Eric Clapton's Reprise albums wrapped up with box set number two

Eric Clapton's five twenty-first century albums, gathered together in one nifty package, with a bonus disc of rarities

By Hugh Fielder
( Classic Rock )
published
Eric Clapton: The Complete Reprise Studio Albums Vol. 2 cover art
(Image: © Reprise)

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The second volume of Eric Clapton’s vinyl overhaul - Vol 1 was released in November - covers his five studio albums from the first decade of this century, starting with 2001’s Reptile, which is one of his most diverse, covering obscure R&B hits, songs by JJ Cale, Ray Charles and Stevie Wonder, plus a bunch of his own mid-tempo rockers.

He went full-beam on Robert Johnson in 2004 with Me And Mr Johnson and Sessions For Robert J, the former a surprisingly upbeat take on the brooding genius of his blues hero, the latter accompanying a DVD with a more technical approach played solo, duo or with a band.

Eric Clapton - The Complete Reprise Studio Albums Vol. 2 (Official Unboxing Video) - YouTube
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Back Home (2005) is a celebration of domestic bliss that he’s now enjoying. He’s happier working up songs with bandmates and producer Simon Climie than he is scouring for long-lost gems, and that returns after a five-year gap during which he reunites with Cream and Steve Winwood and collaborates with JJ Cale. Clapton finds his creative juices buzzing, picking out popular gems from the past like My Very Good Friend The Milkman, When Somebody Thinks You’re Wonderful and Judgement Day.

There’s also a bonus disc of rarities that might tempt fans into buying a turntable.

Hugh Fielder
Hugh Fielder

Hugh Fielder has been writing about music for 47 years. Actually 58 if you include the essay he wrote about the Rolling Stones in exchange for taking time off school to see them at the Ipswich Gaumont in 1964. He was news editor of Sounds magazine from 1975 to 1992 and editor of Tower Records Top magazine from 1992 to 2001. Since then he has been freelance. He has interviewed the great, the good and the not so good and written books about some of them. His favourite possession is a piece of columnar basalt he brought back from Iceland.