I learn of Clapton in Taiwan as was listening to Layla and I shot the sheriff in the ‘70s learning guitar from the few US military radio stations! Never grew tired of his playing and singing! 30 plus years and counting
@@CreamBootlegs I’m 19, and hear all the versions of steppin out almost always. Each version is truly magic, the improvisation is crazy good and those phrases.
@@CreamBootlegs yeah besides the obvious “sunshine of your love” steppin out and many of their other songs are just amazing that casuals don’t know. Check out their studio outtakes. There’s one here for “take it back” studio takes, it’s just Clapton and ginger playing. It Truly sounds amazing
In my opinion.......there has never been before or after this period another guitarist who can top Eric Clapton’s ability to fluidly play blues vocabulary over fast tempos such as this........NO ONE!!! Not Hendrix, not Page, not Stevie Ray Vaughan, not Mike Bloomfield, not Bonamassa, not Gary Moore, NO ONE.
This show was on April 5, 1968 at the Back Bay Theatre, which was the day after Dr. King was assassinated. There is no doubt that that event played into the intensity of this gig. This is some incredible playing, not just by Clapton, but by "The Cream" as a trio. I wish there were more of Cream's live gigs available (and, coming years, no doubt more will be discovered in attics and collections). I cannot imagine what this was like as a live experience.
also: I saw Cream in 67 and 68 in L.A. - I snuck a mini reel-to reel into the Farewell Concert and recorded the whole concert. Yes, Cream live was quite the transcendent experience if they were having a good night. A friend of my mom's stole the Cream tape. The concert is in YT - maybe it's my tape! L.A. Forum, farewell concert.
@@dennismason3740 Saw them about a dozen times in the 60's. One of the most memorable was at Staples High School in Westport, CT on a Wednesday night. We drove down from Colgate U. to see them in my hometown. They played for almost 3 hours, there was no warm up band, just Cream and nothin' else!! Also saw them in New Haven and the Fillmore East. They were the greatest rock fusion band of all time, never heard better jams.
I ve not heard this recording before but ive heard most vof his stuff on Vynal LP and seen Cream l8vr twice so thank you for posting this it clearly shows he was and really remains a tremendous force on electric guitar there are still guitarist trying tp sound like him today on 2024 wow thanks eric and thanks again for posting
RIP Jack Bruce. His bass playing was just "far-out" as we used to say at the time. I still need the Cream to get I don't know what and that is "far-out" too.
I believe Mr. Clapton was the first real guitar hero everybody including Jimi Hendrix looked up to. Mick Taylor told me himself how much Eric influenced him back then. When I first heard him in the 80s I didn't think he was great because I thought nobody was better than vanhalen. I dug a little deeper and discovered Cream and the blues breakers then I understood why they called him God in those days. If Robert Johnson could have lived to see Eric im sure he would have loved him.
+larkyleroy Van Halen is technically very good, but in my opinion, he can't touch the great English players. Clapton, Beck, Green, Taylor, Thompson, Page. These English guys have technique but the soul, intensity, tone and emotion just "drips" from they're fingers! also, Van Halen's tapping isn't even original - Harvey Mandel, a great American player, was doing it years before and, in my opinion, with ten times as much soul, emotion and tone.
+larkyleroy The irony about your Van Halen statement is Eddie says he has learned every solo Eric ever played with Cream ,all the live ones included note for note, (kind of a really brash thing to say really ) and knows he sounds nothing like Eric but its where he learned his phrasing, ...me I don't see it Eddie is not a blues player ,at least not on any Van Halen tunes I can recall. I loved Mick Taylors work too, according to Mayall Mick was lazier and took longer to develop while Green was pushy and trying to prove himself. Boy did he ever. 2nd in Blues depth and mastery only to Robert Johnson himself.
+Shem Su Hor Nephilim Since Van Halen has come up.....He did an album with Brian May called 'Star Fleet' I think. It was basically just blues jams. Side two was one long track called 'Bluesbreaker'! Just thought I'd mention it. Don't know if its on here. Or if its ever been released on CD?
avalanche344 It was just two great players fooling around with blues changes. None of it bore any relation to 'actual blues'! May was just the right age to be blown away by The Beano album when it first came out.
Clearly, this is the Clapton we admired in the late 60s. Hearing this, I once again understand my deep deception when seeing and hearing Clapton playing in London's Marquee Club in 1971 as "Derek" - with a Fender Strat and doin' the stuff from Layla.
I think after the 60s Clapton felt he had nothing to prove anymore as far as shredding on guitar so he went the other direction with his hippie friends and concentrated more on songs and songwriting. but I understand what you're saying people that thought that Clapton was going to form another "cream" and go on like that were sadly mistaken.
@Bob Smith :)))) Nope. Things are way more complex. You have to study more. I recommend you to begin with what is probably the best rock history book ever: www.amazon.com/Whats-That-Sound-Introduction-History/dp/0393624145 This will show you the next steps. Pleasant discovery travel and we are waiting for you on the other shore to join the tribe!
@Bob Smith "Don't judge a book by it's cover" Bo Diddley. When you will study more you'll find out that rock'n'roll is just a root of some more roots that the rock has. Please forgive me if sounded condescending. It is just knowledge.
There were many guitar "heroes" Clapton and Hendrix just took it to the next level. they took the Guitar Hero thing to superstardom. Indeed Eddie Van Halen cited cream as one of his biggest influences. He said he would spend hours trying to play Clapton solos note for note.
by the time cream ended, eric had been playing these high octane licks night after night for years. even filet mignon will taste like shit if you have to eat it at every meal for more than a week. after cream, he wanted to order something different from the menu. i can respect that.
