Derek & Dominos - Layla
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Free Music Notes for Layla
Free Music Review: One of the greatest albums ever!!!
Hit: 5 Stars
While everyone seems to know and love the song "Layla," it seems that few are familiar with the rest of the album on which it was featured. This album is a collection of amazingly good songs! It was probably a good thing that the group broke up shortly after this album was recorded, since they probably wouldn't have topped it, particularly in the absence of Duane Allman, who died only about a year or so later. Some things are just not meant to be followed...
Every song is a winner on this CD. It's not all straight blues or Cream-type jamming, which was all that Clapton was known for before this project. Rather, a lot of the songs are short, concise and catchy, more like the Beatles. No shortage of guitar solos, however, what with the prowess of Eric Clapton and Duane Allman joining forces!
The only complaint I have, and I might get flamed for this, is the sound. Tom Dowd was a legend, no question, and he engineered and produced plenty of great music in his illustrious career. However, looking back, I think this record could have sounded better. One problem I have is the guitar sound--kind of buzzy and thin, like when you plug in direct to a tape machine, bypassing a miked amp. Every hardcore fan of Eric and Duane knows the story behind both these guys walking in with little Fender Champ amplifiers and sitting down beside them with the amps on a little table. Kind of amusing, but well, you can tell they're Fender Champs, all right. Puny sound! Hello, what happened to the idea of Marshall amps that Clapton himself started the craze for in 1965? I think Tom Dowd should have told those guys "OK, enough fooling around you two, now go get your Marshalls!" At that time, Hendrix and Led Zeppelin were laying down some tracks that sounded pretty amazing, especially Led Zeppelin I, so the drastic improvement in sound engineering between the 60's and 70's was already taking shape. A lot of the sound on this album is dry with not much reverb, giving it a "homemade" sound. And the thing that bugs me the most is the second before the second chorus of the title track. It seems that Dowd re-recorded the second chorus by "punching in" the vocals just a little too late, as I can hear the very beginning of the original "LAAYYY..." and then all of a sudden, a lot louder so the beginning of the "overwrite" track did not completely wipe out the original vocal track.
But OK, that's all nit-picking. I still love this album and consider one of the greatest and most underrated albums of the late 1960's. Clapton's solo material in the '70's rarely came close to the greatness of these songs. I'm sure his legendary burning desire for Patti Harrison fueled his passionate performances!
For hardcore fans of this album, I further recommend the deluxe box set that features plenty of guitar-heavy outtakes! ESSENTIAL!
Free Music Review: Clapton's best album
Hit: 5 Stars
The best. Well, along with "From The Cradle". Oh, and "Unplugged" is really great, too.
And don't forget "Eric Clapton's Rainbow Concert"!
Anyway, Eric Clapton wasn't really comfortable with the role of front man early on in his career, and so he hid behind the "pseudonym" of Derek and the Dominoes, supposedly wishing to escape the superstar expectation that sank Blind Faith.
He gathered the rhythm section from Delaney & Bonnie Bramlett's band, with whom he had just toured, and retreated to record this album, which still stands as his greatest achievement.
Along the way, spectacular slide guitarist Duane Allman was added, and having him as lead guitarist alongside Eric Clapton is every bit as great as you would have guessed.
Clapton and "the Dominoes" tear through the best, most consistent set of songs Eric Clapton has ever recorded with burning, intense emotion, laying down definitive electric renditions of Jimmy Cox's classic "Nobody Knows You When You're Down And Out" and Big Bill Broonzy's "Key To The Highway", and a great take on Jimi Hendrix's "Little Wing".
And even though more than half of the songs break the five-minute barrier ("Highway" is 9 1/2), the two guitarists rarely if ever come off sounding indulgent; they never play ten notes when three would have done the trick, and the arrangements are never less than superb.
There is barely a weak track on this superb record, which opens with the lovely rock ballad "I Looked Away", followed by one of Eric Clapton's best original songs, "Bell Bottom Blues", which features burning slide guitar from Duane Allman.
