Eric Clapton
Madison Square Garden, New York, NY
September 28, 2006
Make no mistake—at an Eric Clapton show, Clapton is the one who stands front and center on the Persian rug. Still, the appearance of Clapton’s newest protégé, Derek Trucks, instantly recalled the legendary Clapton/Duane Allman sessions that yielded Layla. Trucks’ melancholy slide sounds in sharp contrast to Clapton’s confident spikes. It’s a nice combination, one that clearly means something to Clapton.
The first of three nights at MSG opened with the late ‘80s semi-hit “Pretending,” and it was instantly clear that Clapton has completely shed his ‘80s sound and image. Canned synthesizer has been tossed in favor of B3 organ/Rhodes/clavinet and electric piano provided by Chris Stainton and Tim Carmon. The flanged-out drums have been replaced with the funky yet tight attack of Steve Jordan. The one weakness of the current lineup is the overpopulation of strings, as Doyle Bramhall II also plays guitar. He’s good, but his presence was mostly extraneous.
A mid-show highlight was the five-song mostly acoustic set. This opened with “Back Home,” during which Clapton and Trucks shared the stage alone on a pair of matching Martins, while Clapton played rhythm and Trucks laid down intricate finger patterns.
The sedentary audience rose to its feet for the night’s first standing ovation following the subtle yet powerful and distinct lead from Trucks during an electric “Little Queen Of Spades.” Clapton, not one to be upstaged, followed up with a huge solo, yanking the crowd up again.
After pulling back with a standard, “Further On Down the Road,” and the adult contemporary favorite “Wonderful Tonight,” the band turned to “Layla.” While utterly predictable, the version was great, with Derek playing the signature riff and of course the wiggling patterns over the piano coda. During the coda, Trucks stood face to face with his idol as they leisurely traded riffs for a few minutes that elevated this solid and sometimes exciting show the fifth decade into Clapton’s career. Nick Leitzes
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