Pilgrim (Eric Clapton song)

Last updated
"Pilgrim"
Eric Clapton Pilgrim Single.jpg
Mexican single cover.
Single by Eric Clapton
from the album Pilgrim
A-side "Pilgrim (Mick Guzauski remix)"
ReleasedNovember 1998 (1998-11)
Genre Pop · pop rock
Length5:50
Label Reprise · Warner
Songwriter(s) Clapton · Climie
Producer(s) Clapton · Climie
Eric Clapton singles chronology
"Born in Time"
(1998)
"Pilgrim"
(1998)
"Blue Eyes Blue"
(1999)

"Pilgrim" is a pop rock song written by the British musicians Eric Clapton and Simon Climie. [1] The duo also produced the song, which came about after a jam session between the two in the late 1990s. The title was recorded for Clapton's 1998 studio album Pilgrim and was released as the fourth and final single of the album. [2] The song was always released as a B-side to another single and was accompanied by a music video. It is part of the Lethal Weapon 4 soundtrack.

Contents

Writing and composition

The song is written and recorded in the keys A minor and C major. [3] In 1998, Clapton talked about the composition and writing process on "Pilgrim" a song like "Inside of Me" that was deliberately borrowed from Curtis Mayfield as a way for Clapton to say thanks for the inspiration: "I was playing guitar and Simon [Climie] was playing keyboards and we just created an atmosphere and instantly the words were coming into my head because the mood evoked all of the circumstances that had been happening for the past few years... not judgmental... it states what had had been happening in a very gentle loving way. This was an actual event in my life where people were saying to me 'Look you've got to get out of this. You've got to let go. You've got to move on'. There was an endless vicious circle of make-ups, break-ups, make-ups, and it went on for years and it was going nowhere. It was very painful but I was obsessed with the notion that it would come to fruition if I just stayed there long enough. I'm sure we've all been there – but this time for me it was different. That's another one of the things where I can say that if I just stay there it will come good and it didn't. We used drum loops... turned to technology when we ran out of things to do and needed a place to start. We would say something like 'uh, well, um, have you heard the new Usher single?' And from there we'd just copy the drum program, dicker with it and play along with it. That's how the song "Pilgrim" was born. We came up with a drum program that was derived from a hit – I can't remember which one – we changed it a little and then wrote the words". [4]

Chart positions

Weekly charts

Chart (1998)Peak
position
Italy ( Musica e dischi ) [5] 17

Music video

A music video was released in 1998 to accompany the single release. The video is still being broadcast on TV networks like MTV, VH1 and Much Music. [6] The music video was also released on the DVD to the 1999 compilation album Clapton Chronicles: The Best of Eric Clapton . [7]

Related Research Articles

<i>Pilgrim</i> (Eric Clapton album) 1998 studio album by Eric Clapton

Pilgrim is the thirteenth solo studio album by the British rock musician Eric Clapton, released on 10 March 1998 for Reprise Records. The album features all-new studio-recorded material, the first to do so since Clapton's 1989 hit album Journeyman and was nominated for several music awards. Although most of the critics responded negatively to the 1998 studio effort, it was one of Clapton's most commercially successful albums, reaching the Top 10 in twenty-two countries.

<i>One More Car, One More Rider</i> 2002 live album by Eric Clapton

One More Car, One More Rider is the eighth live album by Eric Clapton, released on 5 November 2002 on Duck / Reprise Records. It is also his third double live album. 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, 18 & 19 August 2001. Accompanying Clapton on this album are guitarist Andy Fairweather-Low, drummer Steve Gadd, bassist Nathan East and keyboardists Billy Preston, Greg Phillinganes and David Sancious. Clapton claimed that this would be his last world tour, making this album initially more valuable. However, he has since toured the world several times, both on his own and with Steve Winwood.