+bmp-226 Bro you are totally right, it got too where Clapton Bruce and Baker wouldn't even hang out together and by this time he had become deaf in one ear from playing full volume in front of a couple marshall stacks (but usually just the one ,as 2 was just too loud he said) but he got too where he was wearing specialy designed ear plugs and he couldn't hear what he was playing ,and it got too where he was playing in weird traumatic kind of state and not really wanting to be there but having too and only really hearing in certain areas. yet . what Clapton did is , He Was The First to utilize the Les Paul and Marshal combo and crank it so it sustained and overdrived, its that old blues sound only louder. He would use the licks he hearned by the greats like Freddie and BB and Hubert and Albert and the part that would connect those licks would be him, and he was very fluid at improvising between maj and min pent lines and his beloved maj 3rd, He may play these Cream solos for 15-20 Minutes and of course after awhile you've exhausted every lick you know and are just repeating yourself (from Erics own mouth and very honest and true) but the thing is ,ive never really heard him boff a line , screw up a phrase or improvisation . And even though yes Peter Green is/was the best of the British Blues Guitarists (sheer emotional depth and fluidic mastery of his Dorian flavored Blues and gorgeous stinging Vibrato that only Kirwan and Kossoff can come close too, Green said that of all the Masters , Eric was his favorite) There is a reason why Eric 's style has changed , he also wanted to down play the guitar hero gunslinger thing of his early Blues Breaker and Cream days, and play more the role of accompanist or back up , and lower volumes and eventually the improvisations changed as well. as did the guitars , he had to change in order to survive I think , and while I'm not familiar with his more 70's type of albums ,I know regaurdless what ever Eric is playing the foundation is still the blues , whether its being played well or not is the real question & depends on him, but fuck, he's already done it all , and I'm indebted to his genius and love finding some old licks of his that are always resurfacing on the net..He was the First ,one of the top 3 ,and was the milestone by which all others were judged...
@@shemsuhornephilim7702 Great post, We knew and could see the tension in the band towards the end. - The Version of Spoonful on Wheels of Fire is the Gold Standard for great rock fusion music. They took rock and jazz to another level. - When genius musicians experiment, sometimes the results are mixed, but even "bad Clapton" is usually great music.
My friend, who I was standing next to, took the picture at 12:02 at the Grande Ballroom in Detroit. Those were the days - five feet from the stage. Great music from three great musicians.
The number has *ALWAYS COOKED* at the end and from 11:10 onward is NO exception. Eric’s speed and design precision on the fretboard is stunning. This Clapton madman style at this intensity would be COMPLETELY dismissed by late 1968. Gone, toast- finished. Blind Faith had some beautiful guitar sections and so did Layla. But the laid back Eric was now for Life. As much as we appreciated the 2005 RAH Cream reunion nothing on that stage even came close to the speed and genius of what we have here on Steppin’ Out. *I’m So Glad* at the LA FORUM on Goodbye Cream- not just speed although he had that definitely but taste and composition. End of an era I guess.
Oh goodness! I was there with my best friend Dick, brother Dan and another bloke and can relate this: Mr. Clapton broke a string on the painted SG so exchanged that for a brilliantly red Les Paul, which had a searing tone -brighter than the SG. It may be the Les Paul that's heard here. That would match my memory of the tone. Incredible show for youngsters who had never been introduced to improvisation! ("What's he doing? That's not like the record...") They opened with the theater curtain rising to reveal them as Sunshine of Your Love unfolded. I know they played Train Time. That was before Wheels Of Fire was released, and I believe the songs heard on Wheels Of Fire were recorded during this tour. Amazing stuff! Thank you for this splendid posting!!
Thats allegedly why he got the nick name 'slowhand'.....used to break a string when in the bluesbreakers and the audience would give a slow hand clap while he changed the string. .....shame how the youngsters of today have 'matured' to the obsession of X factor and pop idol
OspreyD40 - I was at this concert as well. I was thinking he started with a Les Paul and then played the SG for one tune? But my memory might be a bit off. :-) This was the first big concert I ever went to.
My recollection, from balcony toward the left is that the curtain was down, sounds of Sunshine Of our Love Began as the curtain rose. When Eric began to solo and it wasn't "like the record" I didn't know what to make of it. We were pretty innocent, hadn't heard rock musicians improvise. My clear impression is that he was playing his painted SG until he broke a string, then was handed a red Les Paul. I recall very clearly that I felt the Les Paul sound was significantly sharper and more piercing, in a very good way. I do not recall how long he played the Les Paul. He might have handed it off and returned to the SG when the broken string was replaced. I recall them doing Train Time which was later released on Wheels Of Fire. That also really struck me, since there wasn't anything quite like it on their two albums to date. Incidentally, anyone reading this who still has their "Dratleaf"-as-publisher vinyl Disraeli Gears LP's, and early Fresh Cream LP's should never let them go. (Avoid the "Nemperor" publisher Disraeli Gears LP's, because the sound was somewhat numb compared to the first-pressing Dratleaf ones.) In the digital transfers of Sweet Wine (as a gross example) actual notes have been scrubbed from Eric's soloing in the 'compression process to digital formats. Apple iTunes versions are awful for the musical information losses, and even the CD's have lost music in the transfer from vinyl to CD. Terrible!
Thank you for putting this on. Everybody is making comments about which guitarist was better, which ones influenced whom and so forth. Just listen ... listen to Clapton and Baker speaking to each other over a fairly long stretch, and all the other issues seem so ...
Me, too. That's why I thought "Hey, let's point it out so the music here is not forgotten over who's God on guitar or not". Sure appreciate letting us in. Much the best.
