Slowhand

Slowhand is the fifth full-length studio album by Eric Clapton. 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", 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.

Slowhand
Studio album by Eric Clapton
Released	25 November 1977
Recorded	May 1977
Studio	Olympic Studios, London
Genre	Rock
Length	39:06
Label	RSO
Producer	Glyn Johns
Eric Clapton chronology
No Reason to Cry (1976) Slowhand (1977) Backless (1978)
Singles from Slowhand
"Lay Down Sally" Released: November 1977 "Wonderful Tonight" Released: November 1977

Recording

Clapton wanted to work with record producer Glyn Johns, because he thought Johns produced great work with famous groups like the Rolling Stones and Eagles 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.[1]

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 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 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 Ferrari 365 GT4 BB, which Clapton bought after seeing George Harrison 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, nearly killed him.[1]

Release and reception

Professional ratings

Retrospective reviews
Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[2]
Q	[3]
The Rolling Stone Album Guide	[4]
Christgau's Record Guide	C+[5]
Music Story	[6]
Chicago Tribune	[7]
The Encyclopedia of Popular Music	[8]
New York Times	(favourable)[9]

Slowhand was released on 25 November 1977 by RSO Records.[10] In a contemporary review for Rolling Stone, 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".[11] Robert Christgau 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."[5]

In a retrospective review for AllMusic, Stephen Thomas Erlewine wrote that the confident, virtuosic quality in the band's playing and the diversity of the songwriting made Slowhand "rank with 461 Ocean Boulevard as Eric Clapton's best albums".[2] Yahoo! Music's Dave DiMartino said the record was full of hits and "tasteful" music.[12] In 2003, Slowhand was ranked number 325 on Rolling Stone's list of The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time,[13] and again in 2012.[14]

Censorship in Argentina

The rock song "Cocaine" was censored and removed from the Argentine edition of the album in late 1977. The military government 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, a center that helps drug addicts kick their habit and rehabilitate themselves.[15]

Deluxe Edition

In November 2012, a remastered two-compact-disc 35th anniversary deluxe edition of Slowhand was released. The first disc consists of the remastered album, with additional bonus tracks and studio jam sessions. The second disc features a previously unreleased live concert, recorded in April 1977 at the Hammersmith Odeon; 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.[16]

Track listings

Side one

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
1.	"Cocaine"	J.J. Cale	3:38
2.	"Wonderful Tonight"	Eric Clapton	3:41
3.	"Lay Down Sally"	Eric Clapton · George Terry · Marcy Levy	3:56
4.	"Next Time You See Her"	Eric Clapton	4:01
5.	"We're All the Way"	Don Williams	2:32

Side two

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
1.	"The Core"	Eric Clapton · Marcy Levy	8:45
2.	"May You Never"	John Martyn	3:01
3.	"Mean Old Frisco"	Arthur Crudup	4:42
4.	"Peaches and Diesel"	Eric Clapton · Albhy Galuten	4:46
Total length:			39:06

2012 Deluxe edition

Disc one

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
1.	"Cocaine"	J.J. Cale	3:38
2.	"Wonderful Tonight"	Eric Clapton	3:44
3.	"Lay Down Sally"	Eric Clapton · George Terry · Marcy Levy	3:56
4.	"Next Time You See Her"	Eric Clapton	4:01
5.	"We're All the Way"	Don Williams	2:32
6.	"The Core"	Eric Clapton · Marcy Levy	8:45
7.	"May You Never"	John Martyn	3:01
8.	"Mean Old Frisco"	Arthur Crudup	4:42
9.	"Peaches and Diesel"	Eric Clapton · Albhy Galuten	4:46
10.	"Looking at the Rain"	Gordon Lightfoot	3:41
11.	"Alberta"	Traditional	2:43
12.	"Greyhound Bus"	Eric Clapton	2:58
13.	"Stars, Strays and Ashtrays"	Eric Clapton	4:38

Disc two

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
1.	"Tell the Truth"	Eric Clapton · Bobby Whitlock	9:00
2.	"Knocking on Heaven's Door"	Bob Dylan	5:17
3.	"Steady Rollin' Man"	Robert Johnson	6:54
4.	"Can't Find My Way Home"	Steve Winwood	6:05
5.	"Further on Up the Road"	Joe Vease · Don Robey	6:33
6.	"Stormy Monday"	T-Bone Walker	12:39
7.	"Badge"	Eric Clapton · George Harrison	8:01
8.	"I Shot the Sheriff"	Bob Marley	14:02
9.	"Layla"	Eric Clapton · Jim Gordon	6:11

Personnel

• Eric Clapton – lead vocals, guitar
• George Terry – guitar
• Dick Sims – keyboards
• Carl Radle – bass guitar
• Jamie Oldaker – drums, percussion
• Mel Collins – saxophone
• Yvonne Elliman – harmony and backing vocals
• Marcy Levy – 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

