Record Details
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Record ID
2062
Artist
Eric Clapton
Title
Eric Clapton & Steve Winwood Live From Madison Square Garden
Field / Genre
Acoustic
Year Recorded
2009
Label
Reprise
Pressing
Aus
Rating
****
Discs
2
Media
CD
Date Bought
15 May 2009
Cost
¤24.99
Cover Name
—
Review
<p>Live from Madison Square Garden, the double live album (and DVDs) compiled from Eric Clapton and Steve Winwood's reunion concerts, was released on May 19th, 2009. Until the concerts, which took place at New York City's historic venue from February 25th to the 28th of 2008, the two rocks legends and longtime friends had yet to perform a full concert together for nearly 40 years. Clapton and Winwood had first worked together in the 1966 blink-and-you-missed it supergroup Eric Clapton and the Powerhouse. The two would join forces yet again for another supergroup in 1969, the acclaimed Blind Faith. Unfortunately, due to a number of issues, the group dissolved within a year of its creation and Blind Faith's final performance took place in Hawaii on August 24th of 1969. The idea for a reunion concert would arise from the 2007 Crossroads Guitar Festival where Clapton and Winwood took the stage together to perform a small number of songs.</p><p>Live from Madison Square Garden compiled the cream of the performances taken from those the concerts to showcase this historic reunion of rock and roll royalty. With the help of Chris Stainton on keyboards, Ian Thomas on drums, and Willie Weeks on bass, Winwood and Clapton beautifully performed songs from each other's lengthy musical careers in addition to a number of classic blues and rock covers. As expected, a healthy dose of Blind Faith's one and only album graced both the stage and recorded releases, with “Had To Cry Today”, “Presence of the Lord”, and “Can't Find My Way Home” shinning the brightest. A number of songs from Winwood's breakthrough group, Traffic, such as “Dear Mr. Fantasy”, “Glad”, and “Pearly Queen”, made appearances. Clapton brought with him his chart-topping “Forever Man” as well as his beloved renditions of J.J. Cales' “After Midnight” and “Cocaine”. The music of Jimi Hendrix was also celebrated as “Little Wing”, the Band of Gypsys piece “Them Changes”, and, the quintessential example of psychedelic blues, “Voodoo Chile” were all brilliantly brought to life. Months before the live album was even released, Clapton and Winwood announced a 14 date tour of the United States that would kick off on June 10th, 2009, and would follow that tour with others in the following years. Live from Madison Square Garden went on to be quite the success and is truly a treat for a fan of either Clapton or Winwood. Hands down, it should not be missed!</p>