Other highlights include Billy Myles' "Have You Ever Loved A Woman", the superb classic blues "It's Too Late" by Chuck Willis, and the soulful two-guitar-blueprints "Keep On Growing" and "Tell The Truth", which were written with organist/pianist Bobby Whitlock who shares the lead vocals on a few tracks.
And then there's the magnificent title track, of course, Eric Clapton's longing ode to "Layla", i.e. George Harrison's wife Patti (Boyd) Harrison, with whom Clapton was desperately in love.
Ironically, considering what a personal album this was for Eric Clapton, the lovely acoustic coda "Thorn Tree In The Garden" is a solo performance by Bobby Whitlock, but it sums up the entire record perfectly.
Filled with excellent songs and superb musicianship, "Layla" is a must-have for any and all lovers of...well, music, actually.
A collection of blues, rock, folk, and soul that Eric Clapton has never since been able to match, and one of the finest records of the seventies.
If Clapton had never made another record, his legacy would be secure based on this one alone. (Would he really rather be remembered for "Pilgrim"?!)
Free Music Review: The best album of all Clapton's career
Hit: 5 Stars
Despite being a real Cream fan, I've never subscribed to "Clapton is God" theory. However, Derek and the Domino's LAYLA AND OTHER ASSORTED LOVE SONGS is, I believe, one of the greatest rock albums of all time. The musicianship is absolutely incredible, the songs are amazing, and I think that it features Clapton's best blues playing of his career. I recently rebought this on CD. I had it on tape from when I was a kid, but I wore the darn thing out.
All of these are love songs; ballads, blues numbers, and straight out rock. Duane Allman plays rhythm guitar and backup vocals on many of the selections, and the effect on the energy is palpable. This is infectious rock and roll at its finest, played with a maturity and sincerity that I think is really hard to find anywhere else, and is listenable in any context. All the songs are complete and balanced; there is no self-indulgent excess here, and the band is tight. Although these are all love songs, the main reason why this album just plain WORKS is that there is no typical rock adolescent fixation on sexuality, and there is no hyper-sincere self-pitying narcissism that marks most rock love songs from the seventies and early eighties. Just look at the "monster ballads" for sale on late-night TV, and you understand that its only by our nostalgia and camp humor that bands like Journey still get by.
LAYLA totally transcends that. There is real content, real sincerity, and superb playing that takes this album to a higher level. Clapton's writing and arrangements are perfect. The covered tunes are great selections; various in style and translated perfectly by the band. Each song holds up on its own, and the album as a whole is unsurpassable. "I Looked Away" starts out right away with a straight forward, tightly played song. "Bell Bottom Blues" is a classic in its own right; Clapton, no great singer by any measure, nails this one. The 9+ minutes "Key to the Highway" is a great blues romp that is never tedious. "Why Does Love..." is a frantic balls-out jam. The cover of Hendrix's "Little Wing" almost makes for an off-note with its pretentious intro, but having two singers and great guitar solos makes it a wonderful tribute to Jimi. "Layla" of course is the one everyone knows, a 7-minute song with the 4-minute ending; a glorious excess. My personal favorite, however, is the last tune: Bobby Whitlock's solo "Thorn Tree in the Garden," which is so soulful and elegant I wish it were more well-known.
Almost have the songs are over 6 minutes. Altogether the album is almost 78 minutes. So quantity and quality all come together here. This is definitely a must-have. Clapton's best work. It'll liven you up on the sunny days and get you through the rainy ones.
Free Music Review: Passion, Brilliance, Perfection
Hit: 5 Stars
What can I say about this album that hasn't already been said by most of the reviewers here? This is a stone-cold, front-to-back masterpiece, easily in my Top 10 Desert Island Discs. Combining Clapton and Duane Allman, both at the absolute peak of their abilities and teaming them with a phenomenally tight and soulful group of musicians produced this staple of classic rock.