Hans Sieburg That's the problem in a nutshell. Nobody listens anymore, everybody goes by articles an list an what not. Nobody is above Cream, nobody, and I mean nobody, has their level of playing. I don't know one band who jams 10+ min all the time on their songs like Cream an who never play the same song the same way. I mean to jam for 10+ min all the time an keep that level of playing all the way through an keep you interested is an amazing feat, to say the least. Lastly, there's also a better version then this on UA-cam, much clearer an one hell of a jam.
@@pierstuson5909 They were,Yes. Seen them "Live " as a young musician. Jack was just the Power house that propelled them ,drew away w/ Vocals and pushed the limits of playing ,of Gingi and Erica.
@@CreamBootlegs You mean acid. But yeah, ALL three. If you play at all, check out Mike Brookfield and My Blues Guitar here on youtube. They do a lot of cream stuff and both channels do the bluebreakers album.
I'm fan of Eric Patrick Clapton from 35 years (since I was 15) and I did listen to several guitar players (Jimi, srv, page, Richie, pete and many others) but no one provide me the Eric's special sensations (various tones). For me Eric is something else
anyone looking for a teacher , someone to teach them the blues - this is all you will ever need... either you get it, or you don't ... that guitar solo was the history of the blues
It's a great version and Clapton is on fire, like he was for most of this period when he performed with Cream. But all of these people who post about "I've been following Eric for 50 years now" and never get tired of his playing are baloney. Clapton never played like this, post Cream. NEVER. Yes, he did jam with his own band and on occasion he would whip out the old reference to Cream but his days of jamming "a la cream" were over. The closest to jamming like Cream might have been with Derek and the Dominoes but that was a super brief episode of his life. Cream remains unique for Clapton.
I agree, most of Clapton,s post Cream stuff is a non starter for me, I saw Cream Live, Blind Faith and as a Solo act, and nothing compares with the Cream output. Solo's to a stratospheric level that he's never reached afterward, and understandably, he probably didn't want to, similar to Richie Blackmore tiring of the guitar slinger competition.
Abe Union pride brings back many memories but me and my son are going to see Mr Clapton in Dublin and London at rah it's my bucket list my son is Bernstein law also part owner of Ride em cowboy in St Pete Florida can't wait it's in May what a better way to see Mr Clapton then with your son very proud
I tell ya, when I hear stuff like this I really miss those Gibsons. I'm not saying you can't get a blues tone from a Strat because obviously you can, but EC's blues style seems to flower on a Gibson.
I saw them in the sixties, and realised immediately I probably might not make it to the top of the guitar playing profession! they were superb. I'd seen them all in different bands separately but together there was and never has been, anything quite like it.
yes Peter was great,,,a genius and a shining light in his time,,,a teacher ,,,and icon,,,a genius journeyman guitarist who still inspires us all to this day,,,,
To rvollin1935 Been playing guitar my whole life and Love Clapton in Cream/Mayall, hung with Peter & LOVED him AND Danny Kirwan in F Mac/PG in Mayall, but have also seen Hendrix and Jeff Beck and they are just Untouchable!!! Nobody comes close-opinion, but I am correct!
Today - you wouldn't even know it was the same player unless you saw with own eyes. Except for a few stylistic signature nuances, it's night and day from a passion energy and sonic view.
Some folks complaining about Eric changing musical directions from what he was doing with Cream. Hell, he did it already! What else was he going to do with it just keep playing the same stuff over and over? I love a lot of Eric's work since then especially Derek and the DOmino's. Yeah he never hit Cream height again but hell neither has anybody else.
Oh Well! Look at it this way, how wide is Eric's musical tastes? He is an Icon forever, an originator forever, a mentor forever, the establisher of THE marshall/gibson sustain sound of Rock, on and on and on, so what if he plays Lay Down Sally? He also has played Tears In Heaven, Pilgrim, on and on... now he is an Activist for Healing with his Crossroad Concerts! As for me, he has earned the right to play whatever he wants, some I like more than others but it all is from his heart!
@@MajesticMage Agreed. Although still a Gibson with humbucker pick-ups and I believe he also played an ES-335. You can see him playing the firebird with blind faith on UA-cam.
Everyone has their day ..getting old is not fun kids ....but if your lucky, it comes to all of us ...Yes, Eric was different back then ... but as he said the other day: 'I just can't play like I used to'...time and age has a way of creeping up on us .....all those beautiful guitar licks ...are just passing in the cosmos ...enjoy it while you can ...a survivor of the 60's ...
Clapton peaked out heavily at the end of the 60's - period. Even before Cream made their largest selling LP he never again played to the level he set when arriving from Mayall's Blues Breakers
+rickythik Didn't peak out - just changed directions - wanted to become a troubadour. He realized that the extended corrosive intensity was killing him. I've seen him in concert several times - all of a sudden he closes those eyes and just erupts into the most melodic, emotionally powerful, technically brilliant improvisational burst's I've ever heard. He doesn't always do it - it's too physically and emotionally demanding. When he does and you're lucky enough to be there, you realize he really is the greatest living guitar player- no b.s.
Everybody wanted to evolve. Jimi Hendrix wanted to do more jazz and classic stuff, but he was quite disappointed, because people wanted to see only psychedelic Hendrix, who burns his guitar :-) Eric evolved too, and in my opinion in great way ! his late 60s studio work, and his 70s strat work on layla album is great. He got softer then, but who carres, lay down sally, tears in heaven. God, he is so versaitlite, From the Cradle is great too.
I could have been at this show,, I was 14 and my friends father owned a record store and had tix. I disobeyed my parents on some stupid thing. They had warned me no show if I did. I found out that my father did not fuck around when he said something like that. Damn...
Great. For all i know, any digital amp preset labeled Hall Reverb could have used Winterland as a foot print. I went there about a dozen times, starting in '73. It was perfect.
