Eric Clapton/MA,USA 1975 Upgrade

He’s coming to Japan now! Eric Clapton. To commemorate his 22nd Japan tour, he will be releasing a surprising upgrade master! The sound source to be released this time is Steve Hopkins’ master cassettes (Dolby B encoded) by JEMS, which was recently uploaded online, and is a complete ultra-high-quality stereo audience recording of the Springfield performance on June 24th of the 1975 US tour. This is what was recorded. Exactly 10 years ago in 2009, we had already made a sound disc from the same JEMS sound source, but there was such a difference in the freshness and depth of the sound that we could definitely say that this time it was the original master quality. Although the sound quality of the previously released version is high, it is obvious at a glance (hearing) when comparing it with the extension of high-pitched sounds such as cymbals and the lack of low-pitched hum noise. This source was originally used on the 1975 tour, and together with the high quality of Clapton’s play, it was highly rated as one of the “Four Great Sound Sources.” The recording was made by the famous taper Steve Hopkins using the Sony ECM-99a Stereo Mic and Sony TC-152SD, high-end models at the time, and is the pinnacle of stereo audience recording, surpassing even stereo soundboards. It is a sound source that still has an unwavering reputation. Therefore, it has been released by multiple labels in the past. This time, JEMS has refined the original master to an even higher level. It can be said that it completely reproduces the dimension of being at a concert venue, which is completely different from a sound board in terms of the sense of presence and spread of sound. Furthermore, our shop has precisely adjusted the pitch, which was slightly high in the original. Also, there was a part that was slightly shorter than the previous release, so we patched that part from the previous release to create the longest version with the highest sound quality. However, please rest assured that the patch part was not an important part of the song (please refer to the ★ in the song list for details). This is simply the result of trying to achieve the highest sound quality and longest version. Now, let’s look back on Clapton’s activities this year and review the meaning of this concert. ≪April 1, 1975: Album “THERE’S ONE IN EVERY CROWD” released≫・April 7th to 28th, 1975: Oceania tour・June 14th to August 30th, 1975: U.S. tour ←★Here ★・September 1975 Off・October-November 1975: Second Japan Tour As you can see, most of the year was devoted to touring, and among them, this The US tour was the main event. And this day was the 10th performance since the start of the tour. As the tour name suggests, it was originally meant to promote the just-released album “THERE’S ONE IN EVERY CROWD”, but at this point it seems like Clapton is no longer particular about that meaning. Although the song Better Make It Through Today from the album is included in the set, it is attractive that there are so many rare numbers on this day. After all, 6 songs, almost half of the 13 songs from the Derek & The Dominos era, were also played. Along with this, the performance content is full of passion that can only be described as wonderful, as if reproducing the play from the Dominos era. I get the impression that he is a different person from Clapton, who survived the previous year’s comeback tour by exposing his ugliness as a result of being drunk (although it is true that he continued to drink at this time, I don’t feel the influence at all). What’s more, even though the tour has already started, they have the positivity of showing off their new song Knockin’ On Heaven’s Door, which they recorded at Miami’s Criteria Studio on the 16th, just before it’s release. I’m also showing you. On top of that, in the Dominos number Keep On Growing and his own work Mainline Florida, he shows that he has the leeway to feature second guitarist George Terry on vocals. The former was a rare number that was only played a few times on this tour, and the latter was selected as the ending theme for Clapton’s biopic “Eric Clapton – 12 Bars” released last year. . Clapton’s good performance on this day can be immediately confirmed by the opening Layla and the subsequent play of Bell Bottom Blues. The solo he plays is filled with his original skill and singing heart. In Layla, the slow hand playing technique is already exploding, and in Bell Bottom Blues, the amazing “tame” is overflowing with good taste. In the new song Better Make It Through Today, he also performed an exquisite solo with a wah effect. In the second half, there was a 19-minute medley from Tell The Truth to Crossroads, and for the encore, Carlos Santana, who served as the opening act, joined in for a heated guitar battle with Why Does Love Got To Be So Sad, which also lasted 19 minutes. is unfolding. In addition to Santana, percussionist Alfonso Mouzon of the Santana Band also participates in this song. With his participation, the structure is such that a stormy percussion and drum solo is developed here (Clapton band drummer Jamie Oldaker is also good!). There is no time to list the highlights, but the highlight is the 7-minute instrumental jam that was played completely improvised on this day. Historically, this is a very unusual topic for Clapton’s live performance, but I also take my hat off to the high potential of the band that was able to respond to this kind of thing immediately and achieve such high play quality. Clapton’s elegant solo that can be heard here is also something I would like you to listen to even if you are not a fan. This is the highest sound quality board where you can truly enjoy “Clapton on a great day”. Please take this opportunity to collect one of the four major sound sources from the 1975 tour in the longest version with the highest sound quality. It is no exaggeration to say that you can understand Clapton’s greatness just by listening to this album. And please give your respect to Clapton, who has made many of these famous performances, at the Budokan. (Remastered memo) ●This time’s sound is clearly closer to the master and better. (Although the sound quality of the previous releases is high, it is easy to understand by the extension of the high-pitched sounds such as cymbals and the lack of low-pitched hum noise.)●The supplements marked with ★ below are not important areas, so there is no need to supplement them.However, For the purpose of clearly understanding the difference in sound quality and to create a full-length version, I replaced the previously released version as is. ● 5. Instrumental Jam 8:41 has a loud whistling sound in the original sound, but it has been processed by JEMS. There are several other similar processes. ●The pitch was a little high, so I fixed it. Live at Civic Center, Springfield, Massachusetts, USA 24th June 1975 PERFECT SOUND Disc 1 (61:52) 1. Intro. 2. Layla 3. Bell Bottom Blues 4. Key To The Highway 5. Instrumental Jam ★8:03 – 8 :05 Complement 6. Can’t Find My Way Home 7. Better Make It Through Today 8. Keep On Growing ★7:25 – 7:29 Complement 9. Teach Me To Be Your Woman Disc 2 (61:04) 1. Mainline Florida 2. Knockin’ On Heaven’s Door 3. Tell The Truth 4. Crossroads ★5:38 – 5:39 Compensation 5. Why Does Love Got To Be So Sad (with Carlos Santana)★19:47 – Until the End (Total 8 seconds) Compensation Eric Clapton : Guitar & Vocals George Terry : Guitar Carl Radle : Bass Dick Sims : Keyboards Jamie Oldaker : Drums Yvonne Elliman : Backing Vocals Marcy Levy : Backing Vocals Carlos Santana (Guest Appearance on Why Does Love Got To Be So Sad )