Eric Clapton/Tokyo,Japan 4.14.2025 Complete Upgrade

Eric Clapton 2025 Budokan first day performance superb audience master released! Eric Clapton's Japan tour continues to be a big hit! On the first day, the superb audience recording sound source of the 14th performance was released from the original master at super speed, and it was very well received. The reason for this is not only the speed of release, but also the excellent sound quality. And another original master recorded on the first day of the same day, the 14th, with even more upgraded sound quality was released! "BUDOKAN 2025 DAY 1" was also high quality, but this work is a sound that adds the spread of the sound image, the depth of the sound and the crispness of the sound. It is a powerful sound. From the scene where the hall goes dark and the audience waits for Clapton to appear, to the scene where the audience lights come on and the announcement of the end of the show is played, it is perfectly recorded. It is already a quality worthy of being called the definitive version of the first day, so please look forward to it. If you look at the permanent set list, which gives you a more realistic experience of the entire first day's performance, you can get a sense of Clapton's enthusiasm for this Japan tour. To get a glimpse of why Clapton, now 80 years old, put together this set list from his 62-year professional career, let's look at the origins of each song (each song is based on the year it was first performed or recorded. " " indicates the album it was included on). Cream era: White Room, Cross Road Blues "WHEELS OF FIRE", Sunshine of Your Love "DISRAELI GEARS", Badge "GOODBYE" Derek and the Dominos era: Key to the Highway, Nobody Knows You When You're Down and Out "LAYLA AND OTHER ASSORTEDLOVE SONGS" Solo era: (70s) Kind Hearted Woman Blues "CROSSROADS 2", "ME AND MR. JOHNSON", Golden Ring "BACKLESS", Wonderful Tonight, Cocaine "SLOWHAND" (80s) Old Love, Before You Accuse Me "JOURNEYMAN" (90s) I'm Your Hoochie Coochie Man, Motherless Child "FROM THE CRADLE", Tears in Heaven "RUSH", "UNPLUGGED" (00s) Little Queen of Spades "ME AND MR. JOHNSON" (20s) The Call "MEANWHILE" Looking at it this way, we can see that there are no songs selected from the 2010s albums that were mainly cover songs, and on the contrary, there are three songs from the Cream era that exceed those from the Derek and the Dominos era. That shows how proud Clapton himself is of his career with Cream. It is typical of Clapton to have eight blues songs in the set, three of which were Robert Johnson numbers. This also gives us a glimpse of Clapton's thoughts and commitment. Looking at the whole album, we can see that the songs were selected almost evenly from his entire career, including new songs. It can be said that the set list he put together for his performance in Japan at the age of 80, for his Japanese fans who have supported him for many years, was a summary of his career. In other words, these are the songs that Clapton, now 80 years old, wants to play. It was a set list that was typical of Clapton, who has a long career, satisfying both old fans and fans after "UNPLUGED". Well, the first day's performance started with a hard and energetic number called White Room from the Cream era, and this was the first time this band member performed it in Japan (with intro). Sonny Emory's powerful drumming is clear and the female chorus creates an overwhelming force in this number, and Clapton decided to play a solo with a wah pedal, just like the original version. He's also singing! The sharpness of the last song played in Japan in 2003 is not as strong as it was in 2003, but you can still see the exquisite phrase structure that is characteristic of Clapton. The following blues is a dignified performance that is now a standard at concerts. And while I Shot the Sheriff should have been brought in as a way to liven up the acoustic set, this time he surprised everyone with Sunshine of Your Love, Cream's biggest hit. Before the riff, the same intro was added as in last year's Latin American tour. Clapton, who approaches live performances with such new arrangements, is not the word "rut". Before the acoustic set, he greeted the audience with a comment, "I'm happy to be back here again. I've been able to play here for so many years thanks to Mr. Udo." His consideration for the late Mr. Udo of the Udo Music Agency, who has supported Clapton since his first visit to Japan, showed