Eric Clapton - After Midnight: Live

In addition to letting you know about new releases and music that you should check out, I think it is also my duty to steer you away from releases that are "dogs". I won't do this very often so you can rest assured that when I do, you should avoid it at all costs.

One such release came to me the other day. It is a new Eric Clapton release titled "After Midnight: Live". It is available as a double CD and a DVD. I have not seen the DVD, but I have definitely heard the CD and I don't want to hear it again. I consider myself a fan of Eric Clapton and his recordings, so I was excited about this release. Initially, this appears to be an interesting release. It was recorded in 1988 at the Shoreline Amphitheater in Mountain View, California and features many of Eric's classic songs. Mark Knopfler of Dire Straits is a guest performer at this show. They even play a Dire Straits song "Money for Nothing".

So what is so bad about the CD? The sound. There is little to no stereo separation. In fact, I even question if it is a stereo recording. I suspect this is a two track recording from the soundboard and a very poor one at that. This definitely is not from a multi-track recording. It actually sounds like a bootleg soundboard recording. I personally have a bootleg soundboard recording from this same tour that sounds ten times better than this disc. I would be surprised if Eric Clapton approved this release. If he did, he needs to pull it from the marketplace immediately. What more can I say? You have been warned - avoid this one at all costs.

As always, comments are welcome.