Deprecated: Function create_function() is deprecated in /home3/skyemedi/public_html/soundbard.com/wp-content/plugins/display-tweets-php/displaytweets.php on line 627

Deprecated: Function get_magic_quotes_gpc() is deprecated in /home3/skyemedi/public_html/soundbard.com/wp-includes/load.php on line 545

Warning: Declaration of description_walker::start_el(&$output, $item, $depth, $args) should be compatible with Walker_Nav_Menu::start_el(&$output, $item, $depth = 0, $args = Array, $id = 0) in /home3/skyemedi/public_html/soundbard.com/wp-content/themes/reaction-2.0/functions.php on line 503

Deprecated: Function create_function() is deprecated in /home3/skyemedi/public_html/soundbard.com/wp-content/themes/reaction-2.0/functions.php on line 137

Deprecated: Function create_function() is deprecated in /home3/skyemedi/public_html/soundbard.com/wp-content/themes/reaction-2.0/functions.php on line 142

Deprecated: Function create_function() is deprecated in /home3/skyemedi/public_html/soundbard.com/wp-content/themes/reaction-2.0/functions.php on line 146

Notice: Only variables should be passed by reference in /home3/skyemedi/public_html/soundbard.com/wp-content/themes/reaction-2.0/mythology-core/option-tree/ot-loader.php on line 280
Eric Clapton | SoundBard
Deprecated: Function get_magic_quotes_gpc() is deprecated in /home3/skyemedi/public_html/soundbard.com/wp-includes/formatting.php on line 3320

Deprecated: Function get_magic_quotes_gpc() is deprecated in /home3/skyemedi/public_html/soundbard.com/wp-includes/formatting.php on line 3320

Deprecated: Function get_magic_quotes_gpc() is deprecated in /home3/skyemedi/public_html/soundbard.com/wp-includes/formatting.php on line 3320

Deprecated: Function get_magic_quotes_gpc() is deprecated in /home3/skyemedi/public_html/soundbard.com/wp-includes/formatting.php on line 3320

Deprecated: Function get_magic_quotes_gpc() is deprecated in /home3/skyemedi/public_html/soundbard.com/wp-includes/formatting.php on line 3320

Deprecated: Function get_magic_quotes_gpc() is deprecated in /home3/skyemedi/public_html/soundbard.com/wp-includes/formatting.php on line 3320

Deprecated: Function get_magic_quotes_gpc() is deprecated in /home3/skyemedi/public_html/soundbard.com/wp-includes/formatting.php on line 3320

Deprecated: Function get_magic_quotes_gpc() is deprecated in /home3/skyemedi/public_html/soundbard.com/wp-includes/formatting.php on line 3320

Deprecated: Function get_magic_quotes_gpc() is deprecated in /home3/skyemedi/public_html/soundbard.com/wp-includes/formatting.php on line 3320

Deprecated: Function get_magic_quotes_gpc() is deprecated in /home3/skyemedi/public_html/soundbard.com/wp-includes/formatting.php on line 3320

Deprecated: Function get_magic_quotes_gpc() is deprecated in /home3/skyemedi/public_html/soundbard.com/wp-includes/formatting.php on line 3320

Deprecated: Function get_magic_quotes_gpc() is deprecated in /home3/skyemedi/public_html/soundbard.com/wp-includes/formatting.php on line 3320

Deprecated: Function get_magic_quotes_gpc() is deprecated in /home3/skyemedi/public_html/soundbard.com/wp-includes/formatting.php on line 1551

Deprecated: Function get_magic_quotes_gpc() is deprecated in /home3/skyemedi/public_html/soundbard.com/wp-includes/formatting.php on line 1551

Notice: Array to string conversion in /home3/skyemedi/public_html/soundbard.com/wp-includes/nav-menu.php on line 601

Notice: Array to string conversion in /home3/skyemedi/public_html/soundbard.com/wp-includes/nav-menu.php on line 601

Notice: Indirect modification of overloaded property WP_Post::$Array has no effect in /home3/skyemedi/public_html/soundbard.com/wp-includes/nav-menu.php on line 601

Warning: Illegal string offset 'output_key' in /home3/skyemedi/public_html/soundbard.com/wp-includes/nav-menu.php on line 601

Notice: Array to string conversion in /home3/skyemedi/public_html/soundbard.com/wp-includes/nav-menu.php on line 601

Notice: Array to string conversion in /home3/skyemedi/public_html/soundbard.com/wp-includes/nav-menu.php on line 601

Notice: Indirect modification of overloaded property WP_Post::$Array has no effect in /home3/skyemedi/public_html/soundbard.com/wp-includes/nav-menu.php on line 601

