When jazz royalty met guitar god and the blues got a PhD.
New York City's premier jazz venue got the blues when Wynton Marsalis and Eric Clapton performed together in Rose Theater at Frederick P. Rose Hall, home of Jazz at Lincoln Center for two sold-out shows dedicated to vintage blues. The extraordinary collaboration, billed as Wynton Marsalis & Eric Clapton Play the Blues, paired these musical virtuosos with members of the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra as they brought to life a repertoire of songs selected by Clapton and arranged by Marsalis. Reprise Records captures the magic of these unprecedented shows on CD and a CD/DVD combo that both feature selections taken from the two public concerts, as well a special performance for Jazz at Lincoln Center's annual gala.
Direction
Atkins lets the music breathe, no flashy cuts.
Sound
Rose Hall acoustics make every trumpet sob crystal clear.
Acting
Clapton's face when Marsalis solos — pure student-mode.
Director
Martyn Atkins
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
Marsalis reportedly spent weeks studying Clapton's live recordings to anticipate his phrasing, while Clapton showed up with handwritten charts and zero ego.
This 2011 collaboration bridged the '80s Marsalis-Clapton tension (when Clapton dismissed jazz purists) — their mutual respect here rewrote that history.
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