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Eric Clapton's Firebird I folder:

John Smolakis

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Yeah, according to this site, that's the first night (5/17/68) at the Anaheim Convention Center...
Spirit opened...

The next night he played the red 335, and it was fascinating to hear the difference between the two guitars...

Also, I thought he only played the 335 at the Farewell concert at the RAH, and everything else was either FB, SG, or LP?

Edit: I see J45 beat me to it!
 

Bruce R

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Also, I thought he only played the 335 at the Farewell concert at the RAH, and everything else was either FB, SG, or LP? !

When I saw him at one of the 2 farewell shows he did in Oct. '68 at The Forum in Anaheim (L.A. area) he played both the 335 and the Firebird. Deep Purple opened the show, and Blackmore played his 335 as well.
 

j45

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When I saw him at one of the 2 farewell shows he did in Oct. '68 at The Forum in Anaheim (L.A. area) he played both the 335 and the Firebird. Deep Purple opened the show, and Blackmore played his 335 as well.

He only played his Les Paul and Firebird at the Forum shows and on that tour. The 335 was not with him on the fall of '68 US tour or any other Cream tour. Tons of pics out there from every show on that tour. Even a bunch of pics with Clapton in the Forum dressing room with his Firebird and backup burst. Not a single photo out of hundreds of the fall '68 tour show that the 335 was ever with him. Maybe you got that memory mixed up with the "Farewell" footage with the 335 at RAH?
 

j45

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You know Blackmore's #1 guitar in 1968 was his red ES-335. They taped "Playboy After Dark" in October of '68, Blackmore with his red 335 as well as several other clips that year. Blackmore had not yet switched to a Strat by Oct of '68. Deep Purple only played the first three shows on that tour before Cream's management pulled them. Maybe you saw Blackmore with his 335 and assumed it was Clapton's when these 335 internet stories started about ten years ago? Yours wouldn't be the first memory influenced by the incorrect suggestion by Gibson that the Christie's Auction 335 was the "Wheels Of Fire" "Crossroads" recording guitar (only the Fool SG was played at Winterland) and that Clapton had somehow had it on tour...which he didn't. Only the Farewell Concert at Royal Albert Hall.
 

spidey

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Can somebody let me know what Cream albums featured the firebird? Or was it just used live?
 

Nobi

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Nice pics.

btw Marc Ford reminds me of Clapton with the mustache
 

Bruce R

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He only played his Les Paul and Firebird at the Forum shows and on that tour. The 335 was not with him on the fall of '68 US tour or any other Cream tour. Tons of pics out there from every show on that tour. Even a bunch of pics with Clapton in the Forum dressing room with his Firebird and backup burst. Not a single photo out of hundreds of the fall '68 tour show that the 335 was ever with him. Maybe you got that memory mixed up with the "Farewell" footage with the 335 at RAH?

To be perfectly honest in my mind's eye I do remember seeing the 335. Hey, I could be wrong, but that is the best of my recollection. I was only 18 at the time and wasn't doing drugs or drinking (thought I'd make sure and mention this!).

At that point I had been playing guitar for a few years and was quite aware of the different models, and had also seen Cream earlier in the year in Santa Barbara. I stood about 40 feet from the stage, where EC played the SG and had the long hair & droopy mustache. I was turned on to Cream very early on by a friend that picked up the import LP. I also remember seeing the Farewell movie (as visually disappointing as it was) and noting that EC had the same haircut and played the same gear as the show I saw only a month before.
 

j45

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Can somebody let me know what Cream albums featured the firebird? Or was it just used live?

Goodbye Cream live tracks would be the Firebird. Not some of his "best" tone but raw with some attitude for sure. There is also a video on Youtube from the Glen Campbell show with Clapton playing the Firebird live at very low volume and completely clean due to the show's taping environment.
 

j45

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To be perfectly honest in my mind's eye I do remember seeing the 335. Hey, I could be wrong, but that is the best of my recollection. I was only 18 at the time and wasn't doing drugs or drinking (thought I'd make sure and mention this!).

At that point I had been playing guitar for a few years and was quite aware of the different models, and had also seen Cream earlier in the year in Santa Barbara. I stood about 40 feet from the stage, where EC played the SG and had the long hair & droopy mustache. I was turned on to Cream very early on by a friend that picked up the import LP. I also remember seeing the Farewell movie (as visually disappointing as it was) and noting that EC had the same haircut and played the same gear as the show I saw only a month before.

Well, a red ES-335 was certainly there that night if Blackmore was playing in '68 so the rest is definitely understandable.
 
O

olgabowl

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I've never heard or seen anything suggesting Clapton used the 335 with Cream in the US or anywhere else before the single Farewell Concert at RAH. Do you have a photo of him playing the 335 anywhere in the US with Cream?

Nope, just my memory... :)
But I remember it like it was yesterday....



When I saw him at one of the 2 farewell shows he did in Oct. '68 at The Forum in Anaheim (L.A. area) he played both the 335 and the Firebird. Deep Purple opened the show, and Blackmore played his 335 as well.