Warning: Illegal string offset 'output_key' in /home3/skyemedi/public_html/soundbard.com/wp-includes/nav-menu.php on line 601

Notice: Array to string conversion in /home3/skyemedi/public_html/soundbard.com/wp-includes/nav-menu.php on line 601

Notice: Array to string conversion in /home3/skyemedi/public_html/soundbard.com/wp-includes/nav-menu.php on line 601

Notice: Indirect modification of overloaded property WP_Post::$Array has no effect in /home3/skyemedi/public_html/soundbard.com/wp-includes/nav-menu.php on line 601

Warning: Illegal string offset 'output_key' in /home3/skyemedi/public_html/soundbard.com/wp-includes/nav-menu.php on line 601

Notice: Array to string conversion in /home3/skyemedi/public_html/soundbard.com/wp-includes/nav-menu.php on line 601

Notice: Array to string conversion in /home3/skyemedi/public_html/soundbard.com/wp-includes/nav-menu.php on line 601

Notice: Indirect modification of overloaded property WP_Post::$Array has no effect in /home3/skyemedi/public_html/soundbard.com/wp-includes/nav-menu.php on line 601

Warning: Illegal string offset 'output_key' in /home3/skyemedi/public_html/soundbard.com/wp-includes/nav-menu.php on line 601

Notice: Array to string conversion in /home3/skyemedi/public_html/soundbard.com/wp-includes/nav-menu.php on line 601

Notice: Array to string conversion in /home3/skyemedi/public_html/soundbard.com/wp-includes/nav-menu.php on line 601

Notice: Indirect modification of overloaded property WP_Post::$Array has no effect in /home3/skyemedi/public_html/soundbard.com/wp-includes/nav-menu.php on line 601

Warning: Illegal string offset 'output_key' in /home3/skyemedi/public_html/soundbard.com/wp-includes/nav-menu.php on line 601

Notice: Array to string conversion in /home3/skyemedi/public_html/soundbard.com/wp-includes/nav-menu.php on line 601

Notice: Array to string conversion in /home3/skyemedi/public_html/soundbard.com/wp-includes/nav-menu.php on line 601

Notice: Indirect modification of overloaded property WP_Post::$Array has no effect in /home3/skyemedi/public_html/soundbard.com/wp-includes/nav-menu.php on line 601

Warning: Illegal string offset 'output_key' in /home3/skyemedi/public_html/soundbard.com/wp-includes/nav-menu.php on line 601

Notice: Array to string conversion in /home3/skyemedi/public_html/soundbard.com/wp-includes/nav-menu.php on line 601

Notice: Array to string conversion in /home3/skyemedi/public_html/soundbard.com/wp-includes/nav-menu.php on line 601

Notice: Indirect modification of overloaded property WP_Post::$Array has no effect in /home3/skyemedi/public_html/soundbard.com/wp-includes/nav-menu.php on line 601

Warning: Illegal string offset 'output_key' in /home3/skyemedi/public_html/soundbard.com/wp-includes/nav-menu.php on line 601

Notice: Array to string conversion in /home3/skyemedi/public_html/soundbard.com/wp-includes/nav-menu.php on line 601

Notice: Array to string conversion in /home3/skyemedi/public_html/soundbard.com/wp-includes/nav-menu.php on line 601

Notice: Indirect modification of overloaded property WP_Post::$Array has no effect in /home3/skyemedi/public_html/soundbard.com/wp-includes/nav-menu.php on line 601

Warning: Illegal string offset 'output_key' in /home3/skyemedi/public_html/soundbard.com/wp-includes/nav-menu.php on line 601

Notice: Array to string conversion in /home3/skyemedi/public_html/soundbard.com/wp-includes/nav-menu.php on line 601

Notice: Array to string conversion in /home3/skyemedi/public_html/soundbard.com/wp-includes/nav-menu.php on line 601

Notice: Indirect modification of overloaded property WP_Post::$Array has no effect in /home3/skyemedi/public_html/soundbard.com/wp-includes/nav-menu.php on line 601

Warning: Illegal string offset 'output_key' in /home3/skyemedi/public_html/soundbard.com/wp-includes/nav-menu.php on line 601

Notice: Array to string conversion in /home3/skyemedi/public_html/soundbard.com/wp-includes/nav-menu.php on line 601

Notice: Array to string conversion in /home3/skyemedi/public_html/soundbard.com/wp-includes/nav-menu.php on line 601

Notice: Indirect modification of overloaded property WP_Post::$Array has no effect in /home3/skyemedi/public_html/soundbard.com/wp-includes/nav-menu.php on line 601

