Pilgrim (1998 album)
Encyclopedia
Pilgrim is a rock
album
by Eric Clapton
released in 1998
. The album was recorded at Olympic Studio in London
in late 1997. Neon Genesis Evangelion character designer Yoshiyuki Sadamoto
designed the cover of the album.
. Reviews for Pilgrim were mixed upon release. Allmusic described the album as "bland", while Rolling Stone
's David Wild gave it four out of five stars, stating, "Pilgrim is the work of someone who has learned in the hardest way imaginable that although he cannot change the world, he might be able to change himself."
Clapton wrote in his autobiography that he wanted to make the "saddest album" to the moment, so he called Simon Climie and started the project. He had already written two songs when his son, Conor, died in March 1991. The songs ended up being "My Father's Eyes" and "Circus", originally named "Circus Left Town". "Circus" was about the last time he saw his son, when he took him to the circus. According to Clapton's autobiography, Conor died the next day.
The album experiments with drum machines and certain sounds like synthesizers, guitars, strings reminiscent of R&B.
The song "Pilgrim" also appears on the Lethal Weapon 4
soundtrack.
Four tracks of this album were included on the One More Car, One More Rider
album of 2001.
Rock and roll
Rock and roll is a genre of popular music that originated and evolved in the United States during the late 1940s and early 1950s, primarily from a combination of African American blues, country, jazz, and gospel music...
album
Album
An album is a collection of recordings, released as a single package on gramophone record, cassette, compact disc, or via digital distribution. The word derives from the Latin word for list .Vinyl LP records have two sides, each comprising one half of the album...
by Eric Clapton
Eric Clapton
Eric Patrick Clapton, CBE, is an English guitarist and singer-songwriter. Clapton is the only three-time inductee to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame: once as a solo artist, and separately as a member of The Yardbirds and Cream. Clapton has been referred to as one of the most important and...
released in 1998
1998 in music
This is a list of notable events in music that took place in the year 1998.-Events:*January 28 – "Weird Al" Yankovic gets LASIK surgery to cure his myopia...
. The album was recorded at Olympic Studio in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
in late 1997. Neon Genesis Evangelion character designer Yoshiyuki Sadamoto
Yoshiyuki Sadamoto
is a Japanese character designer, manga artist, and one of the founding members of the Gainax anime studio. Before the studio was founded under the official name , he served as animator on the second animated project, the Daicon IV opening animation...
designed the cover of the album.
History
Pilgrims release marked Clapton's first album of original material since 1989's JourneymanJourneyman (album)
Journeyman is an album by blues/rock musician Eric Clapton, released in 1989.The album has an electronic sound, mostly influenced by the '80s rock scene, but it also had blues songs like "Before You Accuse Me", "Running On Faith", and "Hard Times"...
. Reviews for Pilgrim were mixed upon release. Allmusic described the album as "bland", while Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone is a US-based magazine devoted to music, liberal politics, and popular culture that is published every two weeks. Rolling Stone was founded in San Francisco in 1967 by Jann Wenner and music critic Ralph J...
's David Wild gave it four out of five stars, stating, "Pilgrim is the work of someone who has learned in the hardest way imaginable that although he cannot change the world, he might be able to change himself."
Clapton wrote in his autobiography that he wanted to make the "saddest album" to the moment, so he called Simon Climie and started the project. He had already written two songs when his son, Conor, died in March 1991. The songs ended up being "My Father's Eyes" and "Circus", originally named "Circus Left Town". "Circus" was about the last time he saw his son, when he took him to the circus. According to Clapton's autobiography, Conor died the next day.
The album experiments with drum machines and certain sounds like synthesizers, guitars, strings reminiscent of R&B.
The song "Pilgrim" also appears on the Lethal Weapon 4
Lethal Weapon 4
Lethal Weapon 4 is a 1998 American action film directed by Richard Donner, starring Mel Gibson, Danny Glover, Joe Pesci, Rene Russo, Chris Rock and Jet Li. It is the third sequel in the Lethal Weapon series of films. -Plot:...
soundtrack.
Four tracks of this album were included on the One More Car, One More Rider
One More Car, One More Rider
One More Car, One More Rider is a double live album by Eric Clapton, released on November 5, 2002 on Warner Bros. Records. The album contains songs performed during Clapton's 2001 world tour. The recordings on this album are from two nights at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, August 18 & 19 of 2001...
album of 2001.
