Eric Clapton/Tokyo,Japan 4.13.2019 Upgrade

Sorry for the wait! Eric Clapton’s Japan Tour 2019 ended with great success after five performances. We will release the best sound source of the first day’s performance, which became a legend! Although “Budokan 2019 Day 1” and “Budokan 2019 Day 1: New Masters”, which were released at a super fast speed, were also high quality, we wanted to release a special super high quality version. The master of this board was uploaded to the Internet the other day, and it was the best sound quality that could be heard with Schoeps MK4 microphone recording. And aiming for even higher heights, we applied our own remastering process to improve the sound to the limit without overdoing it. We can say with confidence that this board is the number one sound source on the first day! Well, many fans already know why this first day’s performance was so shocking, but let me write it down again. It was in the set list. In recent years, Clapton has not changed his setlist much, and contrary to the general expectation that “He will start slowly with his favorite J.J. Cale’s unreleased number Somebody’s Knocking,” he started hard with Pretending, which was the opening number of the 1989 album “JOURNEYMAN.” This day was a premonition that “something was different.” This actually came true with the third song, Wanna Make Love to You, a hidden masterpiece that he had not played for 30 years since 1989 (an outtake from the album “AUGUST”). The intro was arranged from the original version, so much so that even the most enthusiastic fans could not remember the name of the song. The solo that Clapton played in this song was full of melancholy and singing. His new custom strat with a smoky green finish roared as if he was screaming in anguish. It was a selection of songs that was enough to surprise even long-time fans. And I Shot The Sheriff, which has a reputation as the first half of Clapton’s live stage. At the beginning of the solo in the postlude, Clapton played some old-fashioned mistakes, but from there he showed a tearful struggle to bring himself up to the level of his past. There was an aggressive Clapton, carefully constructing his solo, checking each note as if returning to his former self. Even in his old age, there was still a great Clapton. Then, amidst loud cheers, the stage moved to an acoustic set. After a gentle, wonderful Martin sound, the stage transitioned to a standing set again. Here, Clapton slammed the venue into a crucible of excitement with the “electric” Layla, which was the first in 10 years in Japan. In recent years, Clapton has only played “unplugged” Layla in acoustic sets while he has not been feeling well, but after the sitting set, he hit the original version, which consumes much more energy than that. The excitement in the venue at this time is captured in real life on this board. It was a tremendous cheer. In fact, there was a story behind the appearance of this unexpected number at this unexpected spot that was later revealed. On the set list sheet for the first day that was leaked by the tour staff, Layla was written as the finale of the main (regular) set. The electric number after the acoustic set was Badge on the sheet. In other words, when playing the electric Layla for the first time in a long time, Clapton got so excited that he made a mistake in the song order, and ended up playing Layla, which should have been played last, here. So he repeated the seven-note phrase of the intro three times, turned to Doyle, and said with a big smile, “Hey, I got the song order wrong. Follow me.” What a happening! Clapton got so excited that he got the song order wrong. There’s no doubt that this was the highlight of the day, but Clapton was in top form from here on out. Crossroads was great, and Little Queen of Spades, where I enjoyed the band members’ solos, was also great! And Before You Accuse Me was a complete surprise gift song that wasn’t even on the set list sheet (the band must have been surprised). This was one of the reasons why the first day was “special”. Now, what’s the encore? While the audience was expecting it, it was young guitar hope John Mayer, who had just finished his Budokan performance two days before, who appeared with Clapton. The venue turned into a crucible of excitement. Naturally, the arena seats were all standing. The song chosen here was Cocaine, which Mayer can easily play with the pentatonic scale. It is likely that Clapton knew about Mayer’s surprise before the show started and was saving this song for Mayer’s surprise. Naturally, the second solo was given to Mayer, and he decided on a long solo with a phrase that was just annoying. It was a special treatment that was longer than Clapton’s solo. The encore after the second day’s performance was High Time We Went featuring Paul Carrack as usual, so the first day was “special”. Live at Budokan, Tokyo, Japan 13th April 2019 TRULY PERFECT/ULTIMATE SOUND Disc 1 (52:53) 1. Intro 2. Pretending 3. Key to the Highway 4. Wanna Make Love to You 5. I’m Your Hoochie Coochie Man 6. I Shot the Sheriff 7. Driftin’ Blues 8. Running on Faith 9. Nobody Knows You When You’re Down and Out 10 Tears in Heaven Disc 2 (52:00) 1. Layla 2. Badge 3. Wonderful Tonight 4. Crossroads 5. Little Queen of Spades 6. Before You Accuse Me 7. Cocaine (with John Mayer) Eric Clapton – guitar, vocals Doyle Bramhall ? – guitar, vocals Chris Stainton – piano, keyboards Paul Carrack – organ, keyboards, vocals Nathan East – bass　Sonny Emory – drums　Sharon White – backing vocals　Katy Kissoon – backing vocal