Warning: Illegal string offset 'output_key' in /home3/skyemedi/public_html/soundbard.com/wp-includes/nav-menu.php on line 601

Notice: Array to string conversion in /home3/skyemedi/public_html/soundbard.com/wp-includes/nav-menu.php on line 601

Notice: Array to string conversion in /home3/skyemedi/public_html/soundbard.com/wp-includes/nav-menu.php on line 601

Notice: Indirect modification of overloaded property WP_Post::$Array has no effect in /home3/skyemedi/public_html/soundbard.com/wp-includes/nav-menu.php on line 601

Warning: Illegal string offset 'output_key' in /home3/skyemedi/public_html/soundbard.com/wp-includes/nav-menu.php on line 601

Eric Clapton


The Midnight Writer: Alan Paul on the Definitive Inside History of The Allman Brothers Band

Posted on April 22nd, by Mike Mettler in Turn the Page.
Notice: __ngettext is deprecated since version 2.8! Use _n() instead. in /home3/skyemedi/public_html/soundbard.com/wp-includes/functions.php on line 3078
3 comments

Notice: Undefined variable: theme_options in /home3/skyemedi/public_html/soundbard.com/wp-content/themes/reaction-2.0/element-excerpt.php on line 27

BY MIKE METTLER

If knowledge is power, then Alan Paul is the chairman of The Allman Brothers board. His definitive inside history of The Allman Brothers Band, One Way Out (St. Martin’s Press), is one of the most thorough, in-depth, and best-researched rock biographies I’ve had the pleasure to read — and if you know me, you know I pretty much read ‘em all. Though I’m a diehard Allmans fan and I’ve personally interviewed ABB members Gregg Allman, Butch Trucks, Warren Haynes, and Derek Trucks, I learned something new with just about every turn of the page. Alan’s first-hand reporting and meticulous research, presented in the oral-history format and strategically interspersed with his own insightful commentary, is so spot-on that one could almost retitle the book One Way In.

I first met Alan in early 1991 when I started writing freelance for Guitar World (he remains a … Read More »



Sunshine of Your Groove: Jack Bruce on Getting Silver Rails on Track, Recording at Abbey Road Studios & The Essence of Cream

Posted on April 17th, by Mike Mettler in The SoundBard Interview.
Notice: __ngettext is deprecated since version 2.8! Use _n() instead. in /home3/skyemedi/public_html/soundbard.com/wp-includes/functions.php on line 3078
4 comments

Notice: Undefined variable: theme_options in /home3/skyemedi/public_html/soundbard.com/wp-content/themes/reaction-2.0/element-excerpt.php on line 27

BY MIKE METTLER

The bottom end has never been quite the same since Jack Bruce picked up his first bass over 6 decades ago. The vaunted Cream bassist wrote the book on the art of the low-end hook, as his syncopated approach to playing bass helped shift pop music’s bottom-end emphasis away from just laying down root notes and fifths, in turn opening the door to a more adventurous yet melodically inclined style that laid the foundation for the rock explosion of the ’60s. Turns in both Manfred Mann and John Mayall’s bands set the table for Bruce to connect with Eric Clapton and Ginger Baker and forge Cream, wherein the super Scotsman set the heavy-blues power-trio standard with epic runs and full-band interplay in songs like “I Feel Free,” “Spoonful,” “Politician,” and “Sunshine of Your Love.”

Once Cream curdled, Bruce delved further into … Read More »



The SoundBard’s Top 25 Albums of 2013

Posted on December 31st, by Mike Mettler in Odds & Sods.
Notice: __ngettext is deprecated since version 2.8! Use _n() instead. in /home3/skyemedi/public_html/soundbard.com/wp-includes/functions.php on line 3078
6 comments

Notice: Undefined variable: theme_options in /home3/skyemedi/public_html/soundbard.com/wp-content/themes/reaction-2.0/element-excerpt.php on line 27

BY MIKE METTLER

Damn the naysayers — I say the album format lives! With that vital declaration out of the way, it’s high time to cite the records that caught hold of my expert ear over the past 12 months — the full-length discs and/or LPs I consider most worthy of purchase, hi-res download, and/or dropping the needle on! Here, in reverse order, are my favorite 25 albums of 2013. Happy spinning!

25. Jim James: Regions of Light and Sound of God. Mind-/soul-/ear-expanding. Amen, J-man.

24. Kings of Leon: Mechanical Bull. Cojones-shaking rawk.

23. Matthew Sweet and Susanna Hoffs: Under the Covers, Vol. 3. Sid and Susie give the ’80s a deep, loving soul kiss. Read my interview with Sid and Susie here.

