The Road to Escondido

The Road to Escondido
Studio album by Eric Clapton and JJ Cale
Publication (s)	November 7, 2006
Label (s)	Duck , recapitulation
Format (s)	CD, LP
Genre (s)	Rock , blues , country , folk
Title (number)	14th
running time	57 min 5 s
occupation	Vocals , guitar : Eric Clapton Vocals, guitar, keyboard : JJ Cale Keyboard: Billy Preston , Walt Richmond Harmonica : Taj Mahal Guitar: John Mayer , Albert Lee , Derek Trucks , Doyle Bramhall II, Christine Lakeland Bass : Nathan East , Gary Gilmore, Willie Weeks , Pino Palladino Drums , percussion : Jim Karstein, James Cruce Drums: Steve Jordan, Abraham Laboriel Jr. Percussion: David Teegarden Violin : Dennis Caplinger Trumpet : Bruce Fowler , Marty Grebb, Steve Madaio, Jerry Peterson
production	JJ Cale, Eric Clapton
chronology Back Home (2005) The Road to Escondido Clapton (2010)

JJ Cale and Eric Clapton

The Road to Escondido is a music album by Eric Clapton and JJ Cale . It was recorded in California in August 2005 and released in November 2006. It was Clapton's first collaboration with JJ Cale. The album won a Grammy Award in 2007 .

background

Clapton and Cale had been making music for over 40 years. However, in contrast to Clapton, Cale has made a name for himself primarily as a songwriter. Some of the biggest Clapton hits like Cocaine or After Midnight were written by JJ Cale. Clapton's admiration for Cale led him to persuade his long-time companion to make an album together during the three-day Crossroads Guitar Festival 2004 , to which Cale was also invited. Cale wrote eleven of the fourteen tracks on the album. The album is dedicated to Billy Preston ; it was his last job.

Sound and style

According to the number of participating musicians, the album does not have a clear musical style and is a mixture of blues , folk , country and rock music with a variety of other influences. However, the characteristic sound of Cale is unmistakable, which was Clapton's wish.

Track list

1. Danger - 5:34
2. Heads in Georgia - 4:12
3. Missing Person - 4:26
4. When this War is Over - 3:49
5. Sportin 'Life Blues ( Brownie McGhee ) - 3:31
6. Dead End Road - 3:30
7. It's Easy - 4:19
8. Hard to Thrill (Clapton / John Mayer ) - 5:11
9. Anyway the Wind Blows - 3:56
10. Three Little Girls (Clapton) - 2:44
11. Don't Cry Sister - 3:10
12. Last Will and Testament - 3:57
13. Who Am I Telling You - 4:08
14. Ride the River - 4:35

Reception and awards

Allmusic critic Stephen Thomas Erlewine called the album Clapton's best album in a long time. Clapton focuses "sensually", and Cale delivers him solid songs. Erlewine awarded four out of five possible rating units for the album. John Metzger from The Music Box also gave it four out of five stars and rated it as “excellent”.

At the Grammy Awards 2008 , the album won a prize in the category "Best Contemporary Blues Album". The Road to Escondido reached number two on the German album charts and stayed in the charts for a total of 20 weeks. In Austria and Switzerland, the album was in eighth and third place. In the UK, the album hit number 50 and stayed in the charts for a week. In the United States, the album peaked at number 23 on the Billboard 200 and number 23 on the Internet's top albums chart. The album sold more than 2 million times worldwide.

Sales figures

Country / Region	Award	Sales
Awards for music sales (country / region, Award, Sales)
Germany (BVMI)	platinum	200,000
France (SNEP)	-	65,200
Japan (RIAJ)	-	47,000
New Zealand (RMNZ)	platinum	15,000
Netherlands (NVPI)	gold	35,000
Austria (IFPI)	gold	15,000
Switzerland (IFPI)	gold	15,000
United States (RIAA)	gold	500,000
United Kingdom (BPI)	silver	60,000
All in all	1 × silver 4 × gold 2 × platinum	952.200

Individual evidence

1. ↑ ^{a b c} The Road to Escondido - JJ Cale, Eric Clapton | Songs, Reviews, Credits, Awards | AllMusic , accessed December 14, 2014, allmusic.com
2. ↑ Eye To Eye: Eric Clapton - Videos - CBS News , Jan. 5, 2007, cbsnews.com
3. ^ John Metzger: JJ Cale & Eric Clapton - The Road to Escondido (Album Review) , December 2006, musicbox-online.com
4. ^ The Road to Escondido - JJ Cale, Eric Clapton | Awards | AllMusic , accessed December 14, 2014, allmusic.com
5. ↑ Gold / platinum database. Federal Association of the Music Industry, accessed on August 15, 2018 . 
6. ↑ Sales figures for The Road to Escondido in France ( Memento from December 1, 2019 in the Internet Archive )
7. ↑ Oricon Entertainment (Ed.): Oricon Album Chart Book: Complete Edition 1970–2005 . Roppongi, Tokyo 2006, ISBN 4-87131-077-9 ( Memento in the Internet archive [accessed December 8, 2019]).
8. ↑ NZ Top 40 Albums Chart. Recorded Music New Zealand Limited, April 30, 2007, accessed August 15, 2018 . 
9. ^ Goud / Platina. Nederlandse Vereniging van Producenten en Importeurs van beeld- en geluidsdragers, accessed on August 15, 2018 (Dutch). 
10. ↑ Gold & Platinum. Association of the Austrian Music Industry, accessed on August 15, 2018 . 
11. ↑ precious metal. The Official Swiss Hit Parade and Music Community, accessed on August 15, 2018 . 
12. ↑ Gold & Platinum. Recording Industry Association of America, accessed August 15, 2018 . 
13. ^ BRIT Certified. British Phonographic Industry, accessed August 15, 2018 .