<i>Me and Mr. Johnson</i> 2004 studio album by Eric Clapton

Me and Mr. Johnson is the fifteenth solo studio album recorded by Eric Clapton, released in March 2004 by Reprise Records. It consists of covers of songs written and originally recorded by Robert Johnson. The album cover was painted by Sir Peter Blake, using a series of photographs of Clapton. Clapton had planned to record an album of new material, but by the time of the recording sessions there were not enough new songs written, so the band instead recorded a series of Johnson songs.

<i>Back Home</i> (Eric Clapton album) 2005 studio album by Eric Clapton

Back Home is the seventeenth solo studio album by Eric Clapton. It was released 29 August 2005 internationally and a day later in the U.S. It is his first album containing new, original material since Reptile (2001), as the previous release Me and Mr. Johnson is an album of song covers of Robert Johnson.

<i>Clapton Chronicles: The Best of Eric Clapton</i> 1999 greatest hits album by Eric Clapton

Clapton Chronicles: The Best of Eric Clapton is a compilation album by English guitarist Eric Clapton featuring his hits from the 1980s and 1990s. The album was released on 12 October 1999 by the Duck / Reprise Records label. Two new songs are included on the disc, "Blue Eyes Blue" which was previously released as a single and "(I) Get Lost" which Clapton wrote for the soundtrack to the film The Story of Us.

<i>Behind the Sun</i> (Eric Clapton album) 1985 studio album by Eric Clapton

Behind the Sun is the ninth solo studio album by Eric Clapton, released on 11 March 1985 by Duck Records / Warner Bros. Records. It is Clapton's first collaborative project with Phil Collins who co-produced the album and played on some of the tracks. While recording the album Clapton temporarily split with his wife.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Change the World</span> 1996 song by Wynonna Judd

"Change the World" is a song written by Tommy Sims, Gordon Kennedy, and Wayne Kirkpatrick and recorded by country music artist Wynonna Judd. A cover version was recorded by English singer Eric Clapton for the soundtrack of the 1996 film Phenomenon. Clapton's version was produced by R&B record producer Kenneth "Babyface" Edmonds.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Simon Climie</span> British singer-songwriter and producer

Simon Climie is an English singer-songwriter and producer. He is best known as the former lead singer of the UK duo Climie Fisher.

<i>The Road to Escondido</i> 2006 studio album by J. J. Cale and Eric Clapton

The Road to Escondido is a collaborative studio album by J. J. Cale and Eric Clapton. It was released on 7 November 2006. Contained on this album are the final recordings of keyboardist Billy Preston. The album is jointly dedicated to Preston and Brian Roylance.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bad Love (Eric Clapton song)</span> 1990 single by Eric Clapton

"Bad Love" is a song recorded by English singer and guitarist Eric Clapton, who co-wrote it with Foreigner's lead guitarist Mick Jones. The track was released in the UK in January 1990 as the first single from Clapton's 1989 studio album Journeyman.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">I Ain't Gonna Stand for It</span>

"I Ain't Gonna Stand for It" is the second single from Stevie Wonder's 1980 album, Hotter Than July. It reached number four on the Billboard R&B singles chart and number 11 on the Hot 100. It also hit number 10 on the UK Singles Chart. The song is famous for Wonder's imitation of a seasoned country-and-western crooner and his inspiring drumming. Charlie and Ronnie Wilson of The Gap Band provide backing vocals on the song. It was covered by Eric Clapton in 2001.

<i>Old Sock</i> 2013 studio album by Eric Clapton

Old Sock is the nineteenth solo studio album by Eric Clapton. It includes the two new compositions "Gotta Get Over" and "Every Little Thing", as well as covers. Several notable musicians were involved in the album, including Steve Winwood, JJ Cale and Paul McCartney.