22. The Rides: Can’t Get Enough. Super Session, Millennial Style: Stephen Stills, Kenny Wayne Shepherd, and Barry Goldberg burn on down the … Read More »



Slidin’ Onto Wax: Guitar Prodigy Derek Trucks Spins LPs Wherever He May Roam

Posted on December 20th, by Mike Mettler in The SoundBard Interview.
Notice: __ngettext is deprecated since version 2.8! Use _n() instead. in /home3/skyemedi/public_html/soundbard.com/wp-includes/functions.php on line 3078
4 comments

Notice: Undefined variable: theme_options in /home3/skyemedi/public_html/soundbard.com/wp-content/themes/reaction-2.0/element-excerpt.php on line 27

BY MIKE METTLER

“That’s the cartridge you want — the one that’ll get you kicked out of the house!” And that’s Derek Trucks, empathizing over the price of high-end audiophile gear, both in terms of how it affects your wallet and your personal life. “I’ve had that conversation too,” he adds with a chuckle. The good-natured Trucks drenched his sweet-toned slide-guitar stamp all over one of 2013’s best albums, the Tedeschi Trucks Band’s Made Up Mind (Masterworks; you can read my 4 1/2-star review of it in the Discs & Downloads section on the Sound & Vision website.) Here, Trucks, 34, and I commune over his favorite gear and LPs, the albums that made the deepest impressions on him growing up, how good Mind sounds on vinyl, and its thematic album parallel. (Hint: “Darling, won’t you ease my worried mind” is … Read More »



Holiday Gift Guide Special: 108 Rock Star Guitars to Riff & Roll on Your Coffee Table

Posted on December 12th, by Mike Mettler in Turn the Page.
Notice: __ngettext is deprecated since version 2.8! Use _n() instead. in /home3/skyemedi/public_html/soundbard.com/wp-includes/functions.php on line 3078
Comments Off

Notice: Undefined variable: theme_options in /home3/skyemedi/public_html/soundbard.com/wp-content/themes/reaction-2.0/element-excerpt.php on line 27

BY MIKE METTLER

“Nothing moves me like the sound of a guitar.” It’s the opening sentence to author Lisa S. Johnson’s passionate introduction to 108 Rock Star Guitars (Glitterati Incorporated), her lavishly photographed and beautifully bound ode to a score of axes ‘n planks that have created some of the most indelible sounds in our lifetime, and I swear I could have written that line myself. I was enamored with guitars even before I learned how to form the chords that open Yes’ “Roundabout” on a no-name acoustic in a junior high school guitar class, and to this day my attention is rapt whenever I hear certain riffs or see guitar wizards both budding and seasoned practicing their own special brands of fretboard magic live.

108 Rock Star Guitars captures many of those jamtastic fretboard-induced feelings between its covers, so if you’re … Read More »



The Vinyl Brothers, Session 1: Tommy Shaw & The SoundBard on Eric Clapton’s Underrated Clapton LP

Posted on October 21st, by Mike Mettler in The SoundBard Interview.
Notice: __ngettext is deprecated since version 2.8! Use _n() instead. in /home3/skyemedi/public_html/soundbard.com/wp-includes/functions.php on line 3078
Comments Off

Notice: Undefined variable: theme_options in /home3/skyemedi/public_html/soundbard.com/wp-content/themes/reaction-2.0/element-excerpt.php on line 27

BY MIKE METTLER

Get Tommy Shaw and me, Mr. SoundBard, in a room talking about music, and chances are you’ll have to drag us out by our respective ears to get us on the way to our next destinations. (Just ask Styx’s ever-patient, ever-gracious tour manager and assistant tour manager.) Tommy and I bonded over a mutual passion for music, and especially vinyl, years ago, and we share our LP love regularly in text, photo, and email. A typical message might begin along the lines of “Look what I found!” and subsequently “You won’t believe how GOOD this album sounds!” — followed soon thereafter by a fervent discourse on all of the aural subtleties and production nuances that cause us to pick the needle up and play that record again and again and again.

That’s my ’round-the-bend way of saying welcome to … Read More »





Deprecated: Function get_magic_quotes_gpc() is deprecated in /home3/skyemedi/public_html/soundbard.com/wp-includes/formatting.php on line 3320

Deprecated: Function get_magic_quotes_gpc() is deprecated in /home3/skyemedi/public_html/soundbard.com/wp-includes/formatting.php on line 3320

Deprecated: Function get_magic_quotes_gpc() is deprecated in /home3/skyemedi/public_html/soundbard.com/wp-includes/formatting.php on line 3320