I shaould ahve been a rock star.....Tulsa Sound

Last week, my son Corwin and I went to see Eric Clapton play at the Tulsa BOK center. Roger Daltrey of the Who opened the show, on a solo tour before settling in to make a new Who album with Townshend this summer. Daltry was on fire. He wailed through a collection of solo and Who songs with Petes' brother Simon on lead guitar.
Originally, Ashley had bought the tickets for Fletch and I as a Christmas gift, not realizing that Fletch was headed back to China 2 weeks before the March 2nd concert. So, that left Ash to reluctantly go to the show with me. She is not a big concert fan, the press of the crowd, the thunderous noise, the chaos and confusion of thousands trying to get into the show, and sometimes becoming obnoxious after a couple of high priced beers or drinks. The day of the show, she enlisted Corwin to replace her as my concert buddy. He went gladly, but I was a little surprised since his music tastes are not so much inclined to the classic rock, but more to current rock and rap genres. Fletch worships Clapton and it's too bad he missed this one.
Cor and I loaded up, drove to Tulsa and frantically searched the streets for a parking spot that was not 10 or 20 dollars for the convenience of being close. We finally found something a good 7 or 8 blocks away on a street. Braving the cool March evening air, we pulled our coats close about us and trudged, among the other faithful, to the steps of the arena.
As we walked into the arena, and our tickets were scanned, not torn as I had been used to in concert days of yore, it made me think back to my previous musical episodes with Clapton, the man canonized in the 70's with the phrase, "Clapton is God."
I had seen Clapton live 3 other times before this night.The first dating as far back as 1975 in the old Tulsa Convention Center. My current college room mate, Terry Brady and I fought our way to the show to watch Freddy King open the show, and Clapton, along with his Tulsa based band, rip through the great hits he had already accumulated by that time. Backing him, were several musicians who had been a part of creating what was known as the "TULSA SOUND." Tulsans Keyboardist Dick Sims, Drummer Jamie Oldaker, and bassist Carl Radle were an essential part of Clapton's touring band in the 70's. They paired with Florida Guitarist George Terry and back ground vocalist Yvonne Elliman.
Now, Clapton's connection to Tulsa had started a few years before when in Los Angles he made friends with Tulsa transplant Leon Russell. Leon had moved to California in the late 60's to record, study music and produce several bands. Among the bands Leon produced was Gary Lewis and the Playboys. Leon played some piano on their cuts alongside another Tulsa musician Carl Radle. It was through Leon, that Clapton met and hired Radle as the bassiust for his first solo LP, "Eric Clapton." Leon played on it and helped co-write 2 songs. It was on this album that Clapton first covered another Tulsan's songs, "After Midnight" by J J Cale. in 1971 , Clapton asked Radle to be part of his super band "Derek and the Dominos." Thye were short lived due to the death of Duane Allman and Eric's continuing drug problem. Clapton would alos add Cale's song "Cocaine" to his discography and eventually make an album with J J Cale in 2006.
In 1973, after going cold turkey with heroin, Clapton was coaxed out of seclusion by Pete Townshend resulting in the "Rainbow Concert." Eric was supported in his all star effort by Townshend, Ron Wood, Steve Winwood and Jim Capaldi. This jump started Eric's music and within a year, teaming with his new Tulsa based band, they released the spectacular "461 Ocean Blvd."
Clapton was seen often in Tulsa then. He hung out at Leon Church Studio in Tulsa with eh other characters of the Tulsa sound... Cale, Triplehorn, Oldaker, Russell, etc. Clapton played and toured with his Tulsa band through out the remainder of the 70's before his legendary restlessness carried him in other directions. They also played with Bonnie and Delaney, joined by good friend George Harrison.
That first Clapton show in Tulsa was spectacular. He ended the show by jamming with Freddie King. I did not know at that time that Freddie's career had been given new life when Leon Russell produced a new LPs for him in '71, '72 and '73 on Leon's own Shelter Records. In '74 Freddy moved to Clapton's RSO label for his last 2 Lps. King would die the year following the Tulsa concert.

