''Slowhand'' is the fifth solo studio album by

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

. 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.

Recording

Clapton wanted to work with record producer

Glyn Johns Glyn Thomas Johns (born 15 February 1942) is an English recording engineer and record producer. He has worked with many of the most famous rock recording acts from both the UK and abroad, such as the Rolling Stones, the Beatles, the Who, ...

as he thought Johns had produced great work with famous groups like

the Rolling Stones The Rolling Stones are an English Rock music, rock band formed in London in 1962. Active for over six decades, they are one of the most popular, influential, and enduring bands of the Album era, rock era. In the early 1960s, the band pione ...

and

Eagles Eagle is the common name for the golden eagle, bald eagle, and other birds of prey in the family of the Accipitridae. Eagles belong to several groups of Genus, genera, some of which are closely related. True eagles comprise the genus ''Aquila ( ...

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, and popularly known as the Wild West, encompasses the geography, history, folklore, and culture associated with the forward wave of American expansion in mainland North America that bega ...

when hearing the nickname. The album's artwork was done by Clapton himself with the help of

Pattie Boyd Patricia Anne Boyd (born 17 March 1944) is an English model and photographer. She was one of the leading international models during the 1960s and, with Jean Shrimpton, epitomised the British female look of the era. Boyd married George Harris ...

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 a vinyl record (for later varieties only) is an analog sound storage medium in the form of a flat disc with an inscribed, modulated spiral groove. The g ...

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

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

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

, 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, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. The magazine was first known fo ...

'', 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 influential music critics, he began his career in the late 1960s as one of the earliest professional rock critics and later became a ...

was less enthusiastic, feeling Clapton had regressed as a singer, "sounding like he's blown his voice. Doing what, I wonder." In a retrospective review for

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All-Music Guide and AMG) is an American online database, online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on Musical artist, musicians and Mus ...

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

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". Yahoo! Music'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 "The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time" is a recurring opinion survey and music ranking of the finest albums in history, compiled by the American magazine ''Rolling Stone''. It is based on weighted votes from selected musicians, critics, and indu ...

, and again in 2012.

Deluxe Edition

In November 2012, a

remaster A remaster is a change in the sound or image quality of previously created forms of media, whether Mastering (audio), audiophonic, Cinematography, cinematic, or Videography, videographic. The resulting product is said to be remastered. The term ...

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 and still commonly known as the Hammersmith Odeon, is a live entertainment performance venue, originally built as a cinema called the Gaumont Pa ...

; 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

Personnel

– lead vocals, guitars * Dick Sims – keyboards * Marcy Levy – harmony and backing vocals, co-lead vocals on "The Core" * Carl Radle – bass * Yvonne Elliman – harmony and backing vocals * George Terry – guitars * Jamie Oldaker – drums, percussion * Mel Collins – saxophone on "The Core"

Production

– 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