Search - Sonny Boy Williamson :: In Europe With Clapton / Dixon / Spann / Murphy

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Docendo Discimus | Vita scholae | 06/05/2003

(3 out of 5 stars)

"They may try to sell this album by putting Eric Clapton's name in the title, but the fact is that Eric Clapton was an insecure 18-year old when he and the Yardbirds backed Sonny Boy on a few European dates, and this is all Sonny Boy Williamson.It's not great Sonny Boy Williamson, though. Too often does he sound unengaged, and the band is nowhere near a match for the all-star combos that accompanied Rice Miller on his Chess recordings in the 50s and early 60s. Also, the production is nothing to write home about (the instruments are pushed too far into the background, making it sound like Miller is singing to a lifeless, pre-recorded track). Most of the songs lack the nerve and groove usually associated with Sonny Boy Williamson, who was one of the very best blues singers when the spirit moved him.There are a couple of good moments, but this set doesn't come close to matching Rice Miller's Chicago classics available on "The Essential Sonny Boy Williamson [II]"."