ERIC CLAPTON PART 1: Eric Clapton's Journey Into Sobriety

So you may ask yourself why I'm choosing Journeyman for my first Eric Clapton album.  Of all the albums to choose of Eric's solo albums why would I choose a mediocre album as this.  Well, not so fast.  This is his comeback album and a great comeback one at that.  It gets a whopping four and half stars on AllMusic guide.  When it came out Rolling Stone gave it four stars and It was played constantly on Classic Rock radio.  When I did my internship at the local radio station I asked the DJ I worked with about it and he told me that this is one of his best albums in over ten years.  An instant classic he told me.

I remember going to the local record store with my hard earned chore money and picking out this album above all others.  I took the DJ recommendation and decided to hear the rest of the album for myself.  By the time I bought it two songs were spinning on the radio "Pretending" and "No Alibis" were pretty damn' good songs.  Eric's solos on each were crisp and clean.  His voice was in fine form and he looked great.  By the look at the videos he was actually having a great time being the God on guitar like every one said he was.  He could do no wrong.  He came to my hometown and toured and tore the roof off the local civic center for two nights in April of 1990.  I went with a friend and my dad.  It was my first and not my last Clapton show and it reached a high goal of trying to be topped by any artists I went to see at that time.  I yet to discover the smaller shows, but the arena shows were my concerts of choice.  I got a shirt and wore it proudly to school.  I told my friends that he may be "old" but he kicks ass.  A few friends I knew also went to the show and told my they were just as impressed as I was.  He was my guitar hero for a while and no one could knock him off the lofty pedestal I set up for him.

When I got Journeyman I wanted to get current with his music.  A year earlier I bought Crossroads.  Crossroads is a lavish career retrospective that started the Box Set craze.  Once it came out, every artist took advantage of four or so compact discs and added some unreleased material from their golden or not so golden era.  Clapton's box set was new to me, I heard his music in all the bands he was in, but his solo material at the time escaped me,  I did the next best thing, I waited and bought a greatest hits of the 70's and grabbed his Journeyman album a year later.  Finally I said I have fresh new material to listen to.  This will be great, or at least I would hope it would be.  It would be all new to me.

When I went to the store to pick up Journeyman the record store laughed at me because why would a snot nosed kid buy his newest offering.  "His early stuff is better," he said. I informed him I have Crossroads and that should make ME want to explore his older stuff. As any salesmen would do, he told me to come back when you have some idea what Clapton I should get next.  I think between the Box Set and the Cream albums and also Blind Faith I think I was covered for the most part.  I only wish I started backwards not forwards.  That wish was quickly extinguished when I heard "Pretending" the first solo cut off the album. I liked what I heard and that was good for me after all if the DJ I worked liked it then he knew something that the sales dude did not.

When I got home to play it I knew I made the right choice. It was dad approved because he recognized the songs we saw at the show.  Since I had an above average stereo the solos on the album caught the speakers to sizzle.  I liked that about it.  I also liked the album because it was longer then many albums that I had.  It kept me captivated for fifty-six minutes.  This compared to the latest Bob Dylan that I bought that only was half that length.  The music was well chosen and even had a great band playing behind him.  My only guess once Clapton go sober, they figured out that he is going to make a great album and he should have some help.  He has great musicians in the past, but when I looked at the CD this list went on and on.

Well what can I say, Journeyman is an incredible album from start to finish and I love it all. It may sound a bit dated or 80's sounding, but to me it's fresh and vintage.  I love it, his fans love it and Clapton himself said this is one of his favorite albums in his career.  It might not have the "classic" feel like Slowhand, 461 Ocean Blvd, or his self titled, but once you hear it you will understand that this is up there will all those.  One bit of advice if you are like me, start with this and hear how focused he is and then go back to the early albums.  You will thank me later I promise.  Enjoy!