Just about then he was kicking the habit and started a drinking binge ... By I think the real reason was no Jack Bruce and no Ginger Baker. Cream was a improvisational band, every time they performed, it was different. Two awesome jazz musicians and a hot blues guitarist. Too bad Ahmet thought Clapton was Chuck Berry and Bruce and Baker was a backup band.
If Hendrix is Moonshine then Clapton, esp. considering he's played prominently for 42 more yrs at least, is a bottle of 1744 French wine worth $5,000,000! Compared to any rock/esp. blues guitarist of today!
john polete lol...that might be a little too extreme, john. how about a 42 year old bottle of chivas that someone stashed and forgot about? now thats gonna be some damn good scotch!
How close is Hurtwood Edge (Erics mansion/estate he bought while in Cream and still owns!)to Scotland anyways? Surrey to Scotland?Hmm? Yeah, I guess your right! Eric wouldn't drink any I can sure tell ya that! hahaha Hendrix and Clapton were the 1st 2 rock/blues guitar greats on this planet and I doubt too many will argue that one! Sure there were others like Johnny Winter or Peter Green but nobody from 1966 to 1970 even came close to those 2!
what's even more amazing is that he went from this to being a sideman with Delaney and Bonnie shortly after Blind Faith. Clapton never sat on one thing for very long in those days. That's how he rolled.
@@tiborzkarate1 YES! Clapton got famous using Gibson's and Humbuckers and 100 watt MARSHALL'S, Strat's and Fender are awesome BUtt! NOT FOR ERIC Clapton.
This is Cream at Their Peak, about a month later, Rolling Stone wrote a shitty review of Cream's Exemplary performances at Bill Graham's Venues and EC said 'Fuck it, I'm done, Thanks a lot Rolling stone
Great version and great pix. But as to comments below, there's no better or best, just levels of competence - which is objective, and taste which is subjective. Music is cooperation, not competition. It's like trying to pick a best painter, it doesn't make any sense.
It's not just that Eric's fiery playing here is so over the top and frantic, but he keeps it up for 12 minutes. Just amazing.
Clapton is fearless........what tone.
And without pedals, effects, or...
@@pabloperez4063 true. I still can't imagine how the sound of his two Marshall stacks at full blast was live. I wish could hear that one time :(
I have followed Clapton for 50 yrs and never get tired of his playing!
Me too...50+...I enjoy Clapton almost daily.
I agree with both of you. And never get tired of his singing either
I learn of Clapton in Taiwan as was listening to Layla and I shot the sheriff in the ‘70s learning guitar from the few US military radio stations! Never grew tired of his playing and singing! 30 plus years and counting
@@CreamBootlegs I’m 19, and hear all the versions of steppin out almost always. Each version is truly magic, the improvisation is crazy good and those phrases.
@@CreamBootlegs yeah besides the obvious “sunshine of your love” steppin out and many of their other songs are just amazing that casuals don’t know. Check out their studio outtakes. There’s one here for “take it back” studio takes, it’s just Clapton and ginger playing. It Truly sounds amazing
In my opinion.......there has never been before or after this period another guitarist who can top Eric Clapton’s ability to fluidly play blues vocabulary over fast tempos such as this........NO ONE!!! Not Hendrix, not Page, not Stevie Ray Vaughan, not Mike Bloomfield, not Bonamassa, not Gary Moore, NO ONE.
Andrew Larson totally agree. EC is god!
Bloomfield did it on the first two Butterfield records..
@@johnr8820 The Wright brothers' flying contraption may have flown first, but does that compare to a fighter jet?
Robert Henry Never said it did
You may want to consider the guy EC said was the best, Duane Allman.
He was doing this in the 60s. Amazing !!
Clapton/Baker/Bruce
*-* One of the greatest musical collaborations ever
This show was on April 5, 1968 at the Back Bay Theatre, which was the day after Dr. King was assassinated. There is no doubt that that event played into the intensity of this gig. This is some incredible playing, not just by Clapton, but by "The Cream" as a trio. I wish there were more of Cream's live gigs available (and, coming years, no doubt more will be discovered in attics and collections). I cannot imagine what this was like as a live experience.
1) there are a few dozen hours of live Cream in YT and 2) it's Cream, not The Cream.
also: I saw Cream in 67 and 68 in L.A. - I snuck a mini reel-to reel into the Farewell Concert and recorded the whole concert. Yes, Cream live was quite the transcendent experience if they were having a good night. A friend of my mom's stole the Cream tape. The concert is in YT - maybe it's my tape! L.A. Forum, farewell concert.
@@dennismason3740 Saw them about a dozen times in the 60's. One of the most memorable was at Staples High School in Westport, CT on a Wednesday night. We drove down from Colgate U. to see them in my hometown. They played for almost 3 hours, there was no warm up band, just Cream and nothin' else!! Also saw them in New Haven and the Fillmore East.
They were the greatest rock fusion band of all time, never heard better jams.
@@1blastman - Fantastic. I agree.
1969 Union Catholic High School New jersey , unreal to be sure
I ve not heard this recording before but ive heard most vof his stuff on Vynal LP and seen Cream l8vr twice so thank you for posting this it clearly shows he was and really remains a tremendous force on electric guitar there are still guitarist trying tp sound like him today on 2024 wow thanks eric and thanks again for posting
r.i.p. jack bruce..one of a kind..a total original..a rarity in this world...hurtwood edge is pretty damn close to scotland after all...
RIP Jack Bruce. His bass playing was just "far-out" as we used to say at the time.
I still need the Cream to get I don't know what and that is "far-out" too.
