Doesn't get any better than this

Oh man, where do I even start on this one? Derek & the Dominos - Live at Fillmore East is easily one of the best live albums ever released. The music has a real bluesy feel to it, like most of Clapton’s music does. He is probably one of the few white guys that actually sound good doing blues based music. But I digress, you want to hear about the album, don’t you.

As I’ve already stated, the music is blues based, or at least that’s what I get out of it. The guitar playing is exquisite, which doesn’t come as a surprise to Clapton fans. The songs are all longer than their studio album counterparts, which leaves room for extended guitar solos and jamming. The rest of the band, made up of Bobby Whitlock, Jim Gordon and Carl Radle, are all flawless on their respective instruments.

I find it kind of odd that most of the songs are from the Layla album, but we don’t get the song "Layla." Where’s the logic there? The songs that are from the Layla album make up for the lack of the actual song though. We get "Got to Get Better in a Little While," which is an excellent way to start the album. From there we move through "Why does Love Got to be So Sad?", and "Key to the Highway." Next we get our first non-Derek & the Dominos tune in "Blues Power," which is from Clapton’s solo days. Then we’re back to some Dominos material with "Have you Ever Loved a Woman." And finally, closing out disc one is another song from Clapton’s solo days entitled "Bottle of Red Wine."

Disc two starts out with some more Dominos stuff with "Tell the Truth" followed by "Nobody Knows you When You’re Down and Out," a song who’s title is longer than the rendition we hear. Still a good tune, don’t get me wrong. Next up is "Roll it Over," a song which I only saw listed on Clapton’s "Rainbow Concert" album, and an import album titled "Backtracking." It’s not exactly my favorite track on the album, but it holds up against all the others. After "Roll it Over," it’s on to a Blind Faith tune. "Presence of the Lord" starts up to the approval of the crowd. The beginning would like you to think it’s a slow song, but a few minutes into it, it starts getting it’s groove on, only to slow back down. Great track. Next is another non-Dominos tune, even though it was on the Layla album. Yes folks, it’s probably one of the most widely covered Hendrix tunes even, "Little Wing." Clapton does the usual jaw-dropping guitar work, and before you know it, it’s over. Second to last is a lengthy version of "Let it Rain," another song from Clapton’s solo days. At over 18 minutes, it actually left me wanting more, with it’s fluid solos and whatnot. Ending the album is a heavily slowed down version of "Crossroads," a great tune from Clapton’s Cream days.

While this album is definitely 5-star material, I’m going to have to give it a high 4 (still marking it as a 5 though) because of it’s lack of "Layla." Nothing gets you goin’ quite like that opening riff. Anyway, even though it doesn’t have "Layla," this album is truely one of the great live albums, ranking high on my personal list with "The Who - Live at Leeds" and "Allman Brothers - Live at Fillmore East." Go buy it if you’re a fan of Clapton/Dominos/Cream/Blind Faith. Get it even if you aren’t a fan of his, but you still like blues based rock music such as Stevie Ray Vaughan.