Ciao e Poi Eric Berne

Bassist Eric Revis typically has so many ideas in play that it's virtually impossible for him to limit himself to one ensemble at a time. This is one of the reasons why he's used a variety of groups over the years to deliver his music. His trio with pianist Kris Davis and drummer Andrew Cyrille released City of Asylum (Clean Feed) in 2013, and then another iteration of the trio, Crowded Solitudes (Clean Feed) in 2016, with Gerald Cleaver taking over the drum chair. His quartet project makes excellent use of tenor saxophonist Bill McHenry and altoist Darius Jones, and adds drummer Chad Taylor to the mix: see 2014's In Memory of Things Yet Seen (Clean Feed). Another version of the quartet swapped Jones and McHenry for Davis and saxophonist Ken Vandermark, on 2017's Sing Me Some Cry (Clean Feed). And then there are his many collaborations with other artists, not the least of which was his appearance on Branford Marsalis' excellent 2019 album, The Secret Between the Shadow and the Soul (Marsalis Music).

Now, here's a star-crossed album. Polydor rejected the first version of it, produced by Glyn Johns, and Eric Clapton was forced to cut it all over again with Tom Dowd. Then, a few dates into a U.S. promotional tour coinciding with its release, Clapton collapsed and was found to be near death from ulcers due to his alcoholism. Finally, it turned out to be the final record of his 15-year association with Polydor, which therefore had no reason to promote it. Nevertheless, the album made the Top Ten, went gold, and spawned a Top Ten single in "I Can't Stand It." And the rest of it wasn't too shabby, either.