Derek And The Dominos* – Layla And Other Assorted Love Songs

I've never been an Eric fan, but I love D Allman and his guitar style and sound. For years, I've ed on this gatefold record for several reasons, low on my list, but today, I found a VG+ media and VG+ cover! I'm very impressed with having to wait 50-plus years to play it.

Is it just me or does the second half of Layla sound suspiciously like Richard LaSalle's 1967 theme song to the Audie Murphy movie "Forty Guns to Apache " (about thirty some odd seconds into the intro theme and then occasionally throughout the rest of the movie..). I know Jim Gordon supposedly "borrowed" (read "stole") the melody from Rita Coolidge (see Booker T & Priscilla Jones' "Time" from "Chronicles" [1973]), but i am now wondering if Rita saw "Forty Guns" and subconsciously (?) knicked it from LaSalle? Its funny to me that my favourite part of one of the "greatest albums ever" is actually Rita Coolidge's work, and possibly Richard LaSalle too.

Is there a general consensus referring to US release, as to which is preferred Polydor or Atco? It seems the two labels are unrelated? Is it odd that two separate labels released the album at the same time? Is it because of the of the group being contracted to different labels? Thanks for any help on this subject.

The main thing is the drums, they sound like cardboard boxes. I guess I didn't notice when I was 16.

I can't seem to find this variant anywhere. I presume it's a Club Edition from RCA from what I see in the dead wax:

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1xcoMJwBu53rZQ2d4vBe8bYVzcrPDgtdO/view?usp=sharing

STC 702043 1S R 204213 A D2 I

Unable to find the exact copy of my album-
Label: ATCO Recordings
Cat #: SD 2-704
Contains: 2x 12" LP, 33 1/3 RPM, Gatefold
Year: 1970

Runout Stamp:
A: ST C070243-1B CTH \ T
B: ST C070244-1B CTH \ T
C: ST C070245-1A CTH \ T
D: ST C070246-3A CTH / T

Yellow/Gold Label Matrix:
A: ST-C-702043CTH
B: ST-C-702044CTH
C: ST-C-702045CTH
D: ST-C-702046CTH

Bottom-right, Rear:
ATCO (logo)
SD 2-704
Product of Polydor-England
(credits)
Printed in the U.S.A. by special arrangement with Polydor Records, Ltd., London.
ATCO RECORDS
1840 BROADWAY, NEW YORK, NEW YORK 10023
Division of Atlantic Recording Corporation
(C) 1970 Atlantic Recording Corporation     Printed in U.S.A.

Release ID 13327860 is the closest thing I've seen, but it doesn't match up 100%.. anyone able to point me to the correct release, or is this a new one?
Thank you

Today in a record shop I picked this exact release up, in near mint condition. Cover has almost no wear at all and there's not so much as a hairline mark on the records, and it was only $20. I of course had to grab it and play it as soon as I got it home and gave it a good clean and man did I get lost in it.

Upon its release, I believe every friend I had owned a copy.
I still listen to my Re Mastered CD Copy at least six times a year.
Great Album, lost band

This is quite simply essential listening, and a must have, classic album. I have never really understood why isn't rated as one of the greatest albums ever when it features two of the greatest ever guitarists. Perhaps the country influence isn't too everyone's palate? In my mind this is the only great album that Clapton made following Blind Faith, and he never reached these heights again. A few songs aren't that great, but on the whole it's really strong; There is some really beautiful stuff on here. I have the original release, and a CD copy, and I also highly recommend getting your hands on the Sessions Release as the Jams with the overlooked Duane Allman are absolutely superb.

Ahhhh Layla. What does one say about this gem that was waved off as a bit of uselessness [other than the song “Layla”] by far too many, nearly fifty years after its release? I know, we could begin with the cover, with artwork that was just about as bad as that on Self Portrait by Bob Dylan, and painted by the French artist Frandsen De Schonberg, the father of a friend at who’s house the band called home while they were playing and recording in . Of course, Clapton eyed the painting as it reminded him of Pattie Boyd-Harrision [yes, she was once married to The Beatle George Harrison], who became Pattie Boyd-Harrison-Clapton in 1979. And all of that unrequited love sets the theme for Layla and Other Assorted Love Songs, with each song regarding the illusiveness of love, it’s pains, and its trials and tribulations.

Now ... like the album or not, I could certainly argue that the release was bad just as easily as I could argue that it was great, but the simple truth is that the outing was long, it was unexpected, it was filled with southern rock influences, and yes, as I’ve said, it was nearly universally panned by critics and record buyer alike. With all of the fourteen original tracks on Layla and Other Assorted Love Songs being traditional blues jams, mixed with material written by Eric Clapton and Bobby Whitlock, the album evolved into a minor super group session of sorts, featuring Jim Gordon on drums, keyboardist Whitlock, and of course Eric on guitar, all of whom where recording and playing with Delaney & Bonnie, now formed the essential core of what was to become Derek & The Dominos.

The album’s southern rock influences can be directly attributed to producer Tom Dowd, who was also producing The Allman Brothers Band at the time. The story goes that Tom took the boys to see an Allman Brothers’ show, where Eric and Duane Alllman formed an instant friendship and bond that lead to Duane playing nearly all of the second guitar parts, and though Duane was reluctant to the group as a full fledged member, he did sit in with Derek & The Dominos for a couple of gigs while they were in Florida. Regardless of Duane ing the band or not, his influence was strongly infused, and impossible to ignore.

What contributed essentially to the odd feel of the album was the fact that so many roles shifted back and forth, giving the album an undercurrent of restlessness and un-assuredness. One that on first glance, or listen, you might not think that a mere change of roles would lead to an almost subliminal sonic riff, but it did, and it’s easily heard ... though it’s one of those aspects most people won’t realize until it’s pointed out to them.

Without a doubt, the climax to the album is the title song “Layla,” inspired by Nizami's tragic poem. As art imitates life, the song seems to grow and develop in much the same manner as Clapton’s relationship with Patti, whom Harrison had all but abandoned in the wake of his lifelong involvement with Indian religion. “Layla” was originally to be recorded as a ballad of sorts, though Duane Allman brought it out of the darkness and into its rock glory, complete with signature riffs. With the rest of the band playing with a tighter and more focused attitude than on any other song on the album, things clicked, and history was made. Strangely enough, the ending to “Layla” was independently developed by drummer Jim Gordon, with the second movement of “Layla” being recorded a week or so later and then meshed with the first. This gave the song an evolving movement, with a crescendo ending that builds nearly explosively with dual guitars that dynamically simulate the wailing emotion that underlines and belays the song’s musically theatric theme.

I would be just as reluctant to call Layla and Other Assorted Love Songs brilliant as I would to call it merely a stepping stone in the course of musical history ... yet when all is said and done, it seems to be both, and it also seems to be forever enduring.

Review by Jenell Kesler