Performer Notes

Derek & The Dominos: Eric Clapton (electric & acoustic guitars, vocals), Duane Allman (electric & acoustic guitars, slide guitars), Bobby Whitlock (organ, piano, acoustic guitar, vocals), Carl Radle (bass, percussion), Jim Gordon (drums, piano, percussion).
Engineers include: Ron Albert, Steve Rinkoff, Chuck Kirkpatrick.
Producers: Tom Dowd, Derek & The Dominos, Bill Levenson.
Recorded at Criteria Studios, Miami, Florida from August to October 1970.
This box set was digitally remixed and remastered by Bill Levenson and Steve Rinkoff at The Power Station, New York from May to June 1990. Includes a 16-page booklet with session notes, annotations and an essay by Gene Santoro.
By digitally remixing and remastering these sessions, the producers have resurrected one of Eric Clapton's greatest achievements, his instrumental and songwriting peak. Musically, Clapton was inspired by his new rhythm section and challenged by fellow guitar hero Duane Allman, whose torrid slide guitar makes blues blasts like "Nobody Knows You When You're Down and Out" and "Key to the Highway" so compelling. And from the classic title song (with drummer Jim Gordon's famous piano coda) to riveting performances of "Why Does Love Got to Be So Sad," "Have You Ever Loved a Woman," and Jimi Hendrix's "Little Wing," each and every metaphor is etched in blood and longing, framed in wailing guitars.
Disc 1 is the legendary LAYLA double LP. The jams that comprise disc 2 illustrate the evolution of the session, while the alternate masters, jams, and outtakes on disc 3 will certainly be of interest to casual fans and completists alike. All in all, few rock albums from this era have the staying power and poetic immediacy of LAYLA.

Professional Reviews

Rolling Stone (12/11/03, p.124) - Ranked #115 in Rolling Stone's "500 Greatest Albums Of All Time"

Rolling Stone (10/24/90) - 3 Stars - Good - "...has aged gracefully, an appealing and dignified example of enduring blues power..."

Rolling Stone (No. 966, p.65) - 5 star out of 5 - "[A] masterpiece....Clapton rocks harder on [these] tracks than he's done before or since..."

Q (11/96, p.147) - 5 Stars (out of 5) - "...a masterpiece..."

Uncut (p.98) - 4 stars out of 5 -- "'I Looked Away', and 'Bell Bottom Blues' couldn't be more perfectly formed: if anything, they sound like they've escaped from ABBEY ROAD."

Uncut (p.86) - 4 stars out of 5 - "Allman's promethean qualities totally transformed both the ambition and the execution of the record."

Down Beat (2/91) - 5 Stars - Excellent - "...The blues-based, roots rock songs [have] held up extremely well in the two decades since their release..."

Goldmine - 5 Stars - Excellent

Record Collector (magazine) (p.89) - 4 stars out of 5 -- "The original album still sounds majestically epic..."