his humanity. Then he started with a gentle performance of Robert Johnson's Kind Hearted Woman Blues. Considering that he also included this song in his set at his last Japan performance, Clapton must really like this song. The falsetto part is really hard, but I can't help but feel emotional when I hear Clapton singing it so hard. Next, he performed a new song, The Call, from his new album "MEANWHILE". As you can see from the music video for this song, which is available online, it's a gem of a number that is full of Clapton's kind feelings. It must be his own favorite on the new album. After two more blues songs, he played Golden Ring from his 1978 album "BACKLESS," which was a hot topic for playing it for the first time in 46 years on last year's European tour. This was the first time this song was heard at a Japanese concert. The acoustic set ended with the great song Tears in Heaven. It was a number that fans after "UNPLUGED" would love. And in the second half of the standing electric set, he played a number that could be called Clapton's royal road. There was some awkward playing at the beginning of Old Love, but the second half of the solo suddenly got him back in shape, exciting the audience. This was the highlight of the day. Tim Carmon's synth solo in the jam-like part in the middle was reminiscent of the 1998 "Pilgrim Tour." His passionate solo, comparable to Clapton's, drew cheers from the audience. Doyle Bramhall plays the main phrase of the following Wonderful Tonight, but the solo in the middle is Clapton. Clapton was angry that Pattie Boyd, who was George Harrison's wife in 1970, had put up for auction last year, and Clapton did not include this song and Layla, which are related to Pattie, in the set-in last year's tour, but it was surprising that he revived this song in the Japanese performance. What kind of change in his state of mind was it? From Cross Road Blues to Cocaine at the end of the show, it really seems like a grand finale. Clapton's playing is particularly spirited, but the whole band is also amazing. Each solo is also passionate. The ending of Cocaine does not end with a chorus of the audience, but there is a stylish pile-up afterwards. This kind of arrangement is also fresh and good. The encore was Before You Accuse Me, just like last year's North American tour. Here too, he adds some fun twists, such as inserting a bit of the development section of Freddie King's Hideaway in the middle. I'm sure there was not a single fan who was not satisfied with this stage. Thoughts on the first day's performance Listening to the excellent sound quality of this work, it is full of vividness, as if you can even see the eye contact between Clapton and the other members in each song. The person on this stage is an elderly Clapton who has reached 80 years old. Even if he plays the same songs as before, it is inevitable that his performance will be worn out in a good sense and worn out in a bad sense. In all the songs actually played on electric guitar, Clapton makes some mistakes or shows some sluggishness. This may be due to the weakening of his fingers due to old age or the worsening of his rheumatism. But we go to the Budokan knowing that, and we like to listen to the sound source recorded there for the time being. This is because, like Clapton, who first came to Japan in 1974 at the age of 29, he also loves the 80-year-old Clapton, who has been playing for Japan and its fans for the past 51 years. We always want to hear his super-fast killer solos, but we are also moved by the sight of him playing hard, even though he is hesitant. This work also shows Clapton, who never plays the same solo twice. Clapton's appearance on the first day is captured realistically in this work. Live at Budokan, Tokyo, Japan 14th April 2025 ULTIMATE SOUND(from Original Masters Disc:1 (49:24 1. Intro2. White Room 3. Key to the Highway 4. I'm Your Hoochie Coochie Man 5. Sunshine of Your Love 6. Kind Hearted Woman Blues 7. The Call 8. Motherless Child 9. Nobody Knows You When You're Down and Out 10. Golden Ring 11. Tears in Heaven Disc:2 (56:27) 1. Badge 2. Old Love 3. Wonderful Tonight 4. Cross Road Blues 5. Little Queen of Spades 6. Cocaine 7. Before You Accuse Me Eric Clapton - guitar, vocals Doyle Bramhall Ⅱ - guitar, vocals Chris Stainton - piano, keyboards Tim Carmon - hammond organ, keyboards East Nathan - bass Sonny Emory - drums Sharon White - backing vocals Katy Kissoon - backing vocals