Customer Reviews

Knockin on Heaven's Door

5 star:		(1)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

...This is the first US release of this forgotten classic from Arthur Louis. Eric Clapton is featured on 7 out of the 9
tracks including the original version of "Knockin on Heaven's Door".

"Before leaving for another long series of concerts, Clapton went into the studio and worked on an album by Arthur Louis, a Jamaican who had moved permanently to England and was currently making a name for himself as one of the country's few genuine reggae artists. One of the songs being recorded, a reggae interpretation of Bob Dylan's "Knockin' on Heaven's Door,"
caught Clapton's attention - so much so that he would record
it as his own single a few months later, using essentially the same arrangement..." -Exerpted from Crossroads - The Life
and Music of Eric Clapton" by Michael Schumaker (Hyperion
Press)

To have Gene Chandler singing on your first album is quite an achievement. To have Eric Clapton playing on seven tracks as well goes against all the rules of natural progression, assuming of course that the artist is good enough to attract such illustrious company after a successful career. However, such an
album exists, and you're looking at it.

Arthur Louis was born in Jamaica and moved to Brooklyn when
he was four years old. Traces of both roots can be found in
his music; on one hand, the laid back natural rhythm of the Carribean, and on the other, the vibrant energy of New York. Music had always been in the family; his elder sister played
keyboards semi-pro for a while, and it wasn't long before his parents had traded his set of congas for a guitar in order to pacify their neighbors.

A track scholarship to Michigan University introduced Arthur
to musicians, and soon he had joined a band called Terminal Station, with whom he went to Brazil and Germany. Since then,
he has toured all over Europe and the Orient.

To those who are interested, I've just heard that Arthur Louis is back recording a new album and has been gigging in London. According to the music press he is back better and stronger than before. I found his website www.arthurlouis.co.uk

This is a good reggae album. If you like your reggae old-school, I would bet you'd like it. Good songs, good-to-great arrangements, Arthur Louis lead vocals are right out of the Toots and the Maytals school, and Eric Clapton as side-man does what he does so well: complements the song and the singing.

Let's get to the reason this isn't a 5-star album: Eric Clapton is not on every cut, and the ones he doesn't play on are the weakest. The album has one standout cut, the cover of Dylan's "Knocking on Heaven's Door", and Clapton's work as a sideman (he doesn't play until his solo) is some of his tastiest ever. For me, this one cut justifies the whole album, but there are lots of other good cuts. Just not quite as good as KoHD. I don't know whether Clapton arranged this cut, or just liked the arrangement, but it became THE arrangement when he played this song live in concert. I think this album represents his first dip into reggae; it certainly seems to have helped Arthur Louis, because this is the last I ever heard of him.

I listened to this album twice upon arrival and it is a very tasty treat. I love Clapton's guiutar playing and Arthur's songs are great. I hope this helps .

This is the original guns n roses. It's cool to see where a classic band got their ideas from an ancient band. slow music. not for gnr fans.