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Eric C. & Wynton M. Play The Blues In New York In 2011: A Look Back

11 Apr 21

On April 7. 2011, Eric Clapton and Wynton Marsalis with special guest Taj Mahal teamed up for Jazz at Lincoln Center’s Annual Gala. They then played two additional sold-out shows at the Rose Theater at Frederick P. Rose Hall and home of Jazz at Lincoln Center on April 8 and 9. At all performances, they were accompanied by an 8-piece band which featured EC’s long-time keyboard player, Chris Stainton, with the rest assembled by Wynton Marsalis from the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra. Filmed and recorded, the final two shows were released in audio and video formats as “Wynton Marsalis & Eric Clapton Play The Blues.” Now, ten years later, Where’s Eric! takes a look back with an article from our extensive archives along with sharing some video from the gigs plus the band lineup and each night’s set list.

ERIC CLAPTON … THREE NIGHTS OF RED HOT JAZZ IN NEW YORK CITY … APRIL 7, 8 and 9, 2011

In the summer of 1997, Eric Clapton dipped his toe in the waters of jazz with David Sanborn, Marcus Miller, Steve Gadd and Joe Sample touring the European Jazz Festivals as “Legends.” It was great stuff.

This April, EC jumped in head first at the deep end for three nights of red hot jazz at New York City’s Rose Theater with Wynton Marsalis and an 8-piece band. If music fans are lucky, he’ll stay in these waters for a good long time. Although it is only springtime, the concert series is definitely is up there for “gig of the year” honors. During the Friday show, Eric told the audience that when he was young, when he would meet his blues heroes, they would say “I’m just doing this (playing the blues) until I can get a gig in a jazz band” and that it took a lot of courage for him to sit in the chair on stage with Wynton and the band. He also said it was a dream come true for him to play jazz in its purest form. 

The musical virtuosos teamed up on stage for 90 minutes to explore the shared musical ground between New Orleans, the Delta and Chicago. The songs were selected by EC with the arrangements done by Marsalis. They performed the works of W.C. Handy, Louis Armstrong, Howlin’ Wolf, Big Maceo and more.  “Ice Cream” – the set’s opening number – was great early jazz fun. “Forty-Four” – a firm fan favorite from the ’94-’95 blues tour – was a joy to hear again especially with Eric’s spine-tingling solo. The only nod to Eric’s lengthy career was “Layla.” EC even admitted to the audience he didn’t want it in the set. Added at the request of Carlos Henriquez (bass) during rehearsals (or as Eric said with a smile, “foisted on me”) it was given a totally new arrangement. “Layla” swung like it was written for a New Orleans jazz band replete with trumpets, trombone and clarinet, rather than for a four piece rock outfit. Other highlights were “Joe Turner’s Blues”, “Careless Love,” and “Kidman Blues.” The concerts will certainly go down in history as some of the most important in EC’s legendary career.

A press release distributed before the show stated that the 10 song set would be drawn from a list of 13 songs. The three not performed were “Nobody Knows You When You’re Down And Out,” “When Somebody Thinks You’re Wonderful” and “T’aint Nobody’s Biz-ness”.

Although the band and audience were clearly enjoying themselves every night based on the broad smiles on everyone’s faces, there was an underlying seriousness of purpose. Unlike a rock audience, the jazz audience listened intently to the music being performed. Cell phones were turned off, there was no getting up and down throughout the show, digital cameras weren’t glowing throughout the audience, and most refreshingly, there wasn’t a constant drone of conversation in the hall. The acoustics were superb as the venue is one of the newer ones in New York City. Lastly, there wasn’t a single Stratocaster in sight. EC used a tobacco sunburst Gibson 335 for the majority of the numbers and only occasionally switched to a blonde Gibson L5.