I believe Mr. Clapton was the first real guitar hero everybody including Jimi Hendrix looked up to. Mick Taylor told me himself how much Eric influenced him back then. When I first heard him in the 80s I didn't think he was great because I thought nobody was better than vanhalen. I dug a little deeper and discovered Cream and the blues breakers then I understood why they called him God in those days. If Robert Johnson could have lived to see Eric im sure he would have loved him.
+larkyleroy Van Halen is technically very good, but in my opinion, he can't touch the great English players. Clapton, Beck, Green, Taylor, Thompson, Page. These English guys have technique but the soul, intensity, tone and emotion just "drips" from they're fingers! also, Van Halen's tapping isn't even original - Harvey Mandel, a great American player, was doing it years before and, in my opinion, with ten times as much soul, emotion and tone.
+larkyleroy The irony about your Van Halen statement is Eddie says he has learned every solo Eric ever played with Cream ,all the live ones included note for note, (kind of a really brash thing to say really ) and knows he sounds nothing like Eric but its where he learned his phrasing, ...me I don't see it Eddie is not a blues player ,at least not on any Van Halen tunes I can recall. I loved Mick Taylors work too, according to Mayall Mick was lazier and took longer to develop while Green was pushy and trying to prove himself. Boy did he ever. 2nd in Blues depth and mastery only to Robert Johnson himself.
+Shem Su Hor Nephilim Since Van Halen has come up.....He did an album with Brian May called 'Star Fleet' I think. It was basically just blues jams. Side two was one long track called 'Bluesbreaker'! Just thought I'd mention it. Don't know if its on here. Or if its ever been released on CD?
avalanche344 It was just two great players fooling around with blues changes. None of it bore any relation to 'actual blues'! May was just the right age to be blown away by The Beano album when it first came out.
+larkyleroy Nonsense! Johnson would have laughed! How rigid! How structured! How on beat.
Clearly, this is the Clapton we admired in the late 60s. Hearing this, I once again understand my deep deception when seeing and hearing Clapton playing in London's Marquee Club in 1971 as "Derek" - with a Fender Strat and doin' the stuff from Layla.
The Dominos' Fillmore East concert rocked - one of their greatest performances. END of an ERA.
i find both kind of performances very pleasing, love clapton’s 60’s and 70’s
I think after the 60s Clapton felt he had nothing to prove anymore as far as shredding on guitar so he went the other direction with his hippie friends and concentrated more on songs and songwriting. but I understand what you're saying people that thought that Clapton was going to form another "cream" and go on like that were sadly mistaken.
The first guitar-hero in the band which created the rock genre. Cream is the source of everything came after. A deep bow for the Founders !
Ciprian, absolutely agree. They were on the seen for what, from the Spring of '66 to Nov of '69? The impact that they made was incalulable.
@Bob Smith
That was not rock, that was rock'n'roll. Different genre. Even some tunes of Chuck Berry, another guy here told me to consider.
@Bob Smith
:)))) Nope. Things are way more complex. You have to study more.
I recommend you to begin with what is probably the best rock history book ever: www.amazon.com/Whats-That-Sound-Introduction-History/dp/0393624145
This will show you the next steps. Pleasant discovery travel and we are waiting for you on the other shore to join the tribe!
@Bob Smith
"Don't judge a book by it's cover" Bo Diddley.
When you will study more you'll find out that rock'n'roll is just a root of some more roots that the rock has.
Please forgive me if sounded condescending. It is just knowledge.
There were many guitar "heroes" Clapton and Hendrix just took it to the next level. they took the Guitar Hero thing to superstardom. Indeed Eddie Van Halen cited cream as one of his biggest influences. He said he would spend hours trying to play Clapton solos note for note.
by the time cream ended, eric had been playing these high octane licks night after night for years. even filet mignon will taste like shit if you have to eat it at every meal for more than a week. after cream, he wanted to order something different from the menu. i can respect that.
Well said!
+bmp-226 Bro you are totally right, it got too where Clapton Bruce and Baker wouldn't even hang out together and by this time he had become deaf in one ear from playing full volume in front of a couple marshall stacks (but usually just the one ,as 2 was just too loud he said) but he got too where he was wearing specialy designed ear plugs and he couldn't hear what he was playing ,and it got too where he was playing in weird traumatic kind of state and not really wanting to be there but having too and only really hearing in certain areas. yet . what Clapton did is , He Was The First to utilize the Les Paul and Marshal combo and crank it so it sustained and overdrived, its that old blues sound only louder. He would use the licks he hearned by the greats like Freddie and BB and Hubert and Albert and the part that would connect those licks would be him, and he was very fluid at improvising between maj and min pent lines and his beloved maj 3rd, He may play these Cream solos for 15-20 Minutes and of course after awhile you've exhausted every lick you know and are just repeating yourself (from Erics own mouth and very honest and true) but the thing is ,ive never really heard him boff a line , screw up a phrase or improvisation . And even though yes Peter Green is/was the best of the British Blues Guitarists (sheer emotional depth and fluidic mastery of his Dorian flavored Blues and gorgeous stinging Vibrato that only Kirwan and Kossoff can come close too, Green said that of all the Masters , Eric was his favorite) There is a reason why Eric 's style has changed , he also wanted to down play the guitar hero gunslinger thing of his early Blues Breaker and Cream days, and play more the role of accompanist or back up , and lower volumes and eventually the improvisations changed as well. as did the guitars , he had to change in order to survive I think , and while I'm not familiar with his more 70's type of albums ,I know regaurdless what ever Eric is playing the foundation is still the blues , whether its being played well or not is the real question & depends on him, but fuck, he's already done it all , and I'm indebted to his genius and love finding some old licks of his that are always resurfacing on the net..He was the First ,one of the top 3 ,and was the milestone by which all others were judged...
