''Slowhand'' is the fifth full-length studio album by

Eric Clapton Eric Patrick Clapton (born 1945) is an English rock and blues guitarist, singer, and songwriter. He is often regarded as one of the most successful and influential guitarists in rock music. Clapton ranked second in ''Rolling Stone''s list of ...

. Released on 25 November 1977 by RSO Records, and titled after Clapton's nickname, it is one of his most commercially and critically successful studio albums. ''Slowhand'' produced the two hit singles " Lay Down Sally" and "

Wonderful Tonight "Wonderful Tonight" is a ballad written by Eric Clapton. It was included on Clapton's 1977 album ''Slowhand''. Clapton wrote the song about Pattie Boyd. "the hard-rock pioneer and guitar god also become a soft-rock star in the mid-1970s. He cel ...

", reached various international music charts and was honoured with numerous awards and recording certifications. In 2012, a deluxe edition was released to celebrate the album's 35th anniversary.

Recording

Clapton wanted to work with record producer Glyn Johns, because he thought Johns produced great work with famous groups like

the Rolling Stones The Rolling Stones are an English rock band formed in London in 1962. Active for six decades, they are one of the most popular and enduring bands of the rock era. In the early 1960s, the Rolling Stones pioneered the gritty, rhythmically d ...

and

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and understood how to work with both British and American musicians. While in the studio with Johns, Clapton noted that the A-list producer was very disciplined and disliked jamming, because it would kill important recording time. Although Clapton and his band were intoxicated nearly all the time when recording, Johns liked Clapton's work and brought out the best in every musician, according to Clapton.

Title and artwork

The album was titled after Clapton's nickname, which was given to him by Giorgio Gomelsky. In his 2007 autobiography, Clapton recalled that the name "Slowhand" seemed to be hanging on to his real name, because it seemed to be well received by both his American friends and fans who think of the

Wild West The American frontier, also known as the Old West or the Wild West, encompasses the geography, history, folklore, and culture associated with the forward wave of American expansion in mainland North America that began with European colonial ...

when hearing the nickname. The album's artwork was done by Clapton himself with the help of Pattie Boyd and Dave Stewart, credited as "El & Nell Ink". Besides choosing various photos for the inner side of the

gramophone record A phonograph record (also known as a gramophone record, especially in British English), or simply a record, is an analog sound storage medium in the form of a flat disc with an inscribed, modulated spiral groove. The groove usually starts nea ...

packaging are two pictures, Clapton notes, which have deeper importance to him: one picture, in which he kisses Boyd and another photograph showing a demolished

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, which Clapton bought after seeing

George Harrison George Harrison (25 February 1943 – 29 November 2001) was an English musician and singer-songwriter who achieved international fame as the lead guitarist of the Beatles. Sometimes called "the quiet Beatle", Harrison embraced Indian c ...

turning up with the same model at his Hurtwood Edge Estate. The car, which had been involved with Clapton in a car accident after the British recording artist finished touring in

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

, nearly killed him.

Release and reception

''Slowhand'' was released on 25 November 1977 by RSO Records. In a contemporary review for ''

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first kno ...

'', John Swenson found Clapton's playing more subtle than before but his songs sobering and interesting psychologically, especially "Next Time You See Her", as they showed him "in touch with the horrible moral power and long-suffering self-righteousness that is the essence of the blues".

Robert Christgau Robert Thomas Christgau ( ; born April 18, 1942) is an American music journalist and essayist. Among the most well-known and influential music critics, he began his career in the late 1960s as one of the earliest professional rock critics and ...

was less enthusiastic, lamenting how most of the record's best guitar solos were played by George Terry and feeling Clapton had regressed as a singer, "sounding like he's blown his voice. Doing what, I wonder." In a retrospective review for

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Stephen Thomas Erlewine Stephen Thomas Erlewine (; born June 18, 1973) is an American music critic and senior editor for the online music database AllMusic. He is the author of many artist biographies and record reviews for AllMusic, as well as a freelance writer, occ ...

wrote that the confident, virtuosic quality in the band's playing and the diversity of the songwriting made ''Slowhand'' "rank with ''

461 Ocean Boulevard ''461 Ocean Boulevard'' is the second studio album by English musician Eric Clapton. The album was released in late July 1974 for RSO Records, shortly after the record company released the hit single "I Shot the Sheriff" in early July the same y ...

'' as Eric Clapton's best albums".

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's Dave DiMartino said the record was full of hits and "tasteful" music. In 2003, ''Slowhand'' was ranked number 325 on ''

''s list of The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time, and again in 2012.