Chart (1977–2013)	Peak position
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders)[17]	130
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Wallonia)[18]	89
Croatian International Albums (HDU)[19]	20
Dutch Albums (Album Top 100)[20]	17
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[21]	66
New Zealand Albums (RMNZ)[22]	32
Norwegian Albums (VG-lista)[23]	5
Swedish Albums (Sverigetopplistan)[24]	41
UK Albums (OCC)[25]	23
US Billboard 200[26]	2
US Top Catalog Albums (Billboard)[27]	48

Certifications

Region	Certification	Certified units/sales
Canada (Music Canada)[28]	2× Platinum	200,000^^
Switzerland (IFPI Switzerland)[29] 1990 certification	Gold	50,000^^
Switzerland (IFPI Switzerland)[29] 1993 certification	Gold
United Kingdom (BPI)[30]	Gold	100,000^^
United States (RIAA)[31]	3× Platinum	3,000,000^^
^^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

References

1. Clapton, Eric (2007). Clapton:The Autobiography (1 ed.). Broadway Books. pp. 49, 174, 180–182. ISBN 978-0-385-51851-2.
2. "Slowhand – Eric Clapton | Songs, Reviews, Credits | AllMusic". AllMusic. Rovi Corporation. Retrieved 3 October 2015.
3. "Review: Slowhand". Q. EMAP Metro Ltd (113): 104. February 1996. Retrieved 3 October 2015.
4. Considine, J. D. (2 November 2004). Nathan Brackett; Christian David Hoard (eds.). The New Rolling Stone Album Guide (4, revised ed.). Simon & Schuster. ISBN 0-7432-0169-8.
5. Christgau, Robert (1981). "Eric Clapton". Christgau's Record Guide: Rock Albums of the Seventies. Ticknor & Fields. p. 82. ISBN 0-89919-025-1. Retrieved 10 November 2015.
6. "Slowhand - Music Story". acclaimedmusic.net. Retrieved 2 June 2018.
7. Kot, Greg (1993). "It's A Roller-coaster Career From Blues To Pop And Back". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved 10 November 2015.
8. "Slowhand - Encyclopedia of Popular Music". acclaimedmusic.net. Retrieved 2 June 2018.
9. Rockwell, John (11 December 1977). "Rock's History On Six Disks". nytimes.com. The New York Times.
10. Strong, Martin Charles (2002). The Great Rock Discography. The National Academies. p. 280. ISBN 978-1-84195-312-0.
11. Swenson, John (29 December 1977). "Slowhand". Rolling Stone. Jann S. Wenner. Album Reviews section. Retrieved 3 October 2015.
12. DiMartino, Dave. "Eric Clapton Reviews". Yahoo! Music. Archived from the original on 22 February 2012.
13. "500 Greatest Albums: Slowhand – Eric Clapton". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 7 January 2012.
14. "500 Greatest Albums of All Time Rolling Stone's definitive list of the 500 greatest albums of all time". Rolling Stone. 2012.
15. "Executive Drug Rehab | Private Drug Rehab | Crossroads Antigua". Crossroads Centre Antigua. Retrieved 3 October 2015.
16. "Slowhand 35th Anniversary Commemorated With Multi-Format Release This November". Where's Eric! The Eric Clapton Fan Club Magazine. November 2012. Retrieved 3 October 2015.
17. "Ultratop.be – Eric Clapton – Slowhand" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 3 October 2015.
18. "Ultratop.be – Eric Clapton – Slowhand" (in French). Hung Medien. Retrieved 3 October 2015.
19. "Top Stranih [Top Foreign]" (in Croatian). Top Foreign Albums. Hrvatska diskografska udruga. Retrieved 3 October 2015.
20. "Dutchcharts.nl – Eric Clapton – Slowhand" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 3 October 2015.
21. "Longplay-Chartverfolgung at Musicline" (in German). Musicline.de. Phononet GmbH. Retrieved 3 October 2015.
22. "Charts.nz – Eric Clapton – Slowhand". Hung Medien. Retrieved 3 October 2015.
23. "Norwegiancharts.com – Eric Clapton – Slowhand". Hung Medien. Retrieved 3 October 2015.
24. "Swedishcharts.com – Eric Clapton – Slowhand". Hung Medien. Retrieved 3 October 2015.
25. "Eric Clapton | Artist | Official Charts". UK Albums Chart. Retrieved 3 October 2015.
26. "Eric Clapton – Slowhand | Awards | AllMusic". AllMusic. Rovi Corporation. Retrieved 3 October 2015.
27. "Eric Clapton Chart History (Top Catalog Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved 3 October 2015.
28. "Canadian album certifications – Eric Clapton – Slow Hand". Music Canada. Retrieved 24 January 2016.
29. "The Official Swiss Charts and Music Community: Awards (Eric Clapton; 'Slowhand')". IFPI Switzerland. Hung Medien. Retrieved 24 January 2016.
30. "British album certifications – Eric Clapton – Slowhand". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 24 January 2016. Select albums in the Format field. Select Gold in the Certification field. Type Slowhand in the "Search BPI Awards" field and then press Enter.
31. "American album certifications – Eric Clapton – Slowhand". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved 24 January 2016. If necessary, click Advanced, then click Format, then select Album, then click SEARCH.