If this is your first exposure to Eric Clapton, a bit of bewilderment would be in order. This is the legendary guitar icon. This is (as his early apostles once proclaimed) God. Ranging from the mid-80s through to the late 90s, The Clapton Chronicles owes less to the groundbreaking blues-rock of Clapton's 60s and 70s classics than to the polished-to-a-glare pop of Phil Collins, who produced one of the tracks included in this 14-song anthology. His reinterpretation of his greatest recording--the once-gripping, now-placid "Layla"--perhaps best illustrates Clapton at middle-age: Who wants to bask in his darkest period? Not Clapton, who converts his surging, purging charge into a soothing stroll. And perhaps not fans of such docile MOR fare as "My Father's Eyes", "Tears in Heaven" and the two new tracks, "Blue Eyes Blue" and "Get Lost". --Steven Stolder
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