I’ve never seen Eric Clapton perform live, but I’ve known his music for most of my life.
I remember being a little kid and taking a Cream record from my sisters. Hearing that music was an eye-opening experience compared to the pop music I’d been listening to at the time, like The Monkees and other groups from that era. There was something completely different about it, especially the guitar.
I’ve always had a fondness for Clapton’s music, although I’ll admit he was never necessarily number one on my radar. For whatever reason, I just never had the opportunity to see him play live until last night in St. Paul.
It was also kind of an odd concert experience for me coming right off being out on the road with Mötley Crüe. Obviously, these are two completely different worlds, but it was strange going from that environment to an entire audience basically sitting all evening and simply listening to the music. That’s not good or bad. It’s just completely different.
What surprised me most early in the show was that Clapton didn’t play as many of the solos as I expected. He has an incredibly talented guitar player alongside him and an outstanding band, and he seemed perfectly comfortable letting the musicians around him shine. The entire band was incredibly tight, and the music was played about as perfectly as you could ask for.
The other thing that really surprised me was how good Eric sounded vocally.
He opened with a Cream classic and moved through several electric songs before settling into a long acoustic portion of the show. That included “Layla” and “Tears in Heaven,” which personally are two of my favorite Clapton songs. Hearing both of those live after knowing them for so many years was probably one of the highlights of the night for me.
Then the band plugged back in, turned things up again and finished the main set with “Cocaine” before returning for the encore.
Clapton is playing a pretty limited number of dates these days, which made seeing this show feel a little more significant. At 81 years old, he certainly doesn’t have anything left to prove. He’s been making music for more than six decades, and his influence reaches far beyond the people who would consider themselves Eric Clapton fans.
That’s probably what I took away from the night more than anything.
Sometimes you go to a concert because it’s your favorite band. Other times you go because you realize you’re getting an opportunity to stand—or in this case, mostly sit—in the same room with someone who helped shape the music that came after him.
I’m grateful I finally got the opportunity to see Eric Clapton play live.
And for any of you reading this who are total metalheads: even if Clapton isn’t normally what you listen to, give his music some time. Pick up an old Cream record. Listen to some Derek and the Dominos. Put on one of his solo albums or pull him up on Spotify.
You don’t have to be a huge fan to recognize what you’re hearing.
Eric Clapton is a true icon, and I’m glad I finally got to see him.