Many years passed before I was able to see Clapton live again. In the summer of 2004, with both sons and my wife, we traveled to Dallas Texas to see Clapton at the CRossroads Guitarfest. It was a 2 day guitar orgy that Clapton had put together to raise funds for his Drug and alcohol rehab venture called "Crossroads." It had been Fletch's idea to go. Ash and Cor, who was only 13 at the time, were not interested in standing out in the hot Dallas sun all day in the Cotton Bowl. So, they dropped us off and we elbowed our way to the front half of the floor of the stadium to stand just 20 yards away from the stages erected there. The show began early, rotating stages back and forth as guitar god after guitar god took the stage. Clapton presided over the event, playing with some of the musicians. He dueled with BB King, Buddy Guy, John mayer, Carlos santana and Jimmy Vaughn. Other acts, Neil Shon, Booker T, Larry Carleton, James Taylor and a huge castof musicians kept the festivities flowing all day long and late into the evening. As the last bands took the stage, the wind began to rise and as ZZ Top polished off the night, rain and wind whipped the crowd and stage sets. It had been a spectacular frenzy of guitar riffs and wailing Starts. We had witnessed one of the final performances of the legendary Bo Diddly at that concert.
Fletch and I followed that concert up with an indoor show in Oklahoma City just one month later and Clapton and band wowed the crowds. That show was opened by Robert Randolph and Family Band. Randolf had also played at the guitar fest and jammed with Eric to end the OKC show.

Finally, March of 2010 and a 64 year old Eric Clapton took the stage in Tulsa again. Everyone wondered... would eh be joined by some of his old Tulsa gang? Radle had passed away in 1980 as a result of a kidney infection due to drug abuse. OLdaker still plays in Tulsa. Other musicians such as David Teegarden and JJ Cale make their appearances now and then. Teegarden made a career as a drummer most notable for Bob Seger. Would Cale show up? Would old pal Leon appear?

I thought not. I had been to a Leon Russell and Joe Cocker concert a few years before in Tulsa. There ws great anticipation that perhaps they might reunite just as they had on "MadDogs and Englishmen" when Leon acted as tour musical director and written a few of Cocker's hits. They did not play together. They both played good sets separately and left me satisfied, even with out the reunion fever.

At the show, Clapton blazed through a set of songs, exhibiting guitar wizardry that left me as perplexed today as it did in 1978 while trying with my college guitar teacher to learn the opening solo to "Layala." I never did. As I have said before... I am not a good or even adequate guitarist. I am a great listener for those who are. And I was thrilled with what I saw of Clapton that night, whose hands showed no signs of aging as they sizzled on the fret board. As we left the show, even Corwin was impressed with what he had seen and heard. It was not his kind of music, but who can deny genius?

It took me back to the 70's and the Tulsa Sound. I talked to Corwin about that era as we trudged through the cold evening back to our small car.

The Tulsa Sound. It was here and Clapton was a big part in popularizing it beyond the borders of this state, as was Leon, JJ Cale and others.

This Christmas, another connected gift, even though Ashley probably did not consider it so, was the book about the history of Oklahoma Rock and Roll, "Another Hot Oklahoma Night." In that book it traces the characters who amde the Tulsa sound. It covers the famous record stores that I haunted for years in search of rock gems. It discusses the history of Oklahoma rock radio.. the same ones I spent hour after hour singing along with or listening to quietly in the late evening, undetected by my parents. . It covers Leon's recording studios and
even a studio owned by a man I teach with now at Sapulpa High, Bill Davis. Bill owned one of the early recording venues in Tulsa. He hung out with and played in garage bands with the likes of JJ Cale and Leon Russell. I took the book to show Bill he had been made a part of Oklahoma History. "oh, the book I could write," he said.

It is here.. the Tulsa sound. It touched the Maddogs and Englishmen. It drove Clapton's return. It wailed on the stage at the Concert for Bangladesh as Leon whipped his long gray mane through "Young Blood".. It throbbed as the bass on the "Layla" LP. It was Teegarden and Van Winkle. It was Gary Busey, who played on a couple of Russell albums, as BUddy Holly. The sound influened everyone who played a Leon song or covered one of JJ cale's many songs, ranging from Kansas to Lynyrd Skynyrd.


It is in a thousand musicians.. some of which were born here and moved on.. from David Gates of Bread, to the Flaming Lips. From Neil Shon of Journey to All American Rejects. To those who brushed against fame like Admiral Twin and Hanson to the icons like Leon and JJ Cale. It is still played in a collection of clubs across northwestern Oklahoma by anonymous musicians whose names will never see the headlines, but whose collective guitars put to shame the anemic musicians on music television.

There's no doubt.. you don't have to be on the coast to rock... Oklahoma rocks.