Eric Clapton rang in 1987 with a string of dates at home in England, capped off with a six night stand at the Royal Albert Hall in London that would be the first of nine consecutive annual residencies at the famed theater. Clapton’s inaugural home stand was nothing short of spectacular. The guitar legend recruited fellow Englishman Phil Collins and his band to open the shows, and even tabbed Dire Straits frontman Mark Knopfler to join his band on guitar for the final two nights (along with Collins on drums). 

From a touching “Wonderful Tonight,” to a brilliant “Same Old Blues,” before which, during one night, Clapton softly cautions the audience not to leave the theater, the fifteen song set is brimming with highlights. While almost the entire set features his own compositions, Clapton does step into the background for a rousing rendition of Dire Straits’ classic “Money For Nothing,” the only song of the night that Knopfler took the lead on vocals. But the gem in the Royal Albert Hall crown is undoubtedly “Layla.” Despite having just turned 16 years old at the time, the legendary track had lost none of its power. Clapton delivers the ever-passionate lyrics with hair-raising intensity, before cutting loose on his trademark sunburst Fender Stratocaster, “Brownie” playing a blistering solo, setting up keyboardist Greg Phillinganes to bring the the 8-minute epic home with it’s trademark piano coda.

Set list:
01. Crossroads
02. White Room
03. I Shot The Sheriff
04. Hung Up On Your Love
05. Wonderful Tonight
06. Miss You
07. Same Old Blues
08. Tearing Us Apart
09. Holy Mother
10. Badge
11. Let It Rain
12. Cocaine
13. Layla
14. Money For Nothing*
15. Sunshine Of Your Love

Lineup:
Eric Clapton – guitar / vocals
Mark Knopfler – guitar / vocals*
Greg Phillinganes – keyboards
Nathan East – bass
Steve Ferrone – drums
Phil Collins – drums

Check out video from the final night, courtesy of Slowhand Archive Project on Youtube.

The Jam Buzz guest author for this week is Ross Mickel. Ross, aka ‘The Bootlegger’ is the producer and host of Bootleggers Beware, a weekly live music radio show airing from 10AM-1PM EST on The Radiator, 105.9FM in Burlington, VT, and a live music enthusiast, curating a collection of over 2500 recordings. Check out his website and on Facebook.