Wednesday, September 08, 2004
John Mayall & The Bluesbreakers - Bluesbreakers with Eric Clapton
It's only just occured to me that this could be tricky. There are many albums I have that I know very little about - they've just been recommended to me or I've bought them on impulse. This is particularly true with some of my earlier purchases, when I was starting to broaden my horizons and I'd vaguely heard that such-and-such would be a worthy purchase.
So Bluesbreakers found its way onto my shelves. I'm not even a huge fan of blues music. I mean, I don't dislike it, but it's not something I actively collect or rave about, either. It's just passed me by, that's all. But that's no excuse for not being able to present a quality album, and even a non-blues fan can see that this is a very fine selection indeed.
This record is frequently cited as the finest and most influential British blues collection of all time. It's not difficult to see why; the first-class line up, the quality of their musicianship and the soul with which they play are all so evident. In tackling a mixture of standards and self-penned works, John Mayall's group show effortlessly that white men can play the blues. British white men at that, too. It proved an eye-opener to many budding artists in this country at the time.
For me, the interest lies with the addition of Eric Clapton. The album slotted in between Clapton's first stint with the Yardbirds and his progression with Cream. It was the key stepping stone in his career. His guitar playing is so effortlessly smooth and soulful, it's difficult not to smile. And when he takes on vocal duties on "Rambling On My Mind", you can clearly see how he went on to achieve the status he did.
So there you go. No in-depth lyrical analysis, no critique of the musical progressions in Clapton's riffing, no argument, really. Pure and simple statement of the fact - just like the music.
So Bluesbreakers found its way onto my shelves. I'm not even a huge fan of blues music. I mean, I don't dislike it, but it's not something I actively collect or rave about, either. It's just passed me by, that's all. But that's no excuse for not being able to present a quality album, and even a non-blues fan can see that this is a very fine selection indeed.
This record is frequently cited as the finest and most influential British blues collection of all time. It's not difficult to see why; the first-class line up, the quality of their musicianship and the soul with which they play are all so evident. In tackling a mixture of standards and self-penned works, John Mayall's group show effortlessly that white men can play the blues. British white men at that, too. It proved an eye-opener to many budding artists in this country at the time.
For me, the interest lies with the addition of Eric Clapton. The album slotted in between Clapton's first stint with the Yardbirds and his progression with Cream. It was the key stepping stone in his career. His guitar playing is so effortlessly smooth and soulful, it's difficult not to smile. And when he takes on vocal duties on "Rambling On My Mind", you can clearly see how he went on to achieve the status he did.
So there you go. No in-depth lyrical analysis, no critique of the musical progressions in Clapton's riffing, no argument, really. Pure and simple statement of the fact - just like the music.
# posted by Sam : 23:07
