by Stephen Thomas Erlewine
461 Ocean Boulevard is Eric Clapton's second studio solo album, arriving
after his side project of Derek & the Dominos and a long struggle
with heroin addiction. Although there are some new reggae influences,
the album doesn't sound all that different from the rock, pop, blues,
country, and R&B amalgam of Eric Clapton. However, 461 Ocean Boulevard
is a tighter, more focused outing that enables Clapton to stretch out
instrumentally. Furthermore, the pop concessions on the album -- the sleek
production, the concise running times -- don't detract from the rootsy
origins of the material, whether it's Johnny Otis' "Willie and the
Hand Jive," the traditional blues "Motherless Children,"
Bob Marley's "I Shot the Sheriff," or Clapton's emotional originals,
"Let It Grow" and "Better Make It Through Today" (the
latter included only on several reissues of the album). With its relaxed,
friendly atmosphere and strong bluesy roots, 461 Ocean Boulevard set the
template for Clapton's '70s albums. Though he tried hard to make an album
exactly like it, he never quite managed to replicate its charms.
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