| "Promises" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Single by Eric Clapton | ||||
| from the album Backless | ||||
| B-side | "Watch Out for Lucy" | |||
| Released | September 1978 | |||
| Genre | Soft rock | |||
| Length | 3:00 | |||
| Label | RSO | |||
| Songwriter(s) | Richard Feldman · Roger Linn | |||
| Producer(s) | Glyn Johns | |||
| Eric Clapton singles chronology | ||||
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"Promises" is a song written by Richard Feldman and Roger Linn and recorded by British singer and guitarist Eric Clapton in September 1978. It appears on Clapton's studio album Backless .
"Promises" was released as a 7-inch vinyl single in the United States, Canada, the Netherlands, Belgium, Germany, Australia, France, Spain, the United Kingdom and Italy in September 1978. With the age of digital music, the song is available as a digital music download in nearly every country. [1] Besides being released as a single, the track appears on various compilation albums including Timepieces: The Best of Eric Clapton (1982), Backtrackin' (1984), The Cream of Eric Clapton (1987), Crossroads (1988), The Cream of Clapton (1995) and Complete Clapton (2007). In total, the title has been released on over 15 albums. [2]
In the United States, "Promises" reached No. 9 on the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart, as well as peaking at No. 6 on the magazine's Adult Contemporary chart. It also reached No. 82 on the Top Country Singles chart. The B-side, "Watch Out for Lucy" was subsequently promoted to radio reaching No. 40 on the Hot 100 singles chart. In Canada, the single ranked at No. 7 on the national singles chart and reached No. 24 on the Adult Contemporary chart. Additionally, it charted up to No. 12 on the CHUM charts in Canada. In New Zealand, a re-entry reached No. 35 on the country's official music chart.
In the United Kingdom, "Promises" peaked at No. 37. In the Netherlands the song reached No. 40 on the Top 100 singles chart and stayed on the list for seven weeks. It also reached No. 3 on the Dutch Top 40 "Tip Parade" (songs bubbling under the main top 40). In France, the album was listed under the artist name "Eric Clapton & His Band" and peaked at No. 71. In Australia, the song peaked at No. 26. In Norway, the release peaked at No. 1 on the Country singles chart, which had been introduced that year and was removed from the VG-lista in 1980.[ citation needed ]
"Promises" consists of four verses, two choruses and an ending. The song is in the key of G major [3] and backing vocals were performed by Marcy Levy. Billboard called "Promises" a "swaying, melodic rocker" that sometimes sounds like Clapton's earlier hit "Lay Down Sally." [4] Record World said that it "is largely acoustic with smooth and easy vocals." [5] AllMusic critic William Ruhlmann called the song an "understated pop shuffle" and noted the writing credits of Richard Feldman and Roger Linn. Ruhlmann then went on to criticize that Backless and the song "Promises" are not "memorable recordings" of Clapton. [6]
German music journalist Steffen Greifswald wrote in his review for the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung : "Backless is a good recording for music lovers and of course Eric Clapton fanatics. One recording definitely sticks out – the song "Promises" has integrity, soul and passion. The track therefore perfectly sums up Eric Clapton and his work." [7]
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Backless is the sixth solo studio album by Eric Clapton, released in November 1978. Produced by Glyn Johns, and released by RSO Records, Backless reached no. 8 on the pop charts. While the single "Promises" only reached no. 37 on the UK Singles Chart, it was a much bigger success in the US, reaching no. 9 on the Billboard Hot 100. The follow-up single, "Watch Out for Lucy", was the B-side of "Promises", but reached no. 40 on the Billboard 100 on its own merit. Later in 1980 "Tulsa Time" was #30 on the Billboard 100 with the 1977 song "Cocaine" as B-side. It was Clapton's last studio album to feature his longtime bassist Carl Radle, who died in 1980.
Unplugged is a 1992 live album by Eric Clapton, recorded at Bray Studios, England in front of an audience for the MTV Unplugged television series. It includes a version of the successful 1992 single "Tears in Heaven" and an acoustic version of "Layla". The album itself won three Grammy awards at the 35th Annual Grammy Awards in 1993 and became the bestselling live album of all time, and Clapton's bestselling album, selling 26 million copies worldwide.
The singles discography of Eric Clapton consists of 24 early career singles that Clapton recorded with various groups and singers including The Yardbirds, John Mayall & the Blues Breakers, Cream, John Lennon and the Plastic Ono Band as well as Derek and the Dominos. As a solo performer, Clapton released 91 singles and various promotional formats from 1970 to date. His most commercially successful singles are "Lay Down Sally", "Wonderful Tonight", "Change the World", "Tears in Heaven" and Bob Marley's "I Shot the Sheriff", released in 1974, charting substantially better than Marley's own earlier release had, becoming a Billboard Hot 100 number-one hit.
