Blues Power

Eric Clapton in concert at the Liverpool Arena last night. I’ve waited four years for this as I originally had tickets to see him in 2020, and we all know what happened then! With him nearing 80 now - and reports of finding playing painful due to a nerve disorder - I had all but given up hope of ever seeing him perform again. However, he is out there touring this year and, despite now looking his age, I am pleased to report that his voice and guitar virtuosity are still as strong as I remember.
I first saw him in concert in 1990 and, amazingly, two of the band from then are still playing on this tour - Nathan East on bass and Katie Kissoon in backing vocals. The rest of the band have been regular fixtures for a long time, though long standing sideman Andy Fairweather Low has been promoted to support act for the European leg of the tour. His place is now filled by the almost equally long serving Doyle Bramhall.
And the concert was excellent. Electric set, followed by acoustic set and then a final electric set to finish. A couple of contentious moments. He has spoken out about the suffering in Gaza, especially in relation to the children caught up in the conflict. He performed the song he has written about it to a backdrop of film from the war torn cities. And he played it in a guitar painted in the colours of the Palestinian flag. Nothing was said and the audience seemed to appreciate he was not trying to preach to us. However, the inclusion of a snippet of “You’ll Never Walk Alone” before segueing into “Tears In Heaven” resulted in a far more vocal response from the audience. Judging by the insults I heard, we were probably seated near some Everton supporters.
The set was predominately blues standards and fan favourites. A bit of online browsing showed that what we heard was slightly different to what he played at the previous concert in Newcastle. So maybe he’s mixing it up each night. Which is a good thing, as we’re going to see him again at the Royal Albert Hall in ten days time!