Eric W. Pireyre

It appears that Eric Clapton had more Robert Johnson in his blood than he thought – or perhaps it was planned this way…

Following Eric Clapton's recovery from heroin addition in 1974 and subsequent comeback (announced by 461 Ocean Boulevard), the guitar legend retained his fine band and toured extensively, and this live album is a souvenir of that period. Despite having such pop-oriented hits as "I Shot the Sheriff," E.C. Was Here makes it clear that Clapton was and always would be a blues man…

Esoteric Recordings is pleased to announce the release of a new boxed set featuring all of the albums recorded by Eric Burdon & The Animals for the MGM Records label issued between October 1967 and December 1968.
The set features the albums “Wind Of Change” (both stereo and mono versions), “The Twain Shall Meet”, “Everyone Of Us” and “Love Is”, all newly re-mastered from the original master tapes, along with ten bonus tracks drawn from the band’s single releases, including the classic B-sides A Girl Named Sandoz, Ain’t That So and Gratefully Dead, all remastered from recently located original master tapes. Also included is an illustrated booklet with new essay and a replica poster. “When I Was Young: The MGM Recordings” is a fine tribute to the music of Eric Burdon & the Animals…

Disregard the title of this 2007 compilation: there is no way that any double-disc (or 4 LP), 36-track set could be called The Complete Clapton, not when Eric Clapton has had a career that's spanned over four decades. This doesn't even attempt to cover as much ground as his landmark four-disc 1988 box set Crossroads, which began with his first band the Yardbirds and then followed his winding journeys through John Mayall's Bluesbreakers, Cream, Blind Faith, Delaney & Bonnie, and Derek & the Dominos before settling into his solo records. Of course, The Complete Clapton covers the nearly 20 years that have elapsed since the release of Crossroads, a time frame which includes the blockbuster success of his 1992 Unplugged, its all-blues 1994 follow-up From the Cradle, and many soft adult contemporary hits from the late '90s…

Although he is universally considered among the most important figures in rock & roll, Eric Clapton has not had consistent success in translating his stature into record sales, partially because he is, in essence, a great blues guitarist rather than a great pop/rock singer/songwriter..

The 1984 two-disc compilation Backtrackin' is an ambitious attempt to offer an overview of Eric Clapton's then 20-year career, divided into four separate themes, two per CD. The first disc is devoted to Singles and History and the second to Classics and Live…

Pilgrim is the thirteenth studio album by Eric Clapton, released in 1998. The album was recorded at Olympic Studios in London in late 1997. Pilgrim's release marked Clapton's first album of original material since 1989's Journeyman. Reviews for Pilgrim were mixed upon release. Allmusic described the album as "bland", while Rolling Stone's David Wild gave it four out of five stars, stating, "Pilgrim is the work of someone who has learned in the hardest way imaginable that although he cannot change the world, he might be able to change himself." The album experiments with drum machines and certain sounds like synthesizers, guitars, strings reminiscent of R&B. The song "Pilgrim" also appears on the Lethal Weapon 4 soundtrack. Four tracks of this album were included on the One More Car, One More Rider album of 2001.

Crossroads was a box set that appealed to both beginners and fanatics. Crossroads 2: Live in the Seventies only appeals to fanatics. Spanning four discs and consisting almost entirely of live material (there are a handful of studio outtakes), this is music that will only enthrall completists and archivists. For those listeners, there is a wealth of fascinating, compelling performances here, as well as a fair share of mediocre, uninspired tracks…