An "Old Love"

I have become increasingly aware recently that I have unintentionally but perhaps unavoidably allowed my once lauded knowledge of (and interest in) music to drop down life's list of priorities. In part this is no doubt due to ever increasing distractions of having kids daily life. But the silver lining to this otherwise really rather dark cloud is that it does occasionally enable me to stumble across albums of yesteryear that, in my humble opinion, still trump the sheer awfulness of 'what kids call music today' [cue eery sensation of deja vu from various conversations I recall having with my Dad around 20 years ago].

And so, for no particular reason other than that it was what my ipod shuffle threw at me yesterday evening on the drive home from work, I present:

 Eric Clapton's 1992 MTV Unplugged Album

I remember first hearing this album, randomly, in a colleague's car (someone who was at the time old enough to drive, while I was still taking lessons) on the way home from a WHSmith inter-branch 5-a-side football tournament in Richmond. An oft-quoted memory for many I'm sure.

The thing about this album is that it suits any mood, and any time of day. It is just about the right length, it is not made to sound better as a result of clever production. It's just a very talented guy, in front of an intimate audience, singing some great old songs in a simple but (at the time) fresh style. I collected a number of the MTV Unplugged albums (including, if I recall, Kermit the Frog's - get it here! - worth listening to if only for the cover of "Wild Thing"!). But Eric Clapton's is still my favourite by far. I will listen to it once every few months, and then forget about it for ages, until I rediscover it again. Timeless quality.

Anyway, this shameless plug also enables me to try out some of the new features of this upgraded blog, such as linking in MP3 clips from Amazon. Hopefully this link provides you with a taster. Enjoy.