Censorship in Argentina

The rock song "Cocaine" was censored and removed from the Argentine edition of the album in late 1977. The

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of the time considered the song harmful to young people and inviting them to get high. The ban was lifted in 1984. Clapton later said that it is useless to intentionally write an anti-drug song like "Cocaine" and hope that people grasp the meaning. After several years, Clapton began including the phrase "that dirty cocaine" in live performances to highlight the anti-drug message of the song. In addition, Clapton donated much of their funds to ''

Crossroads Centre The Crossroads Centre is a substance-abuse rehabilitation centre for drug and alcohol addiction located on the Caribbean island of Antigua in Antigua and Barbuda. It was founded with support from guitarist/singer Eric Clapton in 1998. He ...

'', a center that helps drug addicts kick their habit and rehabilitate themselves.

Deluxe Edition

In November 2012, a

remaster Remaster refers to changing the quality of the sound or of the image, or both, of previously created recordings, either audiophonic, cinematic, or videographic. The terms digital remastering and digitally remastered are also used. Mastering A ...

ed two-compact-disc 35th anniversary deluxe edition of ''Slowhand'' was released. The first disc consists of the remastered album with additional bonus tracks, outtakes and studio jam sessions. The second disc features a previously unreleased live concert, recorded in April 1977 at the

Hammersmith Odeon The Hammersmith Apollo, currently called the Eventim Apollo for sponsorship reasons, and formerly known as the Hammersmith Odeon, is a live entertainment performance venue, originally built as a cinema called the Gaumont Palace. Located in Ha ...

; although the concert is of the same era as the ''Slowhand'' sessions, it was performed prior to the album's recording and release, and so does not include any of the album's tracks.

Track listings

;2012 Deluxe edition

35th Anniversary Super Deluxe Edition (27 Bonustracks – 1 LP, 3 CD, 1 DVD, 2012, GB)

# ''Looking At The Train'' (Gordon Lightfoot) 3:39 Cover # ''Alberta'' (Trad.) 2:40 # ''Greyhound Bus'' () 2:57 # ''Stars, Strays And Ashtrays'' (Eric Clapton) 4:36 # ''Tell The Truth'' () 9:00 Live # ''Knocking On Heaven's Door'' (Bob Dylan) 5:18 Live Cover # ''Steady Rolling Man'' (Robert Johnson) 6:55 Live # ''Can’t Find My Way Home'' (Steve Winwood) 6:06 Live Cover # ''Further On Up The Road'' (Joe Medwich Veasey, Don D. Robey) 6:35 Live # ''Stormy Monday'' () 12:42 Live # '' Badge'' (George Harrison, Eric Clapton) 8:02 Live # ''I Shot The Sheriff'' (Bob Marley) 14:04 Live Cover # ''Layla'' (Eric Clapton, Jim Gordon) 6:02 Live Cover # ''Badge'' (George Harrison, Eric Clapton) 8:36 Live # ''Nobody Knows You When You’re Down And Out'' () 4:00 Live # ''I Shot The Sheriff'' (Bob Marley) 14:03 Live Cover # ''Layla'' (Eric Clapton, Jim Gordon) 6:02 Live # ''Key To The Highway'' (William Broonzy, Charles Seger) 7:25 Live Cover

DVD

#''Cocaine'' (J.J. Cale) Cover #''Wonderful Tonight'' (Eric Clapton) #''Lay Down Sally'' (Eric Clapton, Marcy Levy) #''Next Time You See Her'' (Eric Clapton) #''We're All The Way'' (Don Williams) #''The Core'' (Marcella Detroit, Eric Clapton) #''May You Never'' (John Martyn) Cover #''Mean Old Frisco'' (Arthur Crudup) #''Peaches And Diesel'' (Albhy Galuten, Eric Clapton)

Personnel

– lead vocals, guitars * Dick Sims – keyboards * George Terry – guitars * Carl Radle – bass *

Jamie Oldaker James Oldaker (September 5, 1951 – July 16, 2020) was an American rock music, blues rock and country music drummer and percussionist. Biography James Oldaker was born in Tulsa, Oklahoma. One of the first bands that he was a member of was ...

– drums, percussion * Mel Collins – saxophones *

Yvonne Elliman Yvonne Marianne Elliman (born December 29, 1951) is an American singer, songwriter, and actress who performed for four years in the first cast of the stage musical ''Jesus Christ Superstar''. She scored a number of hits in the 1970s and achieved ...

– harmony and backing vocals *

Marcy Levy Marcella Levy (born June 21, 1952), known professionally as Marcy Levy and (later in her career) Marcella Detroit, is an American singer, songwriter, and guitarist. She co-wrote the 1977 Eric Clapton hit "Lay Down Sally" and released her debut al ...

– harmony and backing vocals, duet on "The Core"

Production

* Glyn Johns – producer, engineer * El & Nell Ink. (David Stewart, Nello) – art direction and design * Jonathan Dent – artwork * Andy Seymour – inner sleeve photography * Watal Asanuma – outer sleeve photography

Charts

Certifications

References

{{Authority control Eric Clapton albums 1977 albums Albums produced by Glyn Johns RSO Records albums Albums recorded at the Hammersmith Apollo Albums recorded at Olympic Sound Studios