From the Cradle

From the Cradle
Studio album by Eric Clapton
Released 13 September 1994[1]
Recorded 1994, Olympic Studios, Barnes, London
Genre Blues, electric blues, British blues, soul blues
Length 60:10
Label Duck / Warner Bros.
Producer Eric Clapton, Russ Titelman
Eric Clapton chronology

Unplugged
(1992)		 From the Cradle
(1994)		 The Cream of Clapton
(1995)
Professional ratings
Review scores
Source Rating
Allmusic [1]
Chicago Tribune [2]
Entertainment Weekly B−[3]
Los Angeles Times [4]
The Music Box [5]
People (Positive)[6]
Robert Christgau [7]

From the Cradle is the twelfth studio album by Eric Clapton. It is a blues cover album. Released on 13 September 1994 (see 1994 in music) by Warner Bros. Records,[1] the album was Clapton's long-awaited follow-up to his massively successful 1992 live album, Unplugged. Per the liner notes, "This is a live recording with no overdubs or edits except for dobro overdub on 'How Long Blues' and drum overdub on 'Motherless Child'."

Although he had long been associated with the blues, From the Cradle was Clapton's first attempt at an all-blues album. He would subsequently record Riding with the King with B. B. King; a tribute to Robert Johnson, Me and Mr. Johnson; and a collaboration with J. J. Cale, The Road to Escondido.

Critical reception

From the Cradle has prompted a wide range of critical response. Many questioned the title itself as Clapton learned the blues formula from records later in life and certainly was not exposed to Black culture "from the cradle". Stephen Thomas Erlewine of Allmusic feels that the album is almost perfect and that the only thing bad about the album is Clapton's singing, which merely imitates the original recordings and sometimes can't pull it off.[1] Tom Sinclair of Entertainment Weekly felt that the recordings were "flawless" but were rather boring, especially when compared to the excitement of Cream's live version of "Spoonful".[3] The Music Box's John Metzger felt that Clapton's appearance on Saturday Night Live to promote the album was more powerful than From the Cradle and that the album had nothing that hadn't been done before on it.[5] Robert Christgau compared Eric Clapton's work on the album to Son Seals and Otis Rush, saying that Clapton played better than the former, but sang worse than the latter and felt that "Motherless Child" and "Blues Before Sunrise" were stand-out tracks on the album.[7]

In July 2014, Guitar World ranked From the Cradle at number twelve in their list "Superunknown: 50 Iconic Albums That Defined 1994".[8]

Track listing

  1. "Blues Before Sunrise" (Leroy Carr) – 2:58 ; this version is inspired also by Elmore James's rendition of the song
  2. "Third Degree" (Eddie Boyd, Willie Dixon) – 5:07
  3. "Reconsider Baby" (Lowell Fulson) – 3:20
  4. "Hoochie Coochie Man" (Willie Dixon) – 3:16 ; originally performed by Muddy Waters
  5. "Five Long Years" (Eddie Boyd) – 4:47
  6. "I'm Tore Down" (Sonny Thompson) – 3:02 ; originally performed by Freddie King
  7. "How Long Blues" (Leroy Carr) – 3:09
  8. "Goin' Away Baby" (James A. Lane) – 4:00
  9. "Blues Leave Me Alone" (James A. Lane) – 3:36
  10. "Sinner's Prayer" (Lowell Fulson, Lloyd Glenn)[9] – 3:20
  11. "Motherless Child" (Robert Hicks) – 2:57
  12. "It Hurts Me Too" (Tampa Red) – 3:17
  13. "Someday After a While (You'll Be Sorry)" (Freddie King, Sonny Thompson) – 4:27
  14. "Standin' Round Crying" (McKinley Morganfield) – 3:39
  15. "Driftin'" (Charles Brown, Johnny Moore, Eddie Williams) (Johnny Moore's Three Blazers) – 3:10
  16. "Groaning the Blues" (Willie Dixon) – 6:05 ; originally performed by Otis Rush

