Enjoyable read
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I have been following EC and his music since the mid-60s, and saw all his bands from Cream onwards. He was the main inspiration to me picking up the guitar in 1969 (he has a lot to answer for there!) and nearly 40 years later I'm still gigging!
I have all the various books written about him, of which Ray Coleman's "Survivor" is outstanding, although quite a few years out of date now (having said that, get a copy of the wonderful book "Strange Brew"). I got the EC book as a Christmas present, and finished it in 2 days. I might have expected lots of info about his guitars, amplifiers, strings used etc; but we've all read about them countless times in various magazine articles. The book is essentially about his personal life, and appears to have been written perhaps in an attempt to cleanse his soul, as he is painfully honest about his shortcomings as a person.
I enjoyed the book very much, and I think it would appeal to potential readers other than EC fans, as a document of the life of a famous person during some very heady times.
There is far too much written about Clapton being the best guitarist in the world, which even he knows is rubbish. He is a supremely talented player who has had a huge influence, but there are many dozens of other similarly talented players in blues, rock, country, jazz, classical, flamenco, and the other musical genres. So it's 5 stars for his music (most of it!) and 4 stars for the book!
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Good But Shame Not More About The Music
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Overall this was an interesting book about a major figure in rock music. I should have preferred the balance to have been more about his music and less about the other aspects of his life, such as the pleasures of cruising his 45m yacht around the Mediterranean. And within the music related material, I should have welcomed more on his reputation-establishing period of say 1964 to 1970, and less on later work, such as "Pilgrim".
Having said that, an artist's experiences must influence his work, and so perhaps it is important to read about his relationship with Patti and his various addictions. Also his opinions on such matters as religion and hunting, whether to one's taste or not, are valuable in forming a picture of the author's character.
Talking of the "author", it was never clear to me who actually was writing the book, Clapton or one of his ghost writers. At one extreme, there are several example of the phrase structure "me and x did y", which surely must have been written by Clapton himself. At the other extreme, there are passages where there are descriptions along the lines of "I remember thinking how I had never seen X so happy" along with supporting statements which you just know are setting you up for something unfortunate happening to X a page or two later, a technique presumably used by a more experienced writer.
Still, well worth reading by anyone with even just a small interest in the man and his times.
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The Legend
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yes this man is a Legend in his own right, the book was a brilliant read at times he repeated him self, but he gave a good insight in to his life and his music he must rate as the best guitarist in the world it was sad that he was addicted to substance and grief stricken over the loss of his son. This book is a must read for his fans or any one who likes Eric i would now like to read what Pattie Boyd says in her book.
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A complex man made commonplace
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I read Pattie Boyds book first and was keen to see things from Eric's perspective but was not really any wiser about his experience of their relationship after reading this. Eric comes across as a real music bore I am afraid. The technical details of the guitars and the music he made dominate the book and I could hear this nerdy voice in my head from time to time ! I found the South Bank Show that was on a few months ago more revealing, I guess you can hold alot more back when you are putting stuff in print. Even the accounts of his early years do not seem to get to the core of the man. Altogether disappointing, but I have to admire him for his restraint
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Boring...
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It is an honest book, no doubt about it. But I can't help to think that Clapton's brain must look like a gruyere cheese, which explains all the holes in the story, and why page after page we are remainded about how much he used to drink or snort..
I felt dissapointed about the stories, as he seems to have completely forgotten the details of remarkable events in his career, e.g. the Rainbow Concert; the 1974 tour; the encores with Santana, Joe Cocker and Keith Moon in the 75 Tour; his role in the Stones' TOTA 75; the Last Waltz concert with The Band (76); playing with Freddie King; the success of Slowhand; the 1979-1980 tours in Japan; touring with Roger Waters; etc, etc.
My sad reading of this lack of info is that he vaguely remembers events and faces as he spent most of the 70s, 80s and early 90s completely drunk or stoned. So it seems to me that the comments he makes from that time are merely "stolen" from other books or simply by commenting on snapshots that appear on the cover of his albums.
Other readers have mentioned the lack of comments about his technique and his music and I adhere to those.
But I don't want to be harsh as he has a gift and have made happy millions around the world, something that not too many can put on their cv. In any case, the two stars are for his book, not for his contribution to music, which clearly exceeds any limited scope a rating can provide.
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