Eric Clapton
461 Ocean Boulevard

THE REVIEW

Between 1971 and 1972, Eric Clapton went through one of the darkest periods of his career and life: no albums and no concerts, except for the "Concert for Bangladesh" organized by Harrison in 1971. His heroin addiction was irreparably dragging him towards the abyss. It was thanks to Pete Townshend's help that Clapton managed to emerge towards less dark horizons: Pete organized the Rainbow Concert in 1973, marking Clapton's great return, and also offered him a part in the film Tommy (in fact, he would play the role of "The Hawker," the guru-healer, in 1975). Eric Clapton regained his vitality and decided to clean up his act: he bought a house in Miami and decided to record a new album, simply titled with his home's address: "461 Ocean Boulevard." With a new band behind him, Clapton seems to have found inspiration again.

Motherless Children features a pretty good riff that opens the song. Throughout the track, the rhythm remains at a great level until the end, with Clapton’s great singing, which I consider overall a very nice piece. Give Me Strength is a slow track where the slowhand puts incredible passion into playing the guitar, and it lasts just those 3 minutes or so before the piece becomes boring. Willie And The Hand Jive is a blues dressed in exotic sounds, which actually doesn't represent a memorable moment, just like the reggae influences of Get Ready, which are easily overlooked. The cover of Bob Marley's I Shot The Sheriff is really good, almost even better than the original. I Can't Hold Out is another blues with a very classic feel. Please Be With Me is a beautiful acoustic ballad, with a noteworthy slide solo and an extremely melancholic tone in the vocals. Even Let It Grow is a great classic, amazing in the arrangements, with a small part where the arpeggio vaguely recalls Stairway To Heaven (the chords are practically the same) and the lyrics are truly extraordinary. Steady Rollin' Man is an excellent, solid bluesy piece, perfectly played and always enjoyable to listen to. The closing of Mainline Florida is full of rhythm and Clapton's guitar performs the usual feats.

The only flaw that prevented "461 Ocean Boulevard" from being a great album, in my opinion, are those two or three filler blues tracks, a scheme Eric Clapton unfortunately would continue to use throughout his career. Nonetheless, it remains one of Clapton's most distinctive solo albums, imbued with a particular tropical/exotic atmosphere that other albums don't possess.