Eric Clapton/Canada 1974 Upgrade

This week, we will release another live recording of JEMS’ first public release! 43 years ago. JEMS released the first generation master of the Toronto, Canada performance on October 2nd from the second US tour of the year, which was the year of the comeback from a three-year retirement. This stereo audience source was once released on a Japanese bootleg called “LOOKING BACK”, but this JEMS master boasts outstanding clarity and sound balance, with the sound quality improved by more than two ranks. Moreover, the previous master was a mono with a narrow sound field, but this master was a wide stereo! Listening to this sound quality on this day gives a new impression, and it is refreshing that the set list is different from the US tour immediately after the comeback. This is because, between the first US tour and this second tour, the recording of the album “THERE’S ONE IN EVERY CROWD”, which follows “461 OCEAN BOULEVARD”, was already completed. Therefore, the highlight of this tour was the performance of the numbers recorded in “THERE’S ONE IN EVERY CROWD”. And after this tour, the first Japan tour was scheduled. In that respect, this short US tour may have been a slightly longer warm-up gig for the “Japan Tour” with the awareness of Japan, the country where Clapton first landed. If you think that Clapton was thinking about Japan, a country he had never seen, while standing on the stage in Toronto, I think that interest in this stage will increase even more. However, this upgraded JEMS sound source was full of defects. First of all, the pitch was significantly out of sync. The pitch was about 50 to 80% higher throughout. In Tell the Truth, the pitch was out of sync by up to about 200%. Moreover, this deviation appeared randomly due to the deterioration of the tape over time. Our professional engineers checked it carefully and carefully adjusted it. The end of Tell the Truth, which was unbearable to listen to, is now beautifully easy to listen to (however, the intense tape shaking in the latter half had to be left as it was). The sound pressure balance between the left and right channels was also out of whack, so we adjusted it. What was even more fatal was that the order of the songs recorded by JEMS was all over the place, with the first two songs not being recorded, and Willie And The Hand Jive being recorded halfway through, which was an incomplete recording. So we changed the order of the songs to match the set list on the day. And the unrecorded parts (two songs + the beginning of Willie And The Hand Jive) were mastered from the existing board, the bass was reduced to bring it closer to the high sound quality of JEMS, and then compensated for, achieving a complete recording. If you listen to Willie And The Hand Jive, you will be able to feel the brilliant cross-fade processing of our engineer. As a result, we can declare that this is the definitive version of this day. This is the highest-grade upgrade board that we would like Clapton enthusiasts who are satisfied with the JEMS on the net as it is to listen to. Now, let’s take a look at what role this performance played in this comeback year. · June 19th and 20th, 1974: Warm-up gigs in Scandinavia for the US comeback tour · June 28th to August 4th, 1974: US tour << August 5th, 1974: Release of the album “461 OCEAN BOULEVARD” >> · August to September 1974: Recording of the album “THERE’S ONE IN EVERY CROWD” in Miami · September 28th to October 6th, 1974: Second US tour ←★Here★ · October 31st to November 6th, 1974: First Japan tour · November 27th to December 5th, 1974: European tour Buoyed by the great success of his US comeback tour that began in June, Clapton was confident about restarting his career, and was full of creative enthusiasm, quickly completing the recording of his next album and immediately going on tour again. He probably wanted to let his fans hear the new songs as soon as possible. He also performed Singing The Blues and The Sky Is Crying at this show. In particular, unlike the first US tour with Martin and Blackie, he had a cherry red Gibson ES-335TD (yes, the guitar he used at the Cream breakup concert) ready for slide play on this tour. The Sky Is Crying is a song that uses this guitar to play a sticky slide. The rest of the set is a nice mix of numbers from the album “461”, Badge, Little Wing, Layla, and Tell The Truth, which remind us of the Cream era and Derek & The Dominos era. For Badge, he joined the Everly Brothers’ standard number “All I Have To Do Is Dream”, which became a regular feature at subsequent Japanese shows, and played it as a coda. It can be said that he was looking ahead to the arrangements and staging at his later Japanese shows. Clapton was in good form on this day. The drunken mode of the first US tour has disappeared, and she is playing with tension. Also, at this point, female vocalist Marcy Levy participated in the backing band. After this, she supported Clapton for many years, and after Yvonne Elliman left the band, she struggled as a single woman, and this tour was also her first stage. It would be fun to listen to the balance of the two female choruses. The JEMS upgrade master was suddenly released. This release will upgrade it further and deliver it as the definitive version of the complete recording. Live at Maple Leaf Gardens, Toronto, ON. Canada 2nd October 1974 TRULY AMAZING SOUND(UPGRADE) Disc 1 (55:04) 1. Intro 2. Let It Grow 3. Can’t Find My Way Home 4. Willie And The Hand Jive ★JEMS sound source (Diff Master) from 0:48, the sound image changes completely 5. Get Ready 6. Badge 7. I Shot The Sheriff 8. Singing The Blues Disc 2 (42:18) 1. The Sky Is Crying 2. Steady Rollin’ Man 3. Little Wing 4. Layla 5. Tell The Truth Eric Clapton – Guitar, Vocals George Terry – Guitar Dicks Sims – Keyboards Carl Radle – Bass Jamie Oldaker – Drums Yvonne Elliman – Backing Vocals Marcy Levy – Backing Vocal