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 instalment, The Complete Reprise Studio Albums – Volume I, is available now 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 instalment, 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 set contains newly remastered versions of five studio albums pressed on 180-gram vinyl:
- Reptile (2001) 2LP
- Me & Mr. Johnson (2004)
- Sessions For Robert J (2004)
- Back Home (2005) 2LP
- Clapton (2010) 2LP
All the albums will be released as double LPs except for Raritites and 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.
To further elevate the audio quality, 'Me & Mr. Johnson' (originally released as a single LP) has been remastered as 3-sided double albums - to ensure that no single LP side exceeds 20 minutes (the album has an etching on side 4).