Eric Clapton and Jeff Beck – Moon River

Eric Clapton And Jeff Beck – Moon River

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Eric Clapton and Jeff Beck are two of the most famous guitarists in Rock history. Clapton is definitely one of the most influential. And Beck has always been one of the most iconic.

Both of these legendary artists have some history with Lynyrd Skynyrd, Clapton being the most notable. But we’ll get to that in a bit.

These guitar players got together not long ago to cover an old standard, originally made famous by Andy Williams in 1961.  Here’s some info about the track from Clapton’s Youtube Channel:

“Moon River,” recorded not long before Jeff’s tragic passing, is now available on all streaming platforms. This release comes ahead of a series of Jeff Beck tribute shows at Royal Albert Hall in London. The double A-side “Moon River” and new song “How Could We Know” featuring Judith Hill, Simon Climie, and Daniel Santiago will be released on 7″ vinyl July 14, 2023.

Clapton and Beck’s history goes back to the 60’s as well. They’re both Brits, born around the same time, and spent their childhoods within 20 minutes of each other.

This interesting incidence of Classic Rock history also included Led Zeppelin guitarist Jimmy Page, who was born around the same time, and lived in the same area.

Clapton’s early music career found him as the guitarist in the British rock band The Yardbirds. Clapton left that band and Jeff Beck replaced him in that roll.

Jeff Beck passed away in January of 2023 at the age of 78. His musical legacy is enormous, and he had garnered and influenced millions of fans around the world.

Eric Clapton And Jeff Beck – Moon River

Video from the Eric Clapton Youtube channel. Animation by Nevil Bernard & Ninon Bernard

Lynyrd Skynyrd And Eric Clapton

Most Skynyrd fans are familiar with the memorable concert review article from 1974, when the band opened for Clapton at the Memphis Memorial Stadium in June of that year.

Skynyrd had been added to the bill because they were very popular in Memphis, and apparently, the show promoters were a bit sceptical of how Clapton would be received since his newer material at the time had seen him moving away from his original, bluesier roots.

All of the Skynyrd band members were fans of Clapton, and no doubt saw this as a huge opportunity. It is reported that Ronnie even said so in some of his remarks between songs during their set.

The show resulted in several review articles that pretty much agreed that Lynyrd Skynyrd was the show’s big hit. The most memorable was the article from Sounds Magazine with the lofty title: “Skynyrd Singe God’s Beard In Memphis.”

One of the most amazing things to remember is that Skynyrd was still a very new band at that time, from a national exposure aspect. Their sophomore album, Second Helping, had just been released a few months earlier, and Sweet Home Alabama was just beginning to climb the charts.

That is a testament to how good the original band really was back then. And there are other examples.

Lynyrd Skynyrd and Eric Clapton are also linked by the fact that they both covered songs written by the inestimable, and arguably underrated, songwriter, JJ Cale.

Allen Collins ’58 Gibson Korina Explorer

Original Skynyrd guitarist, Allen Collins was a huge Eric Clapton Fan. Allen had used Gibson Explorers and Firebirds over the years. No doubt from seeing his guitar hero playing them when he was younger.

Only a couple years after this show, Allen was able to make one of his dreams come true when he had the chance to purchase Eric’s 1958 Gibson Korina Explorer. It was his main guitar for several years after that.

This guitar was already exceptional because it was made during the original run of Explorers by Gibson in 1958. Korina is a very exotic wood, and not very many of them were made that year.

Being owned, and played by both Eric Clapton and Allen Collins make it even more exceptional. The last I knew, this guitar was still on display at the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame.

Lynyrd Skynyrd And Jeff Beck

The band crossed paths with Jeff Beck in 1976, when they did a show together at the Cape Cod Coliseum. There was a CD of this show released from the Japanese label, Breakdown in 2009.

It seems that this CD is somewhat rare as well. It’s a little weird in that the cover image shows Jeff Beck and The Jan Hammer Group playing and they are setup in front of the headliner’s backline. This would indicate that Beck was the opener.

But the track listing on the back shows Beck as the headliner and Skynyrd as the opener. It’s possible that the cover image is not from that particular show.

Recorded shortly before Jef Beck’s death in January of 2023, Moon River is part of the “Double A-Side” 7″ vinyl release from Eric Clapton.

Order your copy at Amazon now.