<i>Slowhand at 70 – Live at the Royal Albert Hall</i> 2015 live album by Eric Clapton

Slowhand at 70 – Live at the Royal Albert Hall is a November 2015 album by Eric Clapton recorded live at the Royal Albert Hall on 21 May 2015 during his "70th Birthday Celebration" tour. A film of the concert was released on 14 September 2015 via cinema broadcasting in various territories. The cinema release included a report on Clapton's history at the Royal Albert Hall. A DVD, Blu-ray, compact disc and gramophone record release of the performance was released on 13 November 2015.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Every Little Thing (Eric Clapton song)</span> 2013 single by Eric Clapton

"Every Little Thing" is a reggae pop song written by Doyle Bramhall II, Nikka Costa and Justin Stanley. It was recorded by the British rock musician Eric Clapton for his 2013 studio album Old Sock. As single release featuring the non-album track "No Sympathy" and remixes of the title by Damian and Stephen Marley.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">(I) Get Lost</span> 1999 single by Eric Clapton

"(I) Get Lost" is a pop song written and recorded by the British rock musician Eric Clapton. The title was released as both a single on 23 November 1999 for Reprise Records and is featured as part of the compilation album Clapton Chronicles: The Best of Eric Clapton, which was released on 12 October 1999. It was written for the movie The Story of Us.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Circus Left Town</span> 1998 single by Eric Clapton

"Circus Left Town", also known as "Circus" is a ballad written by the British recording artist Eric Clapton. The rock musician wrote the song about the last night he spent with his then four-year-old son Conor. Although Clapton played and recorded the song for his 1992 million seller live album Unplugged, he decided to release the title six years later as a re-recording for both his 1998 effort Pilgrim and as a single release. However, Clapton played the song live for his 1992 Eric Clapton World Tour, before it came out on any recording formats.

"Born in Time" is a rock song written by American singer-songwriter Bob Dylan, who first released the track on September 10, 1990, on his twenty-seventh studio album Under the Red Sky. It is a reworking of a song originally recorded at the previous year's Oh Mercy sessions. The British recording artist Eric Clapton covered the song for his 1998 studio effort Pilgrim and released his take on the tune as a single. The song has been praised by critics for its catchy melody and romantic, dreamlike lyrics.

"Travelin' Light" is a song written and recorded by the Tulsa musician J.J. Cale. It was released in September 1976 on Cale's fourth studio album Troubadour under Shelter Records. It was also released as a single the same year. It was later covered by the British guitarist Eric Clapton for his 2001 studio album Reptile and helped to promote both the song and studio album on which "Travelin' Light" was first released. Athens, Georgia band Widespread Panic also covered it on their debut album, and it has continued to be a mainstay of their live show ever since.

<i>Live in San Diego</i> (Eric Clapton album) 2016 live album by Eric Clapton

Live in San Diego is the thirteenth live album by British rock musician Eric Clapton. It was released through Reprise Records as a live album on 30 September 2016 and as a 2-hour live DVD on 10 March 2017.

<i>Happy Xmas</i> (album) 2018 studio album by Eric Clapton

Happy Xmas is the first Christmas album by Eric Clapton as well as his twenty-first solo studio album which was released on 12 October 2018. It includes 13 covers of Christmas-themed songs, both well-known and relatively obscure ones, arranged in a predominantly blues style, and one new composition by Clapton and producer Simon Climie.

References

  1. "Pilgrim – Eric Clapton | Song Info | AllMusic". AllMusic . Rovi Corporation . Retrieved September 20, 2015.
  2. "Eric Clapton – Pilgrim – austriancharts.at". Ö3 Austria Top 40 (in German). Steffen Hung – Hung Medien. Retrieved September 20, 2015.
  3. "911Tabs.Com – External Link". 991 Tabs. Online Guitar Lessons. Retrieved September 20, 2015.
  4. "Eric Clapton's Songs: The Backstories". Where's Eric! The Eric Clapton Fan Club Magazine. Whereseric.com. Retrieved September 20, 2015.
  5. "M&D: Classifiche" . Musica e dischi (in Italian). Mario De Luigi. Retrieved September 20, 2015.
  6. "Pilgrim [Official Video] – Eric Clapton Videos". Eric Clapton Official Website. Warner Music Group . Retrieved September 20, 2015.
  7. "Clapton Chronicles: The Best of Eric Clapton (Video 1999) – IMDb". Internet Movie Database . Amazon.com, Inc. Retrieved September 20, 2015.