Name: ERIC CLAPTON - LONG BEACH 1974 1ST NIGHT: FLAT TRANSFER FROM MULTITRACK TAPES - 2 CD
SKU: KE6252507
Availability: BackOrder

Description

Long Beach Arena, Long Beach, CA, USA 19th July 1974 STEREO SBD(from Original Masters)

★UPGRADE!!!

[Get the legendary multi-track soundboard master!]

　Another astonishing digital master has been brought to us by the heavyweight taper in the UK, who is familiar to us as one of Eric Clapton’s treasured sound sources! This is a flat transfer master of the multi-track soundboard tape from the first day of the performance in Long Beach, California on July 19, 1974, which was used in the official albums “EC WAS HERE” and “CROSSROADS 2” among Clapton’s live sound sources.

Our shop recently released the title “Long Beach Arena 1974 1st Night: Mike Millard Master Tapes”, a superb audience recording from the same day by legendary taper Mike Millard, which has been well received, but when it comes to officially recorded multi-track masters, it’s a different story.

　Heavyweight Taper provided us with a flat transfer of it. The previously released versions were produced based on cassette copies of masters and copies of master reel tapes that had deteriorated over time, so this work boasts the highest sound quality ever, and we can say with confidence that it is a master of quality that cannot be expected any more. A stereo sound board with a crisp, crisp sound. Any enthusiast will be intoxicated by this sound quality and sound balance.

　However, as a problem from the original master, there was a slight jump in the sound at 4:50 in Layla. The previously released version had been compensated for by filling in the gaps from another point, but since the phrase was meant to have a slide sustain, the consistency was off. In response to this, this work also matrixed the subsequent SBD sound source riff, which had no sustain, and gave it a natural finish while retaining the AUD sustain, making it almost perfect (to the point where you can’t tell where it was jumping).

[A day of high quality performance and an attractive set list]

　Now, let’s take a look at how this performance was positioned in the comeback year of 1974.

・June 19th and 20th, 1974: Warm-up gigs in Northern Europe for the US comeback tour
・June 28th to August 4th, 1974: US tour ←★Here★
≪August 5th, 1974: Album “461 OCEAN BOULEVARD” released≫　
・August to September, 1974: Album “THERE’S ONE IN EVERY CROWD” recorded in Miami
・September 28th to October 6th, 1974: Second US tour　
・October 31st to November 6th, 1974: First Japan tour
・November 27th to December 5th, 1974: European tour

　You can see that this performance was the middle date of the comeback US tour that began in June of this year. After the warm-up gig, Clapton regained his confidence on the live stage, and in order to ease his tension, he went on this US tour while drunk. Although the influence of this was somewhat felt in the MC on this day, he generally took the vocals properly and showed accurate and smooth guitar playing. The best proof of this is that Have You Ever Loved A Woman from this day was adopted for the official live albums “ECWAS HERE” and “CROSSROADS 2” (this song was a medley from Layla). The set list was more attractive than the other days, and included six songs from the comeback album “461 OCEAN BOULEVARD” that had not yet been released at that time, Badge and Crossroads from the Cream era, Can’t Find My Way Home from the Blind Faith era, Domino’s number Tell The Truth, Layla, and blues. The charm of the set was that it was a solid collection of songs that fans wanted to hear. Crossroads, which has a different rhythm from the Cream era, and the rare Mainline Florida are interesting. Crossroads in particular is played with a light shuffle, which shows the high potential of this band. Clapton also plays lightly. On top of that, it was a fulfilling concert that had a surprise opening with the theme song “Smile” from Charlie Chaplin’s “Modern Times,” which Clapton had always said was his favorite movie (the latest album “MEANWHILE” finally realized the studio recording). This was also the tour where Let It Grow was performed for the first time in 50 years, and it is a great performance that cannot help but be called a masterpiece. The level of intoxication due to alcohol was low, and the play was sharp, so this can be said to be a representative sound source of the 1974 tour, along with the performance the next day at the same venue. What’s interesting to listen to is that they played Steady Rollin’ Man twice. It’s unthinkable to play the same song again at a normal concert, but this is probably proof that they were drunk (laughs). The fact that you can hear different sharp solos in both songs is what makes Clapton a live artist. It was a rare performance where you could enjoy the same song twice.

[A rare session. Former boss John Mayall joins in for an encore!]

　During the encore, John Mayall, the boss of John Mayall’s Bluesbreakers, the band Clapton was in from 1965 to 1966, made a surprise appearance. This was the only time he had ever appeared at a Clapton concert. It was a very rare event. And it happened in Long Beach, not London. Mayall played harmonica and also sang lead vocals. The show featured blues jams straight out of the 60s, but the middle part was a performance that could be called Mayall’s show, where he showed off his mastery of the blues harp to the fullest. Clapton was giving the credit to his former boss. I would like to see the video if there is one, but I imagine both Clapton and Mayall had smiles on their faces.

　For some reason, the multi-track master was cut off at 7:16 due to a recording interruption. Therefore, in order to allow you to enjoy the original complete recording of this day without stress, we have skillfully supplemented it with “Long Beach Arena 1974 1st Night: Mike Millard Master Tapes” that has already been released in our shop. “Long Beach Arena 1974 1st Night: Mike Millard Master Tapes” is a completely mono recording, so it was made pseudo-stereo and then equalized and connected in various places. Although there is a difference between audience recording and soundboard recording, “Long Beach Arena 1974 1st Night: Mike Millard Master Tapes” is one of the best sound quality, so there is no sense of incongruity in this processing, and it can be extended by about 4 minutes and listened to beautifully. If you listen to it like this, Mayall calls Clapton’s name twice in return at the end. It makes you excited to imagine that he was doing this on the stage of the club in the 1960s. The regular set is also full of interesting things to listen to, but for British blues fans, this encore alone will be worth listening to.

　Please add this work, which has the highest sound quality ever and is perfectly restored, produced from a flat transfer of the multi-track master of the famous sound source representing the 1974 tour, to your collection.

Disc:1 (64:15)
1. Intro.
2. Smile
3. Let It Grow
4. Can’t Find My Way Home
5. I Shot The Sheriff
6. Badge
7. Willie And The Hand Jive
8. Get Ready
9. Crossroads
10. Mainline Florida

Disc:2 (53:31)
1. Layla
2. Have You Ever Loved A Woman
3. Tell The Truth
4. Steady Rollin’ Man
5. Band Introductions
6. Little Queenie
7. Don’t Have To Hurt Nobody