Memorial Coliseum

April 20, 1979, 

UPC changed its skin and was renamed Alabama Union Programs. Bringing Eric Clapton to town was an achievement. It was to be another big rock show with the English rock guitarist as the headliner. The weekend before the Clapton concert, Alabama Union Programs put on a free outdoor show staged on the large green space near the Riverside Pool, a stone’s throw from Ferguson Center. Headliner Delbert McClinton had been around for years, but his song “B Movie Boxcar Blues" was on the radio with “Givin' It Up For Your Love” on deck. It was a brisk, sunny day, and a perfect promotional vehicle for what was to come back. The Memorial Coliseum show started with a performance by 61-year-old McKinley Morganfield, known as Muddy Waters. The Chicago musician was an important figure in blues. He’d enjoyed a fruitful career with good commercial success. In the 1970s Waters won his first Grammys, appeared with The Band in “The Last Waltz” and became friends with many contemporary rockers including Johnny Winter who produced four of his albums. For the Tuscaloosa gig, he dragged out his most popular songs, "Mannish Boy", "Trouble No More", and "Mojo Working,” which the crowd loved. Clapton’s band was a seasoned ensemble that included guitarist Albert Lee, keyboardist Dick Sims, bassist Carl Radle, drummer Jamie Oldaker, and a pair of backup vocalists. His music was chock full of classics from days with British bands such as The Yardbirds, Cream, Blind Faith, and Dereck & The Dominoes with Duane Allman. But perhaps the most intriguing part of the evening centered around Clapton’s growing fascination with artists such as Texan Don Williams, and Oklahoma City guitarist J.J. Cale. He’s covered Williams’ songs, “Livin’ on Tulsa Time” on “Backless” and released “Lay Down Sally,” and “Promises” [also on “Backless”] which became huge radio hits. But the newer music was a far cry from earlier releases like “Badge” and “Sunshine of Your Love.” While the concert certainly had an edge, it was not the same powder keg some fans were used to. The fact that Clapton brought Waters along on the tour was a momentous gesture and a salute to the American blues performers who had inspired the English rock guitarist as a young man. Tickets had gone up a bit from previous years for the show. Still, they were reasonable by contemporary standards: $7.50 for general admission and a dollar less for University of Alabama students.