Eric Charden

A four-disc box set spanning Eric Clapton's entire career – running from the Yardbirds to his '80s solo recordings – Crossroads not only revitalized Clapton's commercial standing, but it established the rock & roll multi-disc box set retrospective as a commercially viable proposition. Bob Dylan's Biograph was successful two years before the release of Crossroads, but Clapton's set was a bona fide blockbuster. And it's easy to see why. Crossroads manages to sum up Clapton's career succinctly and thoroughly, touching upon all of his hits and adding a bevy of first-rate unreleased material (most notably selections from the scrapped second Derek and the Dominos album). Although not all of his greatest performances are included on the set – none of his work as a session musician or guest artist is included, for instance – every truly essential item he recorded is present on these four discs. No other Clapton album accurately explains why the guitarist was so influential, or demonstrates exactly what he accomplished.

A compendium of Eric Bibb's best recordings from the past decade. 50 tracks, 3 CD's, three hours and twenty minutes of outstanding music. Considering the high level of quality that any Eric Bibb album has, one can imagine how exciting a collection of his favourite tunes, recorded between 2003 and 2013, would be! Here it is - The crown jewels indeed! As a bonus, Bibb re-recorded three especially cherished songs : a brilliant conclusion to the third CD.
New York singer/songwriter and guitarist at the forefront of the 1990s country-blues revival.
Eric Bibb is an American roots music singer, songwriter, and guitarist whose sound exists at the crossroads of Delta blues, American folk, pre-war gospel, and retro-soul…

Eric Clapton's eponymous solo debut was recorded after he completed a tour with Delaney & Bonnie. Clapton used the core of the duo's backing band and co-wrote the majority of the songs with Delaney Bramlett – accordingly, Eric Clapton sounds more laid-back and straightforward than any of the guitarist's previous recordings. There are still elements of blues and rock & roll, but they're hidden beneath layers of gospel, R&B, country, and pop flourishes. And the pop element of the record is the strongest of the album's many elements – "Blues Power" isn't a blues song and only "Let It Rain," the album's closer, features extended solos. Throughout the album, Clapton turns out concise solos that de-emphasize his status as guitar god, even when they display astonishing musicality and technique.

The Cream of Eric Clapton is a strong collection that provides an excellent overview of one of rock music's premier performers. Though the title might imply that the selections here are from Clapton's recordings as a part of the British supergroup Cream, the range is much broader, beginning with Clapton's earliest professional work with the Yardbirds and concluding with many of his most popular solo hits. There's an excellent historical perspective in the choices included, and this is an excellent introduction to Clapton's career. Of particular historical interest are "Crossroads," "I Shot the Sheriff," and "Behind the Mask," which showcase the eclectic influences that form Clapton's career. Much of the increased mainstream interest in traditional blues, reggae, and electronica can be credited to these cover versions, which introduced the works of Robert Johnson and Bob Marley to a wider audience.

The History of Eric Clapton is a compilation double LP, released in 1972 by Polydor Records in the United Kingdom, and Atco Records in the United States. It features Eric Clapton performing in various bands between 1964 and 1970, including The Yardbirds, Cream, Blind Faith and Derek and the Dominos. The compilation is notable for helping Clapton's career when he was battling heroin addiction and making the song "Layla" famous. It is also notable for being perhaps the first compilation in rock music to collect music of a single rock musician that spans time, bands, music styles and record labels. The album cover picture was taken at George Harrison's Concert for Bangladesh while Clapton was playing "While My Guitar Gently Weeps" on a Gibson Byrdland hollow-body guitar.

By January 1973, Eric Clapton's career was going great guns as the result of compilations like History of Eric Clapton; the only problem was that Clapton himself was nursing a heroin addiction and hadn't been heard from since his August 1971 appearance at the concert for Bangladesh…