Yes that's a good question, but neither does John McLaughlin play like he use to and Hendrix probably would have cooled off as he got older as well. Might be a life stage thing, different feelings, different expression or the risk of becoming cliched??

THe great thing about Eric's solo's is the throaty vocal style that he invented, its one thing to play riffs, its another to make them sound like singing, musical, meaningful

Lost it at 2:05, ego got the better of him and he played badly.

Man! I want more! Clapton was IT in his day. Even these many decades after he laid the blueprint for this kind of thing, he stands out. So much intensity, sadly lost about the time he picked up a Strat.

Have seen EC a few times and he is always a sharp dresser and a great musician

I’m sick of hearing about appropriation of a culture. These white boys took blues to an entire different level. I still love the greats but please give Clapton et al some respect

Now that’s the Clapton I grew up hearing tone and phrases. Miss that.

Brilliant guitar love you eric for ever ❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤

Here 12 years after this is posted but does anyone have tabs for this?

Eric and that stinging Gibson tone sounds like heaven . 🖤

Did anyone SEE JACK BRUCE in those photos ? Heard him play in bass...

A Firebird and an SG. An ES in London. No L P. in 68. That's a photo from London. No need to lie.

Les Paul would be proud. WOW.

One if the best takes of guitar work ever recorded. The power of it is unmatched

Just in love with this version. Insanely good. All three are on point and amazing. Jack, Jack, Jack: fretless bass at its best. Killer Bee baby

He decided there was more to music than shredding night after night after night artist has to follow where the muse takes him even if his fans don't like it I respect him for it he didn't want to keep doing the Clapton is God thing anymore. Still influenced every guitarist of his generation

Abe Union pride what can be said

no one, no one like him, touch, tone, sound, improvisation.

Wow. I’m surprised his guitar didn’t just spontaneously combust. Pure fire from his fingers. Never heard him play better.

Clapton is absolutely smokin 🎸 🔥 💀

Abe Union pride wow Clapton is God

The cleanest most articulate guitar work of the 1960's .. Nobody else even came close ..

Best. Clapton. Lead. Ever. A master class in blues lead.

🌈 Jah Bless 🌈 No one, not even Jimi, or SRV or J Page or any other Rock player played as good as Eric did in his heyday especially with Cream. Cream was the best band in the World at that time, especially for blues rock. It's so sad that his playing declined as bad as it did, after Cream, although Blind Faith was still Okay. It was such a magic time for music...

Gibson guitars through Marshall stacks.

🌈 Jah Bless 🌈 This is back from when Clapton could PLAY, before he burned out on heroin

It is widely said that Eric Clapton was once humiliated, however no one humiliated him in any way, because he amazingly plays the guitar without fancy sounds pedals, (sometimes just only a whawha) ,no gimmicks, no weird efects, no stage drama ,just very smooth but fierces and very well articulated solos with very distinctives bendings and vibratos, going straight and fiery through the Marshall Amps , and by the way, Clapton is a very good singer as well.

Eric Clapton was an amazing blues guitarist back in the day. He can't play like this anymore, but back then, he was certainly King of the Blues...

Gary Moore changed direction but never lost the fire....

SOME STUPENDOUS MUSIC BY ALL 3 OF THEM. HOW COULD YOU NOT LOVE CLAPTON!

no vocals ???

The tone on this is just so good and it's a Firebird from what I see reading below.........EC was on.

I saw them at Arena in Providence in 1968

Some people get better with age like Jeff beck but Clapton in cream is his apex

This is Clapton at his best. Anyone who stress that Hendrix was the world' s greatest guitar player should listen to this. The combination of Gibson/Marshall, vibrato, speed and clarity is unique here. Live Hendrix stuff in ' 68 can sound muddy, noisy and out of tune. Compare Clapton in Cream to Hendrix at Miami Pop Festival and you see what I mean. As we all know Clapton changed his mind and style after Cream. But what if Clapton had died of an overdose in 1971 and an outburned Hendrix had lived on, playing boring funk? Hendrix could never achieve Clapton ' s level in Blues Breakers and Cream in my opinion. 😅

That picture looks like The Marquee..

Dammit, where is the rest of this?? You can’t just leave me falling off a cliff like that…

Amazing to see so many others with same interest and such detail. I missed seeing Cream live. I've played Clapton for 55 years and get to perform Crossroads in a few weeks. I still have my '69 SG Std and the only way I've come close to duplicating that (Crossroads) sound is direct into Marshall stack and turning volume to 10. Appeeciate all the stories and comments. Would love to know more.

Minds were blown!

W.hat happened to him after cream ??????

I dedicate my whole life to listening to different guitar players over the years this might be the greatest guitar work that I have ever heard in my life

He only used a firebird and LP on the farewell tour? Didn't he use his 335 on the Albert Hall farewell gigs?

Jesus god

Jack Bruce is what I am liking a great deal here.

I was right behind the drums with a bowl of soup, my trousers had evaporated so I was in my skids. Eric looked round and said is that tomato soup? I said no, it's leek and onion, he said next time make sure it's tomato, and get some trousers on. I was always amazed at how he still managed to play lead whilst talking about soup. I think thats why I like him.

....gives me goosebumps !

My favorite version of Crossroads !!!

CREAM ALWAYS RISES TO the TOP ! HERE'S the PROOF !!! RIP JACK and GINGER🙏🙏

For a very brief time - 1965-68, Clapton set the blueprint for modern electric blues and rock. I would argue Hendrix would never have been 'discovered' and come to England if it wasn't for Clapton. His arrival pushed Clapton to even greater intensity and together they changed the sound of electric guitar which their peers (Page, Beck, Green, Blackmore etc.) picked up on and then influenced the next generations.

What pisses me off is that my mother (born 1926) saw, not only Cream, but Jimi Hendrix as well and I never did. And that ain't right (I'm glad for her, but, goddammit, it ain't fair).