Track listing
- "My Father's EyesMy Father's Eyes (song)"My Father's Eyes" is a song written and performed by Eric Clapton and produced by Clapton himself and Simon Climie. It was released as a single in 1998 and was featured on the album Pilgrim. The song reached the top 40 and won a Grammy award for Best Male Pop Vocal Performance. The song is...
" (Eric Clapton) – 5:24 - "River of Tears" (Clapton, Simon ClimieSimon ClimieSimon Climie is a songwriter/producer and the former lead singer of the UK pop duo Climie Fisher, who had hits with "Love Changes " and "Rise to the Occasion"....
) – 7:22 - "Pilgrim" (Clapton, Simon Climie) – 5:50
- "Broken Hearted" (Clapton, Greg PhillinganesGreg PhillinganesGreg Phillinganes is an active session keyboardist in Los Angeles, California. He is a graduate of Cass Technical High School, Detroit Michigan....
) – 7:52 - "One Chance" (Clapton, Simon Climie) – 5:55
- "Circus" (Clapton) – 4:11
- "Going Down SlowGoin' Down Slow"Goin' Down Slow" or "Going Down Slow" is a blues song written by St. Louis Jimmy Oden, originally released in 1941. Howlin' Wolf included the song on his 1962 Rocking Chair Album.The song alternates between sung and spoken passages...
" (St. Louis JimmySt. Louis Jimmy OdenJames Burke "St. Louis Jimmy" Oden was an American blues vocalist and songwriter.Born in Nashville, Tennessee, United States, Oden sang and taught himself to play the piano in childhood. In his teens, he left home to go to St. Louis, Missouri where piano-based blues was prominent...
) – 5:19 - "Fall Like Rain" (Clapton) – 3:50
- "Born in Time" (Bob DylanBob DylanBob Dylan is an American singer-songwriter, musician, poet, film director and painter. He has been a major and profoundly influential figure in popular music and culture for five decades. Much of his most celebrated work dates from the 1960s when he was an informal chronicler and a seemingly...
) – 4:41 - "Sick & Tired" (Clapton, Simon Climie) – 5:43
- "Needs His Woman" (Clapton) – 3:45
- "She's Gone" (Clapton, Simon Climie) – 4:45
- "You Were There" (Clapton) – 5:31
- "Inside of Me" (Clapton, Simon Climie) – 5:25
Personnel
- Eric ClaptonEric ClaptonEric Patrick Clapton, CBE, is an English guitarist and singer-songwriter. Clapton is the only three-time inductee to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame: once as a solo artist, and separately as a member of The Yardbirds and Cream. Clapton has been referred to as one of the most important and...
- guitar and vocals - Simon ClimieSimon ClimieSimon Climie is a songwriter/producer and the former lead singer of the UK pop duo Climie Fisher, who had hits with "Love Changes " and "Rise to the Occasion"....
- drum programming and keyboards - Steve GaddSteve GaddSteve Gadd is an American session and studio drummer, notable for his work with popular musicians from a wide range of genres.-Biography:...
- drums - Paul Waller - drum programming
- Dave BronzeDave BronzeDave Bronze is an English bass guitarist. The musicians he has worked with include Robin Trower, Dr...
- bass guitar - Chris StaintonChris StaintonChristopher "Chris" Stainton is an English session musician, keyboard player and songwriter, who first gained recognition with Joe Cocker in the late 1960s...
- Hammond organ - Joe SampleJoe SampleJoseph Leslie "Joe" Sample is an American pianist, keyboard player and composer.He is one of the founding members of the Jazz Crusaders, the band which became simply The Crusaders in 1971, and remained a part of the group until its final album in 1991 .- Biography :Sample began playing the piano...
- piano - London Session Orchestra - strings
- Nathan EastNathan EastNathan Harrell East is a jazz, R&B and rock bass player and vocalist. East holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Music from the University of California, San Diego...
- bass guitar - Luis JardimLuís JardimLuís Alberto Figueira Gonçalves Jardim is a Portuguese percussionist, born in the Madeira Island, best known for his work with producer Trevor Horn.-Family:Jardim is a cousin of Alberto João Jardim...
- bass guitar and percussion - Andy Fairweather-LowAndy Fairweather-LowAndrew Fairweather Low is a Welsh guitarist, songwriter and vocalist. He was a founding member of 1960s British pop band, Amen Corner, and in recent years has toured extensively with Roger Waters, Eric Clapton and Bill Wyman's Rhythm Kings.-Early career:Fairweather Low first found fame as a...