Personnel

Certifications

Region Certification Sales/shipments
Austria (IFPI Austria)[10] Gold 25,000x
France (SNEP)[11] 2× Gold 369,800[12]
Germany (BVMI)[13] Gold 250,000^
Japan (RIAJ)[14] Platinum 198,000[15]
Netherlands (NVPI)[16] Platinum 100,000^
Spain (PROMUSICAE)[17] Platinum 100,000^
Sweden (GLF)[18] Gold 50,000^
Switzerland (IFPI Switzerland)[19] Gold 25,000x
United Kingdom (BPI)[20] Gold 100,000^
United States (RIAA)[21] 3× Platinum 3,000,000^

^shipments figures based on certification alone
xunspecified figures based on certification alone

Charts

Peak positions

Chart Position
Australian ARIA Albums Chart[22] 6
Austrian Albums Chart[23] 1
Canadian RPM Albums Chart[24] 2
Dutch Mega Albums Chart[25] 3
French SNEP Albums Chart[26] 6
German Media Control Albums Chart[27] 6
Italian Albums Chart[28] 10
Japanese Oricon Albums Chart[29] 6
New Zealand Albums Chart[30] 2
Norwegian VG-lista Albums Chart[31] 4
Swedish Albums Chart[32] 2
Swiss Albums Chart[33] 1
UK Albums Chart[34] 1
United States Billboard 200[35] 1

Year-end charts

Chart (1994) Position
Austrian Albums Chart[36] 35
Canadian RPM Albums Chart[37] 27
Dutch Albums Chart[38] 60
French Albums Chart[39] 37
Italian Albums Chart[28] 44
Japanese Albums Chart[40] 94
Swiss Albums Chart[41] 40
US Billboard 200[42] 64
Chart (1995) Position
US Billboard 200[43] 65