+Shem Su Hor Nephilim -I think you covered it from a to z. great comment.
Out of all the great blues guitarists there was only one who could really sing and that was Peter Green.I was fortunate to see them all.
@@shemsuhornephilim7702 Great post, We knew and could see the tension in the band towards the end.
- The Version of Spoonful on Wheels of Fire is the Gold Standard for great rock fusion music. They took rock and jazz to another level.
- When genius musicians experiment, sometimes the results are mixed, but even "bad Clapton" is usually great music.
My friend, who I was standing next to, took the picture at 12:02 at the Grande Ballroom in Detroit. Those were the days - five feet from the stage. Great music from three great musicians.
Listening to live Cream makes me glad to be alive! Now that's cook' in, power-trio music!
1 minute more of that jam in it's deep part and my head would've exploded from the sheer crazyness of Eric and Ginger jammin on this
The number has *ALWAYS COOKED* at the end and from 11:10 onward is NO exception. Eric’s speed and design precision on the fretboard is stunning. This Clapton madman style at this intensity would be COMPLETELY dismissed by late 1968. Gone, toast- finished. Blind Faith had some beautiful guitar sections and so did Layla. But the laid back Eric was now for Life. As much as we appreciated the 2005 RAH Cream reunion nothing on that stage even came close to the speed and genius of what we have here on Steppin’ Out. *I’m So Glad* at the LA FORUM on Goodbye Cream- not just speed although he had that definitely but taste and composition.
End of an era I guess.
Blame it on Music from Big Pink! (Coming from a super fan of the Band).
Oh goodness! I was there with my best friend Dick, brother Dan and another bloke and can relate this: Mr. Clapton broke a string on the painted SG so exchanged that for a brilliantly red Les Paul, which had a searing tone -brighter than the SG. It may be the Les Paul that's heard here. That would match my memory of the tone. Incredible show for youngsters who had never been introduced to improvisation! ("What's he doing? That's not like the record...") They opened with the theater curtain rising to reveal them as Sunshine of Your Love unfolded. I know they played Train Time. That was before Wheels Of Fire was released, and I believe the songs heard on Wheels Of Fire were recorded during this tour. Amazing stuff! Thank you for this splendid posting!!
Thats allegedly why he got the nick name 'slowhand'.....used to break a string when in the bluesbreakers and the audience would give a slow hand clap while he changed the string. .....shame how the youngsters of today have 'matured' to the obsession of X factor and pop idol
fostex fan a red Les Paul? Could be Lucy!
OspreyD40 - I was at this concert as well. I was thinking he started with a Les Paul and then played the SG for one tune? But my memory might be a bit off. :-) This was the first big concert I ever went to.
My recollection, from balcony toward the left is that the curtain was down, sounds of Sunshine Of our Love Began as the curtain rose. When Eric began to solo and it wasn't "like the record" I didn't know what to make of it. We were pretty innocent, hadn't heard rock musicians improvise. My clear impression is that he was playing his painted SG until he broke a string, then was handed a red Les Paul. I recall very clearly that I felt the Les Paul sound was significantly sharper and more piercing, in a very good way. I do not recall how long he played the Les Paul. He might have handed it off and returned to the SG when the broken string was replaced. I recall them doing Train Time which was later released on Wheels Of Fire. That also really struck me, since there wasn't anything quite like it on their two albums to date. Incidentally, anyone reading this who still has their "Dratleaf"-as-publisher vinyl Disraeli Gears LP's, and early Fresh Cream LP's should never let them go. (Avoid the "Nemperor" publisher Disraeli Gears LP's, because the sound was somewhat numb compared to the first-pressing Dratleaf ones.) In the digital transfers of Sweet Wine (as a gross example) actual notes have been scrubbed from Eric's soloing in the 'compression process to digital formats. Apple iTunes versions are awful for the musical information losses, and even the CD's have lost music in the transfer from vinyl to CD. Terrible!
I have a recollection of there being strobe lights very briefly as the curtains came up. I have one of the "Dratleaf' LPs.
Thank you for putting this on. Everybody is making comments about which guitarist was better, which ones influenced whom and so forth. Just listen ... listen to Clapton and Baker speaking to each other over a fairly long stretch, and all the other issues seem so ...
I just love this feeling man!
Me, too. That's why I thought "Hey, let's point it out so the music here is not forgotten over who's God on guitar or not". Sure appreciate letting us in. Much the best.
Thats what she said lol, me too
Hans Sieburg That's the problem in a nutshell. Nobody listens anymore, everybody goes by articles an list an what not. Nobody is above Cream, nobody, and I mean nobody, has their level of playing. I don't know one band who jams 10+ min all the time on their songs like Cream an who never play the same song the same way. I mean to jam for 10+ min all the time an keep that level of playing all the way through an keep you interested is an amazing feat, to say the least. Lastly, there's also a better version then this on UA-cam, much clearer an one hell of a jam.
Clapton is a God okei! But Cream would not be the Cream without Jack Bruce!
Agreed
Can't doubt that the three of them were all essential, and certainly the best power trio ever...I think.
@@pierstuson5909 They were,Yes. Seen them "Live " as a young musician. Jack was just the Power house that propelled them ,drew away w/ Vocals and pushed the limits of playing ,of Gingi and Erica.
@@CreamBootlegs You mean acid. But yeah, ALL three. If you play at all, check out Mike Brookfield and My Blues Guitar here on youtube. They do a lot of cream stuff and both channels do the bluebreakers album.
...or Ginger.
Let's just say...
Without all three there is no Cream.
I'm fan of Eric Patrick Clapton from 35 years (since I was 15) and I did listen to several guitar players (Jimi, srv, page, Richie, pete and many others) but no one provide me the Eric's special sensations (various tones). For me Eric is something else
Jimi Hendrix showed Eric Clapton how to really play a guitar when he arrived in England ,facts.
