Eric Clapton’s studio albums for Reprise Records are among the most beloved of the guitarist’s storied career and the focus of a new series of limited-edition, vinyl-only boxed sets. The first installment, The Complete Reprise Studio Albums – Volume I, is available today. The 180-gram, 12-LP set features Clapton’s first six studio albums for Reprise (Money and Cigarettes, Behind the Sun, August, Journeyman, From the Cradle, and Pilgrim) along with an additional LP of rarities from the era.
The second installment, coming in January, features 10 LPs that cover all five albums Clapton recorded for Reprise between 2001 and 2010, plus an LP exclusive to the collection that includes rarities from the same time.
THE COMPLETE REPRISE STUDIO ALBUMS – VOLUME II will be available on January 13, 2023, with pre-orders available now. The set contains newly remastered versions of five studio albums pressed on 180-gram vinyl: Reptile (2001), Me & Mr. Johnson (2004), Sessions For Robert J (2004), Back Home (2005), and Clapton (2010). All the albums will be released as double-LPs except Sessions For Robert J, which makes its vinyl debut in the collection as a single LP.
Rarities (2001-2010), the collection’s final LP, brings together eight hard-to-find recordings from this prolific era in Clapton’s recording career. Highlights include the B-side “Johnny Guitar” and the Japanese-only bonus track, “Losing Hand.” “Midnight Hour Blues,” another rarity, was released in 2010 as a bonus track for Clapton. A newly remixed version of that song is available today on YouTube.
Simon Climie, Clapton’s long-time co-producer and engineer, oversaw the definitive remasters included in this collection. All the music was mastered by Bob Ludwig at Gateway Mastering and the lacquers for the LPs were cut by Chris Bellman at Bernie Grundman Mastering.
VOLUME II covers a nine-year period that starts in 2001 with Reptile, Clapton’s 14th solo studio album. It reached #5 on the albums chart in the U.S. and sold more than 2.5 million copies worldwide. Two singles from the album – “Superman Inside” and “Reptile” – were nominated for Grammy Awards, with the latter winning for Best Pop Instrumental Performance.
Clapton returned in 2004 with Me and Mr. Johnson, an album of cover songs originally written and recorded by Delta-bluesman Robert Johnson, a trailblazing artist who profoundly influenced Clapton. Packed with passionate performances, the record sold more than two million copies worldwide and was nominated for a GrammyÒ Award. The album is presented as a double-LP in the new collection and features an etching of the album cover on the final side.
Also in 2004, Clapton released Session for Robert J, a companion piece to Me and Mr. Johnson. The album captures acoustic and electric performances by Clapton and his band in Dallas and England as they rehearsed and recorded songs for Me and Mr. Johnson. The album, which makes its vinyl debut in this collection, includes fantastic versions of “Terraplane Blues” and “Sweet Home Chicago.”
Clapton’s hot streak continued in 2005 with Back Home, his 17th studio album. Certified gold in the U.S., the record featured guest performances by Vince Gill, John Mayer, Robert Randolph, Billy Preston, and Steve Winwood. On the album, Clapton paid tribute to his close friend George Harrison with a cover of Harrison’s 1979 song “Love Comes To Everyone.” Back Home won the 2006 GrammyÒ Award for Best Engineered Album, Non-Classical.
Clapton is th final studio album on VOLUME II. It debuted in 2010 and peaked on the album charts at #6 in the U.S. and #7 in the U.K. Once again, Clapto was joined in the studio by an all-star group of guest musicians that includes Derek Trucks, Wynton Marsalis, Allen Toussaint, an J.J. Cale. On the album, Clapton mixed Tin Pan Alley standards and New Orleans jazz with new songs like “Run Back To Your Side,” which was nominated for a Grammy Award in 2011.
THE COMPLETE REPRISE STUDIO ALBUMS – VOLUME II
Track Listing
Reptile (2001)
“Reptile”
“Got You On My Mind”
“Travelin’ Light”
“Believe In Life”
“Come Back Baby”
“Broken Down”
“Find Myself”
“I Ain’t Gonna Stand For It”
“I Want a Little Girl”
“Second Nature”
“Don’t Let Me Be Lonely Tonight”
“Modern Girl”
“Superman Inside”
“Son & Sylvia
Me & Mr. Johnson (2004)
“When You Got A Good Friend”
“Little Queen Of Spades”
“They’re Red Hot”
“Me And The Devil Blues”
“Traveling Riverside Blues”
“Last Fair Deal Gone Down”
“Stop Breakin’ Down Blues”
“Milkcow’s Calf Blues”
“Kind Hearted Woman Blues”
“Come On In My Kitchen”
“If I Had Possession Over Judgement Day”
“Love In Vain”
“32-20 Blues”
“Hell Hound On My Trail”
Sessions for Robert J (2004)
“Sweet Home Chicago”
“Milkcow’s Calf Blues”
“Terraplane Blues”
“If I Had Possession Over Judgement Day”
“Stop Breakin’ Down Blues”
“Little Queen Of Spades”
“Traveling Riverside Blues”
“Me And The Devil Blues”
“From Four Until Late”
“Kind Hearted Woman Blues”
“Ramblin’ On My Mind”
Back Home (2005)
“So Tired”
“Say What You Will”
“I’m Going Left”
“Love Don’t Love Nobody”
“Revolution”
“Love Comes To Everyone”
“Lost And Found”
“Piece Of My Heart”
“One Day”
“One Track Mind”
“Run Home To Me”
“Back Home”
Clapton (2010)
“Travelin’ Alone”
“Rocking Chair”
“River Runs Deep”
“Judgement Day”
“How Deep Is The Ocean”
“My Very Good Friend The Milkman”
“Can’t Hold Out Much Longer”
“That’s No Way To Get Along”
“Everything Will Be Alright”
“Diamonds Made From Rain”
“When Somebody Thinks You’re Wonderful”
“Hard Times Blues”
“Run Back To Your Side”
“Autumn Leaves”
Rarities Vol. II 2001-2010 (2023)
“Johnny Guitar”
“Midnight Hour Blues”
“You Better Watch Yourself”
“Traveling Riverside Blues”
“Little Queen Of Spades”
“Take A Walk With Me”
“Losing Hand”
“I Was Fooled”