Not the same show I was referring to, BTW...
 

D'Mule

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Another great pic!
I'll take one of each of what he's got.
4442898622_7917df3e72_o-1.jpg
 

Bruce R

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Well, a red ES-335 was certainly there that night if Blackmore was playing in '68 so the rest is definitely understandable.

Yes, I will reiterate. I do remember EC playing a red 335 and the Firebird, and also recall Ritchie Blackmore playing a red 335. I had heard Deep Purple's music and was very impressed by the band that night, especially Ian Paice on drums. Many, many Marshalls on stage!

I'm not saying anybody is right or wrong, but that is my recollection of that amazing evening. There were two shows, on consecutive nights at the Forum, and I attended one. :>)
 

j45

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Yes, I will reiterate. I do remember EC playing a red 335 and the Firebird, and also recall Ritchie Blackmore playing a red 335. I had heard Deep Purple's music and was very impressed by the band that night, especially Ian Paice on drums. Many, many Marshalls on stage!

I'm not saying anybody is right or wrong, but that is my recollection of that amazing evening. There were two shows, on consecutive nights at the Forum, and I attended one. :>)

Possible but would be really odd. The 335 has never shown up for a single photograph or any "consistent" eyewitness accounts on any Cream tour whatsoever. It was only played at Royal Albert Hall. There are significant amounts of photos that seem to have documented the entire tour. I have not fully labeled my personal data base but i believe I have every stop on each Cream tour documented in well over 200 Cream tour photos I've personally collected. Many more out there and still not a single piece of evidence that would suggest Clapton ever used the ES-335 on any Cream tour, period. Really odd that with so many great photos of each show that have turned up, nothing at all exists for those who have put lots of effort (like me) over several years into the search for quite sometime that would suggest otherwise. the largest display of "personal" photos taken of the Cream tours was on a site launched in 2004. It was when the reunion tour was first being discussed. An literal flood of Cream photos were posted by excited fans all over the world. The site was forced down by owners of rites to publishing Cream photos. Really sad, I wish I would have grabbed them at the time. One thing that seemed to be certian from that massive collection of Cream photos was that the 335 was played and photographed for one concert only. The final performance at Royal albert Hall When GC and Gibson released the "Crossroads ES-335" as the guitar Clapton used on the WOF version I think a lot of fans took exception. That particular show and tour was very well documented , photos and eyewitnesses and all indicates it was the Fool SG played on the the night "Crossroads" was recorded for WOF. My claim along with many other Cream fans that the ES-335 never saw a Cream tour still stands uncontested by solid evidence for the past several years and welcome anyone to disprove it with photos. I would not mind one bit to be proven wrong, though... would be truly amazed!!
 
Last edited:

schultzville

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first off, have to thank Yannick for posting these; there are many many images I've never seen before, and it's fantastic to see.
@ J45 and the other poster, about the red 335 and the fall '68 tour- I saw Cream @ Madison Square Garden on my 14th birthday, 2. NOV '68. Seats were quite far away, and though I too was already a player and quite guitar-aware (but not drug free, I'm afraid to say) but I really couldn't see enough to register what Eric was actually playing. Does anyone here have good knowledge what he played most of at the '68 MSG show?
My memory is that it wasn't really SG most of the night, so perhaps it was the Firebird. Fascinating, really.
I always assumed WOF/ Crossroads was the SG, seems that was correct.... intersting stuff...
 

j45

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first off, have to thank Yannick for posting these; there are many many images I've never seen before, and it's fantastic to see.
@ J45 and the other poster, about the red 335 and the fall '68 tour- I saw Cream @ Madison Square Garden on my 14th birthday, 2. NOV '68. Seats were quite far away, and though I too was already a player and quite guitar-aware (but not drug free, I'm afraid to say) but I really couldn't see enough to register what Eric was actually playing. Does anyone here have good knowledge what he played most of at the '68 MSG show?
My memory is that it wasn't really SG most of the night, so perhaps it was the Firebird. Fascinating, really.
I always assumed WOF/ Crossroads was the SG, seems that was correct.... intersting stuff...

Nov. 2, 1968 he used the Firebird and burst, the SG was not on that tour. Stephen Paley's famous photo of that night is actually the cover of Live Cream. I have lots of photos from MSG including many of the dressing room with his guitars that night. The photo of Clapton in above posts walking down the hall with Firebird and Les Paul is from that show.
 

Bruce R

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I am totally cool with whatever direction this takes, and have taken nothing in this thread personally. I was told that the Forum held approximately 18,000 people in that era, and I recall the place was packed that night. I'd love to hear from anyone else that attended those two shows. I thought I read about this same topic in the Vintage pages a while back, so maybe we can get others to chime in.

I'd love to see a photo of EC playing the 'burst during any of those shows. I've seen the one of him playing it during the Oakland soundcheck, and the one posted earlier in this thread. Those are great shots, so thanks for sharing them. I'm eating all this up - it's all good!
 
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