Philips Arena, Atlanta, GA
18th June 2004


Review by : Ted Pewitt

First of all, I had great seats. Eighth row, dead centre. My experience may not be the same as everyone else's. I thought the show was incredible. This was the 6th time I have seen EC. This was by far the best. He and the band seemed to be having a great time. Clapton was in good spirits. I could see him laughing and joking with his band mates. H e did a great job of sharing the spotlight with the other band members. He played beautifully. Very intense, long solos. Especially "I shot the sheriff". Just incredible. The set list is the same as you have been hearing about throughout the tour. "Walk out in the rain" was a real bonus. I have loved that song for years. It was a real pleasure to hear him pull that one out. "Got to get better in a little while", "Have you ever loved a woman", and "Badge" all in a row about killed me. I had to sit down after that. That was the Clapton experience I have been waiting for all my life. All in all, I left there feeling completely satisfied that I had seen the EC that I have grown to know and love. I have been a fan of his for 20 years and that night reminded me why. God bless EC.


Review by : Clayton Donaldson

A self-serving performance, designed to indulge the artist, not the audience. At 59, Eric Clapton doesn't have to prove himself but you wish he would. It was good to see Clapton deviate from set lists of previous tours to offer his fans a taste of something new. Unfortunately, there was no passion in his performance. The contributions of his band and poor sound mixing didn't help matters. Having witnessed several Clapton concerts, the Atlanta show was the first that left this reviewer truly disappointed. Clapton pantomimed through long stretches of blues numbers that suffered from a lack of imagination. One didn't need to hear Tears In Heaven or Change The World in its place, but a fresh song or reworked classic would have been better suited for the occasion. I Shot The Sheriff, Layla and Cocaine were the only moments where one was reminded of the depth of Clapton's abilities. Whether they realize it or not, the audiences are the ones at the crossroads. With soaring ticket prices, the stakes have risen for the fans but not the artists. This leaves us with an interesting question: for what we give, what do we get? In Clapton's case, it should have been a lot more.


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