Sharing the stage with Mr. C and Mr. M were: Marcus Printup (trumpet), Chris Crenshaw (trombone), Victor Goines (clarinet), Dan Nimmer (piano), Chris Stainton (keyboards), Carlos Henriquez (bass), Ali Jackson (drums) and Don Vappie (banjo). Taj Mahal was the special guest who opened the show and joined EC and Wynton for the final two songs each night.

Exiting the venue on both public performance nights, jazz fans and Clapton fans alike raved about the shows. Here’s what a few said to the Where’s Eric! Team:
– Eric should take this show on the road!
– Tonight’s performance is another watershed moment in Eric’s career, possibly more importantly musically than Unplugged.
– Eric hasn’t played this freely in a long-time, you could tell he was having fun and feeding off of all the musicians on stage.
– It was an evening of great music, but also of teaching and learning. I love shows like this. They were spotlighting music I should already know about, and I was hearing it for the first time.
– EC should do two weeks of shows like this here in New York; I’d be there every night.
– Can’t wait for the DVD to come out so I can relive every minute!

The gala performance on Thursday raised $3.6 million dollars for Jazz at Lincoln Center’s performance, education and broadcast events. The public performances on Friday and Saturday were filmed and recorded for later release.

Band Lineup:
Eric Clapton – guitar / vocals
Wynton Marsalis – trumpet
Marcus Printup – trumpet
Chris Crenshaw – trombone
Victor Goines – clarinet
Chris Stainton – keyboards
Dan Nimmer – piano
Carlos Henriquez – bass
Ali Jackson – drums
Don Vappie – banjo

Special Guest: Taj Mahal – guitar / piano / banjo / vocals

Set List – Thursday, April 7, 2011
01. Ice Cream (Howard Johnson / Robert King / Billy Moll)
02. Forty-Four (Chester Burnett)
03. Joe Turner’s Blues (W.C. Handy)
04. The Last Time (Bill Ewing / Sara Martin)
05. Careless Love (W.C. Handy / Martha E. Koenig / Spencer Williams)
06. Kidman Blues (Big Maceo Merriweather)
07. Layla (Eric Clapton / Jim Gordon)
08. Joliet Bound (Kansas Joe McCoy / Memphis Minnie McCoy)
09. Just A Closer Walk With Thee (Traditional) *
10. Corrine Corrina (Bo Chatman / Mitchell Parish / J. Mayo Williams) – encore *
* With Taj Mahal

Set List – Friday, April 8, 2011
01. Ice Cream (Howard Johnson / Robert King / Billy Moll)
02. Forty-Four (Chester Burnett)
03. Joe Turner’s Blues (W.C. Handy)
04. The Last Time (Bill Ewing / Sara Martin)
05. Careless Love (W.C. Handy / Martha E. Koenig / Spencer Williams)
06. Kidman Blues (Big Maceo Merriweather)
07. Layla (Eric Clapton / Jim Gordon)
08. Joliet Bound (Kansas Joe McCoy / Memphis Minnie McCoy)
09. Just A Closer Walk With Thee (Traditional) *
10. Corrine Corrina (Bo Chatman / Mitchell Parish / J. Mayo Williams) – encore *
* With Taj Mahal

Set List – Saturday, April 9, 2011
01. Ice Cream (Howard Johnson / Robert King / Billy Moll)
02. Forty-Four (Chester Burnett)
03. Joe Turner’s Blues (W.C. Handy)
04. The Last Time (Bill Ewing / Sara Martin)
05. Careless Love (W.C. Handy / Martha E. Koenig / Spencer Williams)
06. Kidman Blues (Big Maceo Merriweather)
07. Layla (Eric Clapton / Jim Gordon)
08. Joliet Bound (Kansas Joe McCoy / Memphis Minnie McCoy)
09. Just A Closer Walk With Thee (Traditional) *
10. Corrine Corrina (Bo Chatman / Mitchell Parish / J. Mayo Williams) – encore *
* With Taj Mahal

Where’s Eric! is a fan-run group since 1992 and the opinions expressed in its reviews are solely those of it’s volunteer staff.