@@bobbyz23 hendrix is the most overrated guitarist of all time, Clapton is in fact superior
anyone looking for a teacher , someone to teach them the blues - this is all you will ever need... either you get it, or you don't ... that guitar solo was the history of the blues
I loved taking acid in the 60's. It should be no surprise that listening to EC/Cream was a high point back then.
nobody will ever touch them live... incredible band.
Say it....Seen them .
Damn that beano comic must've done something to ya clapton
"Right you are..."
Live Cream, right?
@@jerryshunk7152 right, you are
Back in the day Eric was the most in touch blues guitarist.. Loved it storyline of my youth.... Love it as much today.. 69yrs old..
I mean just listen to that playing. Clapton is just shredding. Tone.
It's a great version and Clapton is on fire, like he was for most of this period when he performed with Cream. But all of these people who post about "I've been following Eric for 50 years now" and never get tired of his playing are baloney. Clapton never played like this, post Cream. NEVER. Yes, he did jam with his own band and on occasion he would whip out the old reference to Cream but his days of jamming "a la cream" were over. The closest to jamming like Cream might have been with Derek and the Dominoes but that was a super brief episode of his life. Cream remains unique for Clapton.
I agree, most of Clapton,s post Cream stuff is a non starter for me, I saw Cream Live, Blind Faith and as a Solo act, and nothing compares with the Cream output. Solo's to a stratospheric level that he's never reached afterward, and understandably, he probably didn't want to, similar to Richie Blackmore tiring of the guitar slinger competition.
Great fotos❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤
wow! what a version, i thought i had heard all of them, this a gem
Abe Union pride brings back many memories but me and my son are going to see Mr Clapton in Dublin and London at rah it's my bucket list my son is Bernstein law also part owner of Ride em cowboy in St Pete Florida can't wait it's in May what a better way to see Mr Clapton then with your son very proud
the young EC unleashed! This is a good taste of what you would have heard back in the day.
i agree, paul. this backbay concert is some of the best ec-cream stuff ive ever heard. metart93 has uncovered things i didnt know existed.
I tell ya, when I hear stuff like this I really miss those Gibsons. I'm not saying you can't get a blues tone from a Strat because obviously you can, but EC's blues style seems to flower on a Gibson.
paul harris Strats are fine! But if you really want to tear it up, Gibson's are for this sort of thing!
those were the days...
Yes they were
JUST THE FUCKING BEST
NO ONE WILL COME CLOSE
CLAPTON - BRUCE - BAKER
Ferocious. I'm so grateful for these recordings.
WOWOWOWOW thanx man ..great version and really great pics..Saw them at Madison Sq Garden when I was 16 and never been the same since . Clapton was God
In my humble opinion I think Eric's best stuff was with Cream and the Bluesbreakers
Went down hill the second he picked up a fender
I wonder how many "shredders" could do an extended solo like this with just an over-driven amp and keep up with GB on drums..... at this pace?
Yip. GB is doing nearly a drum solo behind EC, who is hammering it out.
@@roberthenry6910 Blackmore comes to mind...
Thank you so much for your great videos. I love them.
Yup, this is the best Clapton I've ever heard.
Back Bay how sweet it is Cream Rules GC.
I REALLY love this song
He played many great guitars! Gibsons were his favorite. Must've used them all! Loved his style!
That Gibson SG sounds as way out as it looks. It's a lethal weapon in the hands of someone like Clapton.
Hahaha it's so funny to hear how GB is bringing the typical jazz tradition to make breaks for who ever plays lead, into the blues rock scene.
This is back when the average guy with an electric guitar sounded like he was playing surf music. Clapton almost single handedly changed that.
Me too. Let's not forget our apostrophes then shall we. It's "Steppin' Out".
the picture at 3:10 says it all. 4 full Marshall stacks cranked and pushing out all of that sound. It was a wonderful time to be alive.
It seems Eric and his legacy is far more appreciated in the USA than in the UK.
What a ferocious version of this song. Wow
I saw them in the sixties, and realised immediately I probably might not make it to the top of the guitar playing profession! they were superb. I'd seen them all in different bands separately but together there was and never has been, anything quite like it.
I think I forgot to breathe while listening to this.
This is still sound SO powerful after all this year, that you can imagen, this was recorded back in the 60s¡¡¡
yes Peter was great,,,a genius and a shining light in his time,,,a teacher ,,,and icon,,,a genius journeyman guitarist who still inspires us all to this day,,,,
To rvollin1935
Been playing guitar my whole life and Love Clapton in Cream/Mayall, hung with Peter & LOVED him AND Danny Kirwan in F Mac/PG in Mayall, but have also seen Hendrix and Jeff Beck and they are just Untouchable!!! Nobody comes close-opinion, but I am correct!
Today - you wouldn't even know it was the same player unless you saw with own eyes. Except for a few stylistic signature nuances, it's night and day from a passion energy and sonic view.
Years of alcohol abuse and trading in the Gibson for a strat.
this truly incredible..beats most live JIMI as well!!! unreal he completely blows now this is depressing how incredible this is...
Simply GREAT.
Super version! Maybe the best!
Some folks complaining about Eric changing musical directions from what he was doing with Cream. Hell, he did it already! What else was he going to do with it just keep playing the same stuff over and over? I love a lot of Eric's work since then especially Derek and the DOmino's. Yeah he never hit Cream height again but hell neither has anybody else.