- guitar - Paul CarrackPaul CarrackPaul Carrack is an English singer, songwriter and musician. Carrack has been a member of several bands including Ace, Squeeze, Mike + The Mechanics, and Roxy Music, been a session and touring musician for several others including Nick Lowe, and has enjoyed success as a solo artist as well...
- Hammond organ - Greg PhillinganesGreg PhillinganesGreg Phillinganes is an active session keyboardist in Los Angeles, California. He is a graduate of Cass Technical High School, Detroit Michigan....
- keyboards - Paul BradyPaul BradyPaul Joseph Brady is an Irish singer-songwriter, whose work straddles folk and pop. He was interested in a wide variety of music from an early age...
- tin whistleTin whistleThe tin whistle, also called the penny whistle, English Flageolet, Scottish penny whistle, Tin Flageolet, Irish whistle and Clarke London Flageolet is a simple six-holed woodwind instrument. It is an end blown fipple flute, putting it in the same category as the recorder, American Indian flute, and... - Pino Paladino - bass guitar
- Chyna Whyne - backing vocals
- Kenneth Edmonds - backing vocals
Album
| Chart (1998) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Australian Top 50 Albums | 17 |
| Austrian Top 75 Albums | 4 |
| Belgium (Flanders) 100 Albums | 9 |
| Belgium (Wallonia) 100 Albums | 6 |
| Canadian Top CDs | 5 |
| Finnish Top 50 Albums | 5 |
| French Top 200 Albums | 5 |
| German Albums | 3 |
| Netherlands Top 100 Albums | 7 |
| New Zealand Top 40 Albums | 10 |
| Norwegian Top 40 Albums | 1 |
| Swedish Top 60 Albums | 3 |
| Swiss Top 100 Albums | 4 |
| UK Albums Chart UK Albums Chart The UK Albums Chart is a list of albums ranked by physical and digital sales in the United Kingdom. It is compiled every week by The Official Charts Company and broadcast on a Sunday on BBC Radio 1 , and published in Music Week magazine and on the OCC website .To qualify for the UK albums chart... |
6 |
| US Billboard Billboard (magazine) Billboard is a weekly American magazine devoted to the music industry, and is one of the oldest trade magazines in the world. It maintains several internationally recognized music charts that track the most popular songs and albums in various categories on a weekly basis... 200 Billboard 200 The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling music albums and EPs in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine. It is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists... |
4 |
Singles
| Year | Single | Chart | Position |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1998 | "My Father's Eyes" | Adult Contemporary | 2 |
| 1998 | "My Father's Eyes" | Adult Top 40 | 7 |
| 1998 | "My Father's Eyes" | Mainstream Rock Tracks | 26 |
| 1998 | "My Father's Eyes" | Top 40 Mainstream | 21 |
| 1998 | "She's Gone" | Mainstream Rock Tracks | 28 |
Certifications
| Country | Provider | Certification Music recording sales certification Music recording sales certification is a system of certifying that a music recording has shipped or sold a certain number of copies, where the threshold quantity varies by type and by nation or territory .Almost all countries follow variations of the RIAA certification categories,... (sales thresholds) |
|---|---|---|
| Australia | ARIA ARIA Charts The ARIA charts are the main Australian music sales charts, issued weekly by the Australian Recording Industry Association. The charts are a record of the highest selling singles and albums in various genres in Australia. ARIA commenced compiling its own charts in-house from the week ending 26 June... |
Gold |
| Austria | IFPI | Gold |
| Finland | IFPI | Gold |
| France | SNEP Syndicat National de l'Edition Phonographique The Syndicat national de l'édition phonographique is the inter-professional organization which protects the interests of the French record industry... |
Gold |
| Germany | BVMI Bundesverband Musikindustrie The Bundesverband Musikindustrie or simply BVMI represents the music industry in Germany. The association represents the interests of nearly 350 labels and music industry related enterprises.... |
Gold |
| Norway | IFPI | Platinum |
| Sweden | IFPI | Gold |
| Switzerland | Swiss Music Charts Swiss Music Charts The Swiss Music Charts are Switzerland's main music sales charts. The charts are a record of the highest-selling singles and albums in various genres in Switzerland.The Swiss Charts include:* Singles Top 75... |
Gold |
| United Kingdom | BPI British Phonographic Industry The British Phonographic Industry is the British record industry's trade association.-Structure:Its membership comprises hundreds of music companies including all four "major" record companies , associate members such as manufacturers and distributors, and hundreds of independent music companies... |
Gold |
| United States | RIAA Recording Industry Association of America The Recording Industry Association of America is a trade organization that represents the recording industry distributors in the United States... |
Platinum |