Eric Clapton- Me and Mr. Johnson

As one of the top guitar players in history, Eric Clapton has been increasing the thinking of what is possible with a rock guitar since the 1960’s. He has recorded albums under his own name since the early 70’s after creating some of the defining songs of the counter-culture movement while a member of Cream. Since his first solo album in 1970, Clapton has released 16 solo albums (18 counting his duel records with BB King and JJ Cale). All have showcased Clapton’s unique skills as both a guitarist as well as a vocalist in multiple styles. He has shown the versatility of playing rock music with Cream, to slow ballads like “Tears in Heaven” during his solo career and the blues, as seen in Me and Mr. Johnson, released in 2004 on Warner Bros. Records.

Robert Johnson was one of the top blues musicians of 1930’s, and was a big influence on Clapton’s style. As a matter of fact, both Johnson and Clapton were in the top ten of Rolling Stone magazine’s “Top 100 Guitarists of All Time” list. As a big fan of the blues and Johnson, in the early 2000’s, Clapton decided to release a blues album, with a twist. The entire album would be covers of Robert Johnson’s songs. As a fan of various types of music, this album intrigued me on many levels. While not a huge blues fan, the idea of one of the top musicians of our time covering another great musician (albeit from another era) was something I had to hear.

The good news was that my father had this in his collection, and I listened to it and was amazed. I’m not sure what’s more incredible, the fact that Clapton created such a solid album from a group of covers or rather that the songs still sound just as emotional and timeless as they were in the 1930’s. Sure they may sound a bit different with today’s recording techniques and with Clapton adding his unique spin to the tunes, but for the most part, it is a good way for the music fan today to hear a style of music that is not very prevalent in popular culture. I can’t think of one negative thing about this album.


Grade- A