Amazing piece of tune😊❤❤❤❤
Oh Well! Look at it this way, how wide is Eric's musical tastes? He is an Icon forever, an originator forever, a mentor forever, the establisher of THE marshall/gibson sustain sound of Rock, on and on and on, so what if he plays Lay Down Sally? He also has played Tears In Heaven, Pilgrim, on and on... now he is an Activist for Healing with his Crossroad Concerts! As for me, he has earned the right to play whatever he wants, some I like more than others but it all is from his heart!
Woo hoo! Fantastic. Thanks for uploading this.
Invite Ol Eric down to the local pub plug in a couple Fender Champs ,I bet he could still kick ass with any contender,,,put the gloves on mate!!!!
Stupendous. never heard this before im 60 :(
Some of the most awesome sounds Eric ever made came from the Gibson SG, IMO.
%1000 with you on that
Although alot of great recordings were also made with his firebird
@@MajesticMage Agreed. Although still a Gibson with humbucker pick-ups and I believe he also played an ES-335. You can see him playing the firebird with blind faith on UA-cam.
fantastic playing
Everyone has their day ..getting old is not fun kids ....but if your lucky, it comes to all of us ...Yes, Eric was different back then ... but as he said the other day: 'I just can't play like I used to'...time and age has a way of creeping up on us .....all those beautiful guitar licks ...are just passing in the cosmos ...enjoy it while you can ...a survivor of the 60's ...
Absolutely way more frantic than Vol 2! Incredible!
Sorry just realised it part of the Winterland. This was an outtake ? Amazing!
Clapton peaked out heavily at the end of the 60's - period.
Even before Cream made their largest selling LP he never again played to the level he set when arriving from Mayall's Blues Breakers
+rickythik Didn't peak out - just changed directions - wanted to become a troubadour. He realized that the extended corrosive intensity was killing him. I've seen him in concert several times - all of a sudden he closes those eyes and just erupts into the most melodic, emotionally powerful, technically brilliant improvisational burst's I've ever heard. He doesn't always do it - it's too physically and emotionally demanding. When he does and you're lucky enough to be there, you realize he really is the greatest living guitar player- no b.s.
What great pics!
Everybody wanted to evolve. Jimi Hendrix wanted to do more jazz and classic stuff, but he was quite disappointed, because people wanted to see only psychedelic Hendrix, who burns his guitar :-)
Eric evolved too, and in my opinion in great way ! his late 60s studio work, and his 70s strat work on layla album is great. He got softer then, but who carres, lay down sally, tears in heaven. God, he is so versaitlite, From the Cradle is great too.
awesome this music always great to hear it again.
Although the group had been together for two years and
released 4 albums.
What a band! Loving this...
CREAM FOREVER
5:45 Jack is a badass.
Great performance I have never listened…God was there.
I could have been at this show,, I was 14 and my friends father owned a record store and had tix. I disobeyed my parents on some stupid thing. They had warned me no show if I did. I found out that my father did not fuck around when he said something like that. Damn...
never heard such a solo !
Great. For all i know, any digital amp preset labeled Hall Reverb could have used Winterland as a foot print. I went there about a dozen times, starting in '73. It was perfect.
GREAT INTERPRETATION OF THE FRAISER ORGAN NUMBER... COOL STUFF !!
Yep,best I have ever heard. Beats my lp version. Thanks
Just about then he was kicking the habit and started a drinking binge ... By I think the real reason was no Jack Bruce and no Ginger Baker. Cream was a improvisational band, every time they performed, it was different. Two awesome jazz musicians and a hot blues guitarist. Too bad Ahmet thought Clapton was Chuck Berry and Bruce and Baker was a backup band.
Again all,
Clean as Clapton
hendrix is moonshine. clapton is chivas regal. after tasting either one, you still say "HOLY SH*T!!
well put
If Hendrix is Moonshine then Clapton, esp. considering he's played prominently for 42 more yrs at least, is a bottle of 1744 French wine worth $5,000,000! Compared to any rock/esp. blues guitarist of today!
john polete lol...that might be a little too extreme, john. how about a 42 year old bottle of chivas that someone stashed and forgot about? now thats gonna be some damn good scotch!
How close is Hurtwood Edge (Erics mansion/estate he bought while in Cream and still owns!)to Scotland anyways? Surrey to Scotland?Hmm? Yeah, I guess your right! Eric wouldn't drink any I can sure tell ya that! hahaha Hendrix and Clapton were the 1st 2 rock/blues guitar greats on this planet and I doubt too many will argue that one! Sure there were others like Johnny Winter or Peter Green but nobody from 1966 to 1970 even came close to those 2!
Certain players are just connected to something greater than the rest, and Clapton is one of them.
what's even more amazing is that he went from this to being a sideman with Delaney and Bonnie shortly after Blind Faith. Clapton never sat on one thing for very long in those days. That's how he rolled.
@lordsong: well said man , people who think Clapton sucked after Cream seriously have no idea what they're talking about
Thank you 。
I ask myself that same question every time I hear any Cream song.
I watched RFK speech he gave to a black crowd shit brought me too tears
Just curious, but what question were you talking about?
It's been all down hill since Clapton switched to strats. :(
@@tiborzkarate1 YES! Clapton got famous using Gibson's and Humbuckers and 100 watt MARSHALL'S, Strat's and Fender are awesome BUtt! NOT FOR ERIC Clapton.
This is Cream at Their Peak, about a month later, Rolling Stone wrote a shitty review of Cream's Exemplary performances at Bill Graham's Venues and EC said 'Fuck it, I'm done, Thanks a lot Rolling stone
great pics!
Great version and great pix. But as to comments below, there's no better or best, just levels of competence - which is objective, and taste which is subjective. Music is cooperation, not competition. It's like trying to pick a best painter, it doesn't make any sense.
Not before or after best 3 piece band ever
Clapton became a legend the first time he held a guitar.
I was there