The sad thing is, a lot of casual listeners don't know anything of this album past "Layla" and "Bell Bottom Blues". I was one of these until I got the album in my 'free' CDs from BMG about 13 years ago. I was completely floored at the stunning passion in this music. They ease you in with the mellow shuffle of "I Looked Away" before the passionate, gut-wrenching "Bell Bottom Blues" - "Do you want to see me crawl across the floor to you?! Do you want to hear me beg you to take me back?!" Clapton howls in a fit of unrequited love. Brilliant. Up next is one of my favorite tracks on the record, "Keep On Growing", a rollicking, up-tempo, shuffling stomper with a fantastic shared lead vocal between Clapton and Bobby Whitlock punctuated by Clapton and Allman's fiery dueling solos. 6:22 passes like 10 seconds when you are bathed in this orgy of fiery guitars. Amazing. In fact, Clapton and Whitlock team up on several of the albums best tracks, including the absolutely blazing "Why Does Love Got To Be So Sad?" and the pleading urgency of "Anyday". "Key To The Highway" is an old blues standard covered by just about everyone under the sun, but the version here may be the best of all time, with the band locked into a barrel-tight yet still relaxed groove while Allman and Clapton push each other to the max, trading licks and solos, almost silently daring each other to top the last. Their emotional reading of Hendrix's "Little Wing" FAR outshines Jimi's original. (Sorry Hendrix fans, but it's true._ The only version I've heard that comes close to this is Stevie Ray Vaughan's haunting instrumental take on it. Another blues chestnut, "Have You Ever Loved A Woman", conveys the theme of this album (Clapton's secret passion for George Harrison's wife, Patti) as well as any of the original tracks. You can hear the pain in Eric's voice as he tears through the lines - "Have you ever loved a woman, so much you tremble in pain? All the time you know, she bears another man's name..." Clapton's soloing on this track is fiery, dirty, raw, and nasty. This isn't all the tunes here ( I didn't even mention the title track, as everyone is familiar by now...)
Bottom line - rock fans, blues fans, Clapton fans, Allman fans, GUITAR fans. BUY THIS ALBUM Music Review: Clapton-Allman Masterpiece
Hit: 5 Stars On the surface this album looks like not much more than an extended drug-inspired jam session by five strung-out session musicians. But delving further into it you quickly realize the story and the inspiration behind this masterpiece.
In case you were born yesterday, this album is the cover for Clapton's then-obsession with Pattie Boyd (a.k.a. Layla) who was married to George Harrison at the time. The album chronicles Clapton's love affair with Pattie and the depression and drug addiction that ensued as a result. Out of all of this came surely the greatest 77 minutes of his career and some of the absolute greatest guitar work of all time. After the 'Layla Sessions', Clapton spiraled downward into a serious, three-year depression and heroin addiction which nearly ended his life.
Enter Duane Allman. In his short career, this man became the quintessential slide guitar player with a style that 30+ years later has not been matched. His contributions to this album are enormous. He only lived one full year after this album was released, but his impact on Derek on the Dominos was enormous. The title track 'Layla' contains some of the most haunting slide and lead guitar harmonies EVER recorded. The slide harmonies in the second half of Layla are seminal. Allman's harmonies literally 'cried' the pain that Clapton was living through this song. I am still amazed to this day how Tom Dowd captured the exponential magic of these five musicians so flawlessly. The album would be worth five starts on that one song alone.
But there is so much more. Most of the songs in one way or another explore the hopelessness that Clapton faced in his obsession with Pattie. 'I looked Away' is a formidable opener to the set - perhaps Clapton realizing his lost opportunity to have her. 'I Am Yours' and 'Anyday' and are touching ballads with acoustic and electric harmonies that blend perfectly. Perhaps most interesting though is Clapton's classic remake of Hendrix's 'Little Wing'. In 'Little Wing', he places Layla on the immortal pedestal that becomes his own undoing. 'Thorn Tree in the Garden' (written by Bobby Whitlock for Clapton) is the bittersweet farewell to the love that he knows he cannot have. It's like a eulogy for her - knowing she is gone. "And if I never see her face again, I never hold her hand. And if she's in somebody's arms, I know I'll understand... But I miss that girl. I still miss that girl. Maybe someday soon, somewhere."
Sadly, Clapton's darkest days produced his finest work. Listen to this album and you will understand.