Eric Clapton/OK,USA 1976

This week, Eric Clapton’s treasured live recordings will be released again. All three works will be released on CD at once, but all of them are completely premiered and shocking masters provided by our trusted British-based heavyweight Taper. First of all, this board is a clear and wide stereo audience recording of the November 16th performance in Norman, Oklahoma from the “No Reason to Cry US Tour” in the fall of 1976. Here, let’s review the topic of this year and see how this US tour was positioned in Clapton’s activities.・July 29th to August 17th, 1976: UK tour ≪August 1st, 1976: Album “NO REASON TO CRY” released≫ ・November 5th to 22nd, 1976: US tour ←★Here★ ・November 26th, 1976: The Band’s dissolution concert “The Last Waltz” held In other words, this US tour was positioned as a promotional tour for the album, which was released following the release of “NO REASON TO CRY,” a confident work produced with the participation of Bob Dylan and members of The Band. Naturally, the set list included new songs from this album. You can see Clapton’s enthusiasm in the fact that he performed three songs from the beginning to the first half of this album. Although this is the first public audience master, unfortunately, due to the remaining tape at the time, only Further On Up The Road, which is thought to have been played in the encore, has not been recorded, but all the other songs are recorded with clear and easy-to-listen-to sound quality. Although the original master was the first shock master to be released in Japan, the pitch had risen over time and the hiss noise was noticeable. However, our professional engineer corrected the pitch and reduced the hiss noise using a special method, recreating the sound quality. Speaking of the sound source of this day, in the past, there was a stereo soundboard 2CD title called “ONE NIGHT IN OKLAHOMA” as a previously released board. Although this previously released board is not a complete recording, some people may think that this is enough because it is a stereo soundboard title. However! It is. This time, it was revealed by comparing the heavyweight taper master and the previously released board that “ONE NIGHT IN OKLAHOMA” did not actually contain any take of the Oklahoma performance of this day. Before this performance, there were performances in various cities such as San Antonio, Houston, and Dallas, all of which were line-recorded for radio shows, and the fact that a compilation of the best takes was aired on “King’s Biscuit Flower Hour”. In other words, “ONE NIGHT IN OKLAHOMA” was actually composed of a mix of takes from these three performances. This leads to the conclusion that the master of this board, which recorded the genuine Oklahoma performance, is the true first appearance master of this day. Although it is an audience recording, this board, recorded with very easy-to-listen-to sound quality, is the title that exposes the whole picture of the true Oklahoma performance under the light of day. As you can see from listening, this is the first take to hear all the songs. What’s more, the wonderful thing is that Clapton on this day is in top form and playing hard. He switched to electric and already showed good form with the first Tell The Truth, and the next song Double Trouble had an explosive solo. In the second half of Key To The Highway, he decided to play elegant and thrilling, and even in the 10-minute I Shot the Sheriff afterplay, he played a very emotional phrase, and in Layla’s afterplay, he played hard. On this day, Layla is teasing the audience with the “intro tease” that she often did in 1974 and 1975. This first appearance sound source, which also has such a nostalgic scene, is something that even non-fans should listen to. It is generally believed that the 1976 tour, when Clapton began to lean towards country music, was a loose one, but that’s not true! This contains the exact opposite of that, a performance of Clapton that is full of eerie energy. I would like you to hear this for yourself. This is a release with a good master of a true Oklahoma performance that has never seen the light of day before. Live at Lloyd Noble Center, Norman, OK. USA 16th November 1976 Disc 1 (48:21) 1. Intro. 2. Hello Old Friend 3. Sign Language 4. Tell The Truth 5. Double Trouble 6. Knocking On Heaven’s Door 7. Blues Power Disc 2 (42:06) 1. Can’t Find My Way Home (feat. Yvonnne Elliman) 2. Key To The Highway 3. I Shot the Sheriff 4. One Night (feat. Marcy Levy) 5. Layla Eric Clapton – Guitar / Vocals George Terry – Guitar Dicks Sims – Keyboards Carl Radle – Bass Jamie Oldaker – Drums Sergio Pastora Rodriguez – Percussion Yvonne Elliman – Backing Vocals Marcy Levy – Backing Vocals