No Reason to Cry” sessions that produced this single, George Harrison visited the studio and contributed guitar under the pseudonym "L'Angelo Misterioso." While he did not play on these two specific tracks, the chaotic, star-studded atmosphere of the sessions heavily influenced the relaxed sound of the single.

Both tracks were recorded at the famous Shangri-La studio in Malibu, California. The building was originally a luxury brothel in the 1950s before being converted into a home and recording studio by members of The Band in the 1970s.

List price: The median price at discogs.com is 4,50 €

 

Record #0886: Willie and the Hand Jive / Mainline Florida – ERIC CLAPTON

RSO 2090142 (original), Germany, October 1974
Words & Music by:  Side A – Johnny Otis; Side B – George Terry
Musicians: Side A - Eric Clapton (lead vocals, lead guitar), George Terry (guitar, backing vocals), Carl Radle (bass), Jamie Oldaker (drums, percussion), Dick Sims (keyboards, organ), Albhy Galuten (synthesizer), Yvonne Elliman and Tom Bernfield (backing vocals)
Recording sessions: Produced by Tom Dowd at Criteria Studios, Miami, FL in April – May 1974
Highest chart positions:  Side A – US #26, Canada #31, UK #55, Netherlands #28, Japan #99; Side B – none

This is the second single that was cut from the album “461 Ocean Boulevard”. It did “ok” but compared to “I Shot the Sheriff” it must have been a bit of a disappointment as a follow-up.

“Willie and the Hand Jive” was originally a 1958 hit by R&B pioneer Johnny Otis. While Eric Clapton's cover helped expose the song to a massive 1970s audience, Otis later stated in interviews that he strongly disliked Clapton's version. He felt that Clapton slowed the song down too much and completely missed the energetic, traditional "Bo Diddley beat" that made the original so infectious.

On “Mainline Florida”, the distinct guitar solo at the end was played by the song's writer, George Terry, rather than Clapton. To get that unique, biting tone, Terry used a then-revolutionary Dan Armstrong Orange Squeezer compression pedal plugged into a heavily driven amplifier. Clapton loved the sound so much that he happily stepped back and let Terry take the spotlight on the track.

List price: The median price at discogs.com is 2,50 €

 

Record #0885: I Shot the Sheriff / Give Me Strength – ERIC CLAPTON

RSO SO-500 (original, 2^nd pressings, Monarch pressing on the left and PL pressing on the right), USA, August 1974
Words & Music by:  Side A – Bob Marley; Side B – Eric Clapton
Musicians: Side A - Eric Clapton (lead vocals, lead electric guitar on side A, dobro on side B), George Terry (guitar, backing vocals on side A), Yvonne Elliman (backing vocals on side A), Carl Radle (bass), Jamie Oldaker (drums on side A), Al Jackson Jr (drums on side B), Dick Sims (organ), Albhy Galuten (piano)
Recording sessions: Produced by Tom Dowd at Criteria Studios, Miami, FL in April – May 1974
Highest chart positions:  Side A – US #1, Canada #1, UK #9, Australia #11, New Zealand #1, Norway #3, Finland #25; Side B – none

Both tracks were on Clapton’s second solo album, “461 Ocean Boulevard”, which was the address of the house, where he and his band lived at the time of the sessions. The house was rented for them by the CEO of RSO Records, Robert Stigwood.

While Bob Marley & The Wailers released the original reggae version in 1973, it was a niche underground hit. Clapton’s 1974 cover reached No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100, catapulting Marley’s songwriting into global stardom and introducing reggae music to a massive rock audience.

Clapton felt his cover was disrespectful to Marley's original and didn't think he did the reggae groove justice. He had to be heavily persuaded by his bandmates, particularly guitarist George Terry who first introduced him to Marley's music, to even include it on the album.

Although the record credit printed Eric Clapton as the sole writer of “Give Me Strength”, a gospel artist named Louise McCord filed a lawsuit claiming the song was a direct copy of her 1971 track "You Give Me Strength." The dispute was eventually settled out of court, and later pressings of the album had to be updated to credit McCord as the co-writer.

List price: VG+ is $2, NM $4