Australia's greatest singer-songwriter
T. Gadd | Tasmania, Australia | 07/06/2001
(5 out of 5 stars)
"Richard Clapton is - and probably will always be - the great undiscovered genius of Australian rock music. Not to say that he's completely unknown outside of his home country. Neil Young did specifically request him as as opening act for one of his Australian tours, and Jackson Browne has also admitted to being a Clapton fan.To appreciate the magnitude of Clapton's appearance on the Australian pop music scene, you really need to understand what a dismal situation it was in during the early to mid 1970's. The favourite band of the era were called 'Sherbet'. The best loved male singer was a soapie actor who wore a white suit and red carnation. If this weren't bad enough, we had glam rock acts like Willian Shakespeare, who made Garry Glitter look sensible, and at least two of the favoured bands of the era (Ol' 55 and Silver Studs) specialised in 'Happy Days' era pre-Beatles pop covers. The few genuinely worthwhile acts (The Dingos, Radio Birdman, The Saints, etc) weren't allowed within a bull's roar of Countdown - the tv pop show which dictated which singles Australian audiences were exposed to.By 1977 however, Richard Clapton had penned two big hits, 'Girls on the Avenue' and 'Capricorn Dancer', and was a major top 40 artist. He could not be brushed aside. One of my most indelible musical memories is of seeing Clapton play 'Deep Water' on Countdown in 1977. The song was from his new album 'Goodbye Tiger': an extraordinary record, which the liner notes of this compilation justly describe as 'the first great Australian rock album'. The album had an emotional edge to it which to my mind Clapton never quite managed to sustain again over the length of an entire LP (probably just as well, for his own sake). Clapton performed Deep Water on Countdown, surrounded by the obligatory, and in this case utterly incongruous teenyboppers. The first verse is a wistful rememberance of long-gone nights by the beach. The bridge descends into a sparse piece of hypnotic guitar picking, then a much older Clapton snarls"Sitting out on the Palm Beach Road I'm so drunk and the car won't go My crazy eyes keep lookin' out to sea. Sunday driver's are cruisin' round Wish they'd all go back to town What do they expect to find? Sure as hell ain't peace of mind" The song has to be heard for the impact to be appeciated. Perhaps it really needs to be heard in 1977 in Australia - but for me the raw emotion, the sense of alienation and bewilderment in that passage was a revelation. It was if he'd dropped his pants on national TV. I was already a Clapton fan, but from that moment onwards I was a devotee.There are many other songs on this collection which approach Deep Water in terms of their emotional impact. Clapton is one of only three songwriters I can think of, OTTOMH, capable of penning songs so beautiful as to reduce me to tears (the other two are Tom Rapp and Loudon Wainwright III.) Other songs on this album rock out, or are more soulful. Others are magnificent in their melancholy. Some are even joyous- particularly the immortal 'Capricorn Dancer', invoking a wild horse ride on a deserted tropical beach. If you want to develop any appeciation of Australian rock, and maybe even the Australian psyche, Clapton is an artist who you simply can't afford to miss. It's hard to know which to recommend of the two Clatpon compilations offered here. This is the newer and more extensive of the two, and is also re-mastered, so the sound is excellant. By bodyweight though, I think the 'very best of' has a higher ratio of good tracks. There are a few songs on this double CD which personally I would have left off. The other album also includes two classics, 'I wanna be a Survivor' and 'Suit Yourself' which aren't included on this album. However the laf dozen songs which I'd rate as his very best are on this album, and I think the other one misses 'The Best Years of our Lives' (another must-have).The original Australian release of this set comes with a bonus disc which contains video footage and 7 extra songs. You definately want the 2CD version, because the 2nd disc contains at least two indespensable Clatpon songs, 'Blue Bay Blues' and 'Walk on the Water'.Tim Gadd"
Richard Clapton is not Eric Clapton.......
Lynn Rank | Auberry,, CA USA | 07/01/2002
(5 out of 5 stars)
"GoodBye Tiger or Dulce Vita Years, Capricorn Dancer are not tied in with Australia. The man is exceptional whatever he sings, Auzzie related or not!!!! Even Australia couldn't keep him down; not particulary good looking, not much pizzzaaasss, Richard Clapton just "comes from the heart"......and then says Goodnight..."
