Tag Archives: Johnny Cash

Happy Birthday Eric Clapton

There are guitarist: amateur, professional, hobbyists, virtuoso and there is Eric Clapton. To me and many others the undisputed best guitarist ever. I don’t even mention him in my top 10list because he basically is a league on his own.

Eric Patrick Clapton, CBE (born 30 March 1945) is an English rock and blues guitarist, singer, and songwriter. He is the only three-time inductee to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame: once as a solo artist and separately as a member of the Yardbirds and of Cream. Clapton has been referred to as one of the most important and influential guitarists of all time.

Eric Clapton was born on 30 March 1945 in Ripley, Surrey, England, to 16-year-old Patricia Molly Clapton (7 January 1929 – March 1999) and Edward Walter Fryer (21 March 1920 – 15 May 1985), a 25-year-old soldier from Montreal, Quebec.

After a brief encounter between 16-year-old Patricia Clapton and Edward Walter Fryer ,a 24-year-old Canadian soldier stationed in England during Second World War, Eric Clapton was born and then raised by his grandparents in Ripley, a village outside London.

Edward returned to Canada after the war and never knew of his famous son in his lifetime. Music was very much a part of his whole adult life, playing piano and singing in pubs at the time he met Eric’s mother in England. It was said he had a sound like Nat King Cole. Eric Clapton got an acoustic Hoyer guitar, made in Germany, for his thirteenth birthday, and musical history was made.

Elvis, Stevie Ray Vaughan, Eddie van Halen and Jim Croce all influenced my musical taste in one way or another but it was Eric Clapton who defined it.

Celebrating his birthday with some of his music.

For my mum

On 20 March 1991, Clapton’s four-year-old son, Conor, died after falling from the 53rd-floor window of his mother’s friend’s New York City apartment at 117 East 57th Street. Conor’s funeral took place on 28 March at St Mary Magdalene’s Church in Clapton’s home village in Ripley, Surrey. This tragedy inspired Eric Clapton to write the song Tears in Heaven, which he co wrote with Will Jennings.

He even sounds great on a mash up of Billie Jean.

The lesser known Christmas songs

Most radio station are flooding the airwaves with Christmas songs at this stage, and there is nothing wrong with that. I love Christmas and especially love the music that goes with it.

However I do find that the same songs get played every year, there are songs which get very little airplay but are just as good as any other.

Below are just a few of them.

Jim Croce-It doesn’t have to be that way.

Fay Lovski -Christmas was a friend of mine

Dan Fogelberg-Same old lang syne

All About Eve -December

Stevie Wonder-What Christmas Means to Me’

Johnny Cash-I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day

And although it is a new song it has already become one of my all time favourites

Sandra-Mae Luc -Where is Christmas Now.

Probably the most talented boy band ever!

On December 4 ,1956 , Carl Perkins, who had had a big hit for the Memphis-based record label Sun that year with “Blue Suede Shoes,” had a recording session booked at Sun’s studio. Jerry Lee Lewis, not yet a star in his own right,had been hired to play piano. Elvis Presley — Sun’s breakthrough artist, who had already moved to the larger RCA Victor label, earlier that year — stopped by. So, by chance, did Johnny Cash,

Car; Perkins and his brothers Clayton and Jay and by drummer W.S. Holland had come to the studio to record some new material including a redone version of the blued classic Matchbox.

However by chance Johnny Cash, Jerry Lee Lewis and Elvis Presley were also in the studio. The quartet decided to do a jam session . They jammed together for a while — not to generate an actual recording, but just to have some fun —playing gospel standards, bluegrass songs and hits of the day, including Presley’s “Love Me Tender” and “Don’t Be Cruel” The session eventually resulted in a recording of 47 tracks. An article about the session was published in the Memphis Press-Scimitar under the title “Million Dollar Quartet”

However the songs were only released a few decades later. In 1981 17 tracks were released and mainly the gospel and blues standards. In 1987 the other tracks were discovered and a double album was released.

This probably most have been the most talented boy band ever.

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Sources

The Million Dollar Quartet: What really happened in 1956

Johnny Cash ,Kris Kristofferson and Eric Clapton in Limerick

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If Elvis is the King of Rock N Roll then Johnny Cash is the King pf Country and Western music, and Eric Clapton must be the King of the Blues. But only 2 of those Kings ever visited Limerick.

Johnny Cash gave at least 2 concerts in Limerick. The first one on October 17, 1963, in the Jetland Ball room. On that gig June Carter accompanied him.

30 years later on February 10, 1993 he returned to the treaty city and performed at the University Concert Hall , this time Johnny Cash and June Carter had some help from another Country and Western heavy weight, Kris Kristofferson.

Kris Cash

They played the following songs:

 

Ring of Fire
Folsom Prison Blues
Get Rhythm

I Still Miss Someone
Man in Black
Doin’ My Time

Long Black Veil
Big River
(with Kris Kristofferson)
(Ghost) Riders in the Sky

It Ain’t Me, Babe
Jackson
The Wreck of the Old ’97

Forty Shades of Green
(with Kris Kristofferson)
Why Me
(with Kris Kristofferson)

One of my all time favourite guitarist also made an appearance in the city at the Shannon. In the legendary venue the Savoy

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This was on March 12 1979. He did not come alone. His band consisted of great musicians, each one of them great performing artists in their own rights.
Albert Lee – guitar / vocals
Dick Sims – keyboards
Carl Radle – bass
Jamie Oldaker – drums.

In the greater scheme of things and compared to other cities in the world, Limerick may be considered a small city but when it comes to music it does punch above its weight. It is was Limerick that gave U2 its first break and of course it is the city that spawned the Cranberries.

Donation

I am passionate about my site and I know you all like reading my blogs. I have been doing this at no cost and will continue to do so. All I ask is for a voluntary donation of $2, however if you are not in a position to do so I can fully understand, maybe next time then. Thank you. To donate click on the credit/debit card icon of the card you will use. If you want to donate more then $2 just add a higher number in the box left from the PayPal link. Many thanks.

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