"Tears in Heaven" is a song by English guitarist, singer, and songwriter Eric Clapton and Will Jennings, written about the death of Clapton's four-year-old son, Conor. It appeared on the 1991 Rush film soundtrack. In January 1992, Clapton performed the song in front of an audience at Bray Studios, Berkshire, England for MTV Unplugged, with the recording appearing on his Unplugged album.
"Wonderful Tonight" is a ballad written by Eric Clapton. It was included on Clapton's 1977 album Slowhand. Clapton wrote the song on his 1974 Martin D-28 guitar about Pattie Boyd. The female vocal harmonies on the song are provided by Marcella Detroit and Yvonne Elliman. The song is his most popular download on Spotify with more than 480,000,000 streams.
"Change the World" is a song written by Tommy Sims, Gordon Kennedy, and Wayne Kirkpatrick and recorded by country music artist Wynonna Judd. A later 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.
Another Ticket is the seventh solo studio album by Eric Clapton. Recorded and produced by Tom Dowd at the Compass Point Studios in Nassau, Bahamas with Albert Lee, it was Clapton's last studio album for RSO Records before the label shut down in 1983 as it was absorbed by Polydor Records. It received moderate reviews and achieved modest commercial success peaking at No. 18 in the UK charts.
"My Father's Eyes" is a song written and performed by British musician Eric Clapton and produced by Clapton and Simon Climie. It was released as a single in 1998 and was featured on Clapton's thirteenth solo studio album, Pilgrim (1998). The song reached the top 40 on the US Billboard Hot 100 Airplay chart, peaking at number 16, which remains his last top-40 hit in said country as of 2024. It also spent five weeks at number two on the Billboard Hot Adult Contemporary chart. It became a top-five hit in Canada, where it peaked at number two, and reached the top 20 in Austria, Iceland, and Norway. In 1999, it won a Grammy Award for Best Male Pop Vocal Performance.
"It's Probably Me" is a song originally released in 1992 as a collaboration by Sting featuring Eric Clapton, Michael Kamen, and David Sanborn. Released from the soundtrack to the action comedy film Lethal Weapon 3 in June 1992, the song reached number 20 on the US Billboard Album Rock Tracks chart and number 12 on Canada's RPM 100 Hit Tracks chart. It was more successful in Europe, peaking at number one in Italy, number four in France, and number six in the Netherlands.
"Lay Down Sally" is a song performed by Eric Clapton, and written by Clapton, Marcy Levy, and George Terry. It appeared on his November 1977 album Slowhand, and reached No. 3 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart.
"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.
"I Can't Stand It" was the first single from Eric Clapton's 1981 album Another Ticket. On the record label for the vinyl 45, its credited as Eric Clapton and His Band. It was also used for interludes on Bill O'Reilly's radio show, The Radio Factor.
"Just One Look" is a song co-written by American R&B singers Doris Troy and Gregory Carroll. The recording by Doris Troy was a hit in 1963. The Hollies, Anne Murray, Linda Ronstadt and Iain Matthews each achieved great success with the song. There have also been many other versions.
"Forever Man" is a song from Eric Clapton's 1985 album Behind the Sun, released as the first single of the album. It reached number one on the Billboard Top Rock Tracks chart, becoming his second single to do so. In total, the single release sold more than 500,000 copies worldwide.
"It's in the Way That You Use It" is a song which was written by the English rock musician Eric Clapton in collaboration with The Band's guitarist and composer Robbie Robertson. The song was recorded and performed by Eric Clapton, who released the track under licence of Warner Bros. Records as the second of four singles from his 1986 studio album August in March 1987. The song, which is used as the theme tune to the Martin Scorsese film The Color of Money, was produced by Eric Clapton himself with the help of Tom Dowd, who acted as the assistant producer. The release sold more than 500,000 copies worldwide.
"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've Got a Rock 'n' Roll Heart" is a song written by Troy Seals, Eddie Setser, and Steve Diamond and recorded by Eric Clapton. It appeared on Clapton's album Money and Cigarettes released in January 1983. The release was successful in the United States, peaking at 18 on the Billboard Hot 100 and reached number 6 on the Adult Contemporary chart the same year.
"Blue Eyes Blue" is a pop song written by American songwriter Diane Warren. The tune was written for the 1999 soundtrack of Runaway Bride. The British rock musician Eric Clapton recorded the song for the soundtrack and released his performance of the song as a single on July 20, 1999, for Reprise Records.
"Watch Out for Lucy" is the B-side of the single "Promises" released by the British rock musician Eric Clapton in September 1978 of his studio album Backless.
"Hello Old Friend" is a country rock song, written and recorded by the British rock musician Eric Clapton. The track was released in October 1976 as the first of two singles from Clapton's 1976 studio album entitled No Reason to Cry.