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. "Review: From the Cradle by Eric Clapton". Allmusic. United States: Rovi Corporation. Retrieved 5 July 2011.
  2. ↑ Kot, Greg (16 September 1994). "From Safe To Sorry". chicagotribune.com. Chicago Tribune. Retrieved 10 October 2013.
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 Sinclair, Tom (16 September 1994). "Music Review: From the Cradle – Eric Clapton". Entertainment Weekly (240). ISSN 1049-0434. Retrieved 18 July 2011.
  4. ↑ Boehm, Mike (11 September 1994). "Album Review > ERIC CLAPTON, "From the Cradle" (Duck/Reprise)". articles.latimes.com. Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 10 October 2013.
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 Metzger, John (January 1995). "Review: From the Cradle by Eric Clapton". The Music Box 2 (1). Retrieved 18 July 2011.
  6. ↑ "Picks and Pans Review: From the Cradle". People. 3 October 1994. Retrieved 31 January 2014.
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 Christgau, Robert. "Eric Clapton: Consumer Guide Reviews" (PHP). Robert Christgau. Retrieved 18 July 2011.
  8. ↑ "Superunknown: 50 Iconic Albums That Defined 1994". GuitarWorld.com. 14 July 2014. Retrieved 14 July 2014.
  9. ↑ BMI – Repertoire Search Sinner's Prayer Retrieved 26 April 2013
  10. ↑ "Austrian album certifications – Eric Clapton – From the Cradle" (in German). IFPI Austria. Enter Eric Clapton in the field Interpret. Enter From the Cradle in the field Titel. Select album in the field Format. Click Suchen
  11. ↑ "French album certifications – Eric Clapton – From the Cradle" (in French). Syndicat National de l'Édition Phonographique.
  12. ↑ "Les Albums Double Or". infodisc.fr (in French). SNEP. Retrieved 31 August 2012.
  13. ↑ "Gold-/Platin-Datenbank (Eric Clapton; 'From the Cradle')" (in German). Bundesverband Musikindustrie.
  14. ↑ "RIAJ > The Record > May 1995 > Certified Awards (March 1995)" (PDF). Recording Industry Association of Japan (in Japanese). Retrieved 2 August 2013.
  15. ↑ Oricon Album Chart Book: Complete Edition 1970–2005. Roppongi, Tokyo: Oricon Entertainment. 2006. ISBN 4-87131-077-9.
  16. ↑ "Dutch album certifications – Eric Clapton – From the Cradle" (in Dutch). Nederlandse Vereniging van Producenten en Importeurs van beeld- en geluidsdragers.
  17. ↑ "Solo Exitos 1959–2002 Ano A Ano: Certificados 1991–1995". Solo Exitos 1959–2002 Ano A Ano.
  18. ↑ "Guld- och Platinacertifikat − År 1987−1998" (PDF) (in Swedish). IFPI Sweden.
  19. ↑ "The Official Swiss Charts and Music Community: Awards (Eric Clapton; 'From the Cradle')". Hung Medien.
  20. ↑ "British album certifications – Eric Clapton – From the Cradle". British Phonographic Industry. Enter From the Cradle in the field Keywords. Select Title in the field Search by. Select album in the field By Format. Select Gold in the field By Award. Click Search
  21. ↑ "American album certifications – Eric Clapton – From the Cradle". Recording Industry Association of America. If necessary, click Advanced, then click Format, then select Album, then click SEARCH
  22. ↑ "australian-charts.com Eric Clapton – From the Cradle" (ASP). Hung Medien. Australian Recording Industry Association. Retrieved 29 January 2014.
  23. ↑ "Eric Clapton – From the Cradle – austriancharts.at" (ASP) (in German). Retrieved 29 January 2014.
  24. ↑ "Top Albums/CDs - Volume 60, No. 10" (PHP). RPM. 26 September 1994. Retrieved 29 January 2014.
  25. ↑ "dutchcharts.nl Eric Clapton – From the Cradle" (ASP). dutchcharts.nl (in Dutch). MegaCharts. Retrieved 2011-10-23.
  26. ↑ "InfoDisc : Tous les Albums classés par Artiste > Choisir Un Artiste Dans la Liste" (PHP) (in French). infodisc.fr. Retrieved 29 January 2014.
  27. ↑ "Album Search: Eric Clapton – From the Cradle" (ASP) (in German). Media Control. Retrieved 29 January 2014.
  28. ↑ 28.0 28.1 "Hit Parade Italia – Gli album più venduti del 1994" (in Italian). hitparadeitalia.it. Retrieved 29 January 2014.
  29. ↑ エリック・クラプトン-リリース-ORICON STYLE-ミュージック "Highest position and charting weeks of Unplugged by Eric Clapton". oricon.co.jp (in Japanese). Oricon Style. Retrieved 29 January 2014.
  30. ↑ "charts.org.nz – Eric Clapton – From the Cradle" (ASP). Recording Industry Association of New Zealand. Retrieved 29 January 2014.
  31. ↑ "norwegiancharts.com Eric Clapton – From the Cradle" (ASP). VG-lista. Retrieved 29 January 2014.
  32. ↑ "swedishcharts.com Eric Clapton – From the Cradle" (ASP) (in Swedish). Sverigetopplistan. Retrieved 29 January 2014.
  33. ↑ "Eric Clapton – From the Cradle – hitparade.ch" (ASP). Hung Medien (in German). Swiss Music Charts. Retrieved 29 January 2014.
  34. ↑ "Eric Clapton > Artists > Official Charts". UK Albums Chart. Retrieved 27 January 2014.
  35. ↑ Allmusic – From the Cradle > Charts & Awards > Billboard Albums
  36. ↑ "Austriancharts.at – Jahreshitparade 1994". Hung Medien (in German). Retrieved 29 January 2014.
  37. ↑ "RPM Top 100 Albums of 1994". RPM. 12 December 1994. Retrieved 29 January 2014.
  38. ↑ "Dutch charts jaaroverzichten 1994" (ASP) (in Dutch). Retrieved 2 April 2014.
  39. ↑ "Les Albums (CD) de 1994 par InfoDisc" (PHP) (in French). infodisc.fr. Retrieved 29 January 2014.
  40. ↑ 1994年 アルバム年間TOP100 "Oricon Year-end Albums Chart of 1994" (in Japanese). Retrieved 29 January 2014.
  41. ↑ "Hitparade.ch – Schweizer Jahreshitparade 1994" (ASP). Hung Medien (in German). Swiss Music Charts. Retrieved 29 January 2014.
  42. ↑ "Billboard.BIZ". billboard.biz. Retrieved 29 September 2011.
  43. ↑ "Billboard.BIZ". billboard.biz. Retrieved 29 October 2011.
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