Search - Derek & The Dominos :: Layla & Other Assorted Love Songs

Consummate blues, born out of the pain of unfulfilled love.

Themis-Athena | from somewhere between California and Germany | 10/06/2006

(5 out of 5 stars)

""Have you ever loved a woman, so much you're tremblin' in pain, and all the time you know she bears another man's name - but you just love that woman so much, it's a shame and a sin ... and all the time you know she belongs to your very best friend!" If you'd never heard this album's title track, you would swear that "Have You Ever Loved A Woman" was the song that Eric Clapton wrote for Pattie Boyd Harrison; not only do the lyrics of Billy Myles' blues classic fit so perfectly, Clapton positively pours his heart out as he sings them, and his guitar screams with the pain of unrequited love. And even before get to this song, Clapton's own "Bell Bottom Blues" lays bare similar feelings and recalls his infamous heroin ultimatum to Pattie ("Either you come with me or I'll take that"): "Do you wanna see me crawl across the floor to you? Do you wanna hear me beg you to take me back?" And as the man pleads with her, so does his guitar, and you wonder what woman could possibly have resisted such an impassioned plea.



Until of course, almost at the end of the album, you hear "Layla," this record's motto more than a simple title track and, in many respects, its reason for being. Torn by personal insecurity, Clapton used the cover and seeming anonymity of yet another band, and the parable of a medieval Persian love story ("Layla and Majnun" - reportedly, "majnun," in Persian, means madman) to put into music what he couldn't put into words alone. From its opening riff to its last note the song is pure blues, Clapton audibly on the brink of the madness he sings about, and his guitar wailing, moaning and crying out all that was in his heart: "Layla ... you got me on my knees - Layla ... I'm begging darling, please - Layla ... won't you ease my worry now?"



Sparks must have been flying in the studio while Eric Clapton and Duane Allman, recruited by manager Tom Dowd to add inspiration and take some of the lead guitar weight off Clapton's shoulders, drove each other to ever greater heights, simultaneously feeding off and to each other. Like most of the album, "Layla" was recorded live in the studio, and only a live recording could transmit this feverish outbreak of passion. Merely listening to the song is emotionally exhausting, and you can only imagine what must have gone on in the studio and inside Clapton during its recording. To hear the Allman Brothers' drummer Butch Trucks tell the story (in an interview for "Off the Record"), Duane Allman gave "Layla" its finishing touch when he added the five notes immediately following its signature riff. Yet, Allman is not credited as a writer (if that story is true, though, how much more than those five notes would it have taken I wonder?); only drummer Jim Gordon is, for having written the song's piano closing - which he had to be persuaded to allow to be used.



And while Eric Clapton continued to perform the song unaltered for years after its initial recording, he spontaneously decided to include it in the setlist of his MTV "Unplugged" appearance where, deprived of all its riffs, even its signature beginning toned down to a few simple notes, and Clapton's voice unexpectedly reflective, Layla assumed a different personality although not a word of the lyrics was altered. Yet, just as Eric Clapton's and Pattie Boyd's marriage was over by then, Layla was now less an object of burning desire than somebody the singer thought about - thought back to maybe, or sought a conversation with, possibly cautioning her about the consequences of her actions, or recalling his experiences with her: "What will you do when you get lonely, no one waiting by your side? You've been running, hiding much too long - you know it's just your foolish pride ..." And although Clapton has gone back to performing the song in its "plugged in" version during his 2001 "Reptile" tour, he has confined himself to talking only about its musical values, commenting on the technical difficulties of playing riffs and chords that are virtually opposite to what you are singing in an interview for the tour's official program.



Besides Eric Clapton and late addition Duane Allman, Derek And The Dominos consisted of the musicians "left over" by the breakup of Delaney and Bonnie, with whom Clapton had briefly found shelter after yet another supergroup of his (Blind Faith) had disintegrated way too quickly: Bobby Whitlock, Carl Radle and Jim Gordon. Like virtually all of Eric Clapton's albums, solo as well as with his various bands, this record combines material written by Clapton himself and covers of songs he liked; and of course, there is much more to it than "Layla," "Have You Ever Loved A Woman" and "Bell Bottom Blues." As always, Clapton makes his mark with every song alike, and as always, he needs and has found (or Tom Dowd found for him) a cast of outstanding musicians to work with. Segar/Bronzy's "Key to the Highway" becomes an extended blues jam session as there ever was one, and Jimmie Cox's "Nobody Knows You When You're Down and Out" forecasts the feelings which, among other things, later compelled Clapton to establish the Crossroads foundation.



Eric Clapton has said about Derek And The Dominos in the interview for the "Reptile" tour program: "[That] was a band I really liked - and it's almost like I wasn't in that band. It's just a band that I'm a fan of. Sometimes, my own music can be like that. When it's served its purpose to being good music, I don't associate myself with it any more. It's like someone else. It's easy to do those songs then." Hearing the raging pain of "Layla"'s original recording, you wonder whether this is maybe also the only way for him to perform it now ... at least "plugged in."



Also recommended:

Eric Clapton's Rainbow Concert

Crossroads

Unplugged

One More Car: One More Rider (CD & DVD Set)

Riding with the King

The Allman Brothers at Fillmore East"

The best album of all Clapton's career

Nichomachus | 05/16/2004

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Despite being a real Cream fan, I've never subscribed to "Clapton is God" theory. However, Derek and the Domino's LAYLA AND OTHER ASSORTED LOVE SONGS is, I believe, one of the greatest rock albums of all time. The musicianship is absolutely incredible, the songs are amazing, and I think that it features Clapton's best blues playing of his career. I recently rebought this on CD. I had it on tape from when I was a kid, but I wore the darn thing out. All of these are love songs; ballads, blues numbers, and straight out rock. Duane Allman plays rhythm guitar and backup vocals on many of the selections, and the effect on the energy is palpable. This is infectious rock and roll at its finest, played with a maturity and sincerity that I think is really hard to find anywhere else, and is listenable in any context. All the songs are complete and balanced; there is no self-indulgent excess here, and the band is tight. Although these are all love songs, the main reason why this album just plain WORKS is that there is no typical rock adolescent fixation on sexuality, and there is no hyper-sincere self-pitying narcissism that marks most rock love songs from the seventies and early eighties. Just look at the "monster ballads" for sale on late-night TV, and you understand that its only by our nostalgia and camp humor that bands like Journey still get by.LAYLA totally transcends that. There is real content, real sincerity, and superb playing that takes this album to a higher level. Clapton's writing and arrangements are perfect. The covered tunes are great selections; various in style and translated perfectly by the band. Each song holds up on its own, and the album as a whole is unsurpassable. "I Looked Away" starts out right away with a straight forward, tightly played song. "Bell Bottom Blues" is a classic in its own right; Clapton, no great singer by any measure, nails this one. The 9+ minutes "Key to the Highway" is a great blues romp that is never tedious. "Why Does Love..." is a frantic balls-out jam. The cover of Hendrix's "Little Wing" almost makes for an off-note with its pretentious intro, but having two singers and great guitar solos makes it a wonderful tribute to Jimi. "Layla" of course is the one everyone knows, a 7-minute song with the 4-minute ending; a glorious excess. My personal favorite, however, is the last tune: Bobby Whitlock's solo "Thorn Tree in the Garden," which is so soulful and elegant I wish it were more well-known. Almost have the songs are over 6 minutes. Altogether the album is almost 78 minutes. So quantity and quality all come together here. This is definitely a must-have. Clapton's best work. It'll liven you up on the sunny days and get you through the rainy ones."