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Eric Clapton, Royal Albert Hall, review: a pleasing number of fiery rockers amongst the blues and ballads
Slowhand didn't forget his original fans as he returned to touring after three years away

You could tell Eric Clapton was in a good mood because he played not one but two versions of  signature anthem Layla. During a seated acoustic section, the 77-year-old guitar superstar rolled out the warm, jazzy, unplugged singalong version that was such a staple of MTV in the Nineties and seemed to confirm the former firebrand had settled into his position as comfortable middle-of-the-road elder-statesman of blues rock. 

But then, at the end of his first concert in the Royal Albert Hall since 2019, the audience of 5,000 spontaneously rose to their feet as that sparkling, fluid riff rang out once again, this time on Clapton’s electric Stratocaster. To the effusive delight of the crowd, Britain’s original guitar hero led his seven-piece band into a full-on assault on the anguished 1971 Derek and the Dominos version, complete with blistering solos and long, elegant instrumental coda.

The stylistic span between these very different takes on the same song offers an illustration of the poles of Clapton’s career across a lifetime in music that encompasses explosive blues rock and sensitive, easy-on-the-ear songcraft. 

Returning to touring after three years following a pandemic mandated break (that we all know the old curmudgeon was no fan of), this latest iteration of his live show confidently encompassed those extremes. There was a pleasingly hefty dose of fiery rockers to sate his original Sixties fan base, including Cream’s White Room, Badge and his aggressive reconstruction of Robert Johnson’s Cross Road Blues. 

But there was also an abundance of the gentle, melodic grooving that earned him the sobriquet Slowhand and the opprobrium of many critics, including romantic ballad Wonderful Tonight, loose reggae shuffle I Shot the Sheriff and tender if sentimental lament Tears in Heaven. I suspect Clapton’s real comfort zone in his seventies might be a brand of deeply soulful blues, with rich rewards gleaned from River of Tears and Pilgrim (both revived from 1998’s Pilgrim album), and a stately version of Gary Brooker’s Lead Me to the Water played in tribute to the late Procol Harum leader.

There is, nevertheless, something of the bar band about Clapton’s ensemble, albeit a very superior version to anything you might stumble across in your local high street. The tempo only rarely rises above plodding, and there’s lots of noodling, virtuoso blues soloing shared between piano, organ and second guitar. 

It’s a democratic approach that takes some of the weight off the band leader, although one suspects his audience might have preferred that Clapton assert himself more. When you are one of the greatest players the world has ever heard with incredible material like Bell Bottom Blues and Sunshine of Your Love up your sleeve, it seems unduly modest to encore with a cover of Joe Cocker’s High Time We Went led by Paul Carrack (albeit such a fine vocalist and organist deserved his moment in the spotlight).

Clapton has been threatening to retire for a decade, complaining that peripheral nerve damage in his fingers makes it painful for him to play, but there was certainly no sign of any loss of touch or skill. Whereas most modern guitarists (including talented sideman Doyle Bramhall) have banks of foot pedals to modulate their sound, Clapton relies on just two (some kind of wah-wah sustain pedal and a booster), which is all you need when your audience really wants to be able to hear every artful note you play.

Having been one of the more outspoken musical critics of lockdown over the past couple of years, Clapton did not have much to say on stage – which was probably a good thing. There was mercifully no outing for terrible 2021 anti-vax protest single This Has Gotta Stop, although he did perform the more tender Heart of a Child (“they locked you down boy / Made you grieve alone”). 

Apart from offering thanks for applause and introducing band members, his sole cryptic utterance was “It’s been a hard time,” before playing a sweet, jazzy version of optimistic Charlie Chaplin classic Smile accompanied by special guest Andy Fairweather Low (once of Amen Corner, and a long time Clapton ally). 

On his overdue return to the stage, Clapton was content to let his fingers do the talking. Thankfully, they are still amongst the most articulate fingers in rock and roll.