ERIC CLAPTON - BUDOKAN 2023 1ST NIGHT(2CD)
Live at Budokan, Tokyo, Japan 15th April 2023(from Original Masters)

Disc 1 (59:28)
1. Intro.
2. Blue Rainbow
3. Pretending
4. Key To The Highway
5. Hoochie Coochie Man
6. I Shot The Sheriff
7. MC
8. Kind Hearted Woman
9. Nobody Knows You When You're Down And Out
10. Call Me The Breeze
11. Sam Hall
12. Tears In Heaven
13. Kerry

Disc 2 (46:23)
1. Badge
2. Wonderful Tonight
3. Crossroads
4. Little Queen of Spades
5. Layla
6. High Time We Went

Eric Clapton - guitar, vocals
Doyle Bramhall II - guitar, vocals
Chris Stainton - piano, keyboards
Paul Carrack - organ, keyboards, vocals
Nathan East - bass
Sonny Emory - drums
Sharon White - backing vocals
Katy Kissoon - backing vocals

Tricone 215/216

ERIC CLAPTON - BUDOKAN 2023 1ST NIGHT (2CD)
Live at Budokan, Tokyo, Japan 15th April 2023 ULTIMATE SOUND(from Original Masters)

[Eric Clapton 2023 Permanent preservation board of the best audience master on the first day of the Budokan performance! ]

Sorry I made you wait! Eric Clapton's Japan Tour 2023, which ended with a great success after completing all six performances. We will release the best sound source of the legendary first day performance on the press board! The 2CDR “Budokan 2023 Day 1”, which was pleased with the super-fast release, was also of high sound quality, but if it was released on a press CD, I would definitely like to release a special ultra-high-quality board. Therefore, it will be the master of this work, but it is a completely original master, and the recording seats are the first floor stand and front row. Front row means that there are no obstacles in front and the musical sounds from the stage and PA can be caught directly. Furthermore, the point is that the applause of the surrounding customers is small, it is very clear and easy to listen to, and it is non-stressful. You don't even feel the distance between the first floor stand and the stage. I affirm. This work is the highest peak in the sound source of the first day! Please feel free to add this work to your collection.

[A gem that allows you to experience the whole picture of the first day performance more realistically! ]

Well, I think many fans already know why this first day performance was so shocking from last week's release review, but let's write it again. It was on the setlist. According to the majority of expectations in advance, since last year's European & American tour, the set list has not been messed with, and due to his age, he will not overwork himself, and most of the opinions seem to be that he will be able to perform safely on stage. was.

However, all of the audience at the Budokan must have been astonished because they completely betrayed their expectations and started with a new instrumental song, Blue Rainbow, which had not yet been released. After all, on the night of the concert, probably no one in Japan knew the name of this song until I saw the set list that was posted only on Clapton's fan site Where's ERIC! In retrospect, last year, after the death of my close friend musician Gary Brooker, I opened the tour with his song Leave Me To The Water and paid tribute to him. Also, when Queen Elizabeth passed away, she played the British national anthem at the opening concert on the same day. And even later on the American tour. This time, Clapton appeared with a white finish Strat. And I played this song with "finger pick". The phrase in this minor key song was sad, and Clapton's guitar seemed to be crying. And the song title is Blue Rainbow, which reminds me of Jeff Beck's representative song Blue Wind (included in the album "WIRED"). It is believed that Clapton wrote the song in memory of Jeff Beck and played it at the opening (Rainbow may have taken it from their mutual favorite repertoire, Somewhere Over The Rainbow). If you think about it that way, the white Strat and the finger picking all make sense. If you are a Clapton fan and a Beck fan, you should definitely listen to this song.

After that, things progressed almost as expected, but I Shot The Sheriff's post-play on this day had a wonderful phrase composition, as expected of Clapton! It made me think. And another surprise was waiting for the acoustic set in the middle stage. First of all, as soon as the setting was completed, he commented, "It's been a long time, but I'm glad to be back. It feels so great, so great." The audience roared with applause. It feels like Clapton is back. And acoustically Robert Johnson's Kind Hearted Woman! A first for acoustic. Will something big happen this time? I think everyone thought so. And J.J. Cale's Call Me The Breeze is played. This song is a rare number that was played in "Woking 2022", which was just released by our store the other day and recorded the memorial event of the late Gary Brooker at the end of last year with high sound quality. When I thought that it was rare, it was Irish trad song Sam Hall that was played next! Most people don't know this song. This song was performed at the Royal Albert Hall in London on February 11 this year, when Clapton jumped into the "Transatlantic Concert" hosted by Jerry Douglas, a steel guitar player, the late Jeff Beck. It was a number that was played and sung with an acoustic guitar, commenting that it was a memorial song to (Clapton had a friendship with Douglas). To think that it will be included in the regular set for this tour... Extremely rare numbers and meaningful numbers are jostling. And in the song Tears In Heaven, Paul Carrack inserted a passage from the classic Whiter Shades of Pale as a tribute to the late Gary Brooker. In addition, Kerry was a memorial song for Mr. Kelly, a Clapton staff member who died of cancer, who also played on the official project live board “LADY IN THE BALCONY”. Looking at it this way, Clapton, who celebrated his 60th debut anniversary and 78 years old this time, thought of many friend musicians and fellow people who he had respected but lost in the course of his career. I think they thought of making a tour to share it with a trustworthy and honest Japanese audience. It seems that the opening and this middle stage had the significance of this performance in Japan.

For the audience who shared that feeling, I think they played the electric version of Layla as a thank you at the end of the stage, which consisted of popular royal road numbers. Listen to this Layla. Clapton's guitar play is on the verge of danger. That 7 consecutive phrases are also unreliable. He doesn't have a voice when he sings, and he seems to have a hard time singing. The whole band is also pulled by this Clapton and gives the impression of being sluggish. This song is a difficult number that requires considerable energy even for amateurs to copy. The passion and groove of the original version is hard to replicate. It's the same for the person who made it. It must be a very “tight” number for Clapton now. As in recent years, Clapton dared to play with the electric version, which was less burdensome if the “unplugged” version was played loosely on the acoustic set. I knew that Japanese fans would want the original version, and I wanted to show my gratitude to the audience for sharing their thoughts. Once you know the spirit of this Clapton, it is no longer a problem of good or bad play quality. please listen And let's honor Clapton! This work is the perfect permanent preservation board to know the significance of such a Japanese performance. Anyway, Clapton who came to Japan in good spirits at this age and listened to a play suitable for active duty is wonderful! Please experience this excitement with this work.

★The seats are in the front row on the first floor of the stand, and the sound quality is amazing.

★Only the first 140 will be released with numbered stickers.

Disc 1 (59:28)
1. Intro.
2. Blue Rainbow
3. Pretending
4. Key To The Highway
5. Hoochie Coochie Man
6. IShot The Sheriff
7. MC
8. Kind Hearted Woman
9. Nobody Knows You When You're Down And Out
10.Call Me The Breeze
11.Sam Hall
12.Tears In Heaven
13.Kerry

Disc 2 (46:23)
1. Badge
2. Wonderful Tonight
3. Crossroads
4. Little Queen of Spades
5. Layla ★ Clapton played the intro seven phrases only on this day
6. High Time We Went