Clapton really has been in some great bands and played with some great musicians and then he has had some great musicians in his solo bands and yet still it is hard to get through a whole album consistently. Then there is the Crossroads box-set.
It’s a magical thing, all Clapton’s greatest moments collected, distilled and put in one place so you don’t have to buy the records and get that sense of disappointment when w you hit a bad song. Of course that is only up to 1988, after that you are on your own.
The only really questionable moments on the entire set is some of the reggae attempts on Peter Tosh’s Watcha Gonna Do. Clapton doesn’t sound convincing or even convinced, everything else passes muster. Even the overly sentimental songs manage when placed on the box sound better than on their original albums.
So here we have it Clapton’s best selling compilation and apparently the fastest selling compilation of all time. All those copies make it relatively easy to find and more importantly reasonable to buy, and it is worth it, all the high points from the Yardbirds to solo with none of the cringing that can go along with a Clapton album. Now yes there could have been more Cream but let’s face it they never made that many records so go buy them all.
As you leaf through the book and the credits it does make you realize what a great interpreter of other peoples songs Clapton is, and yes his playing is truly something special when he is together enough.
I just realized I have the CD version of this somewhere as well so I must really like it.
timeweleftthisworldtoday 
Oh yes, this is a good one from what I remember. Mine disappeared somehow. It’s funny that you just realized you had it on CD as well. I recently bought a book forgetting that I already had it. Must come with the territory after a certain number is reached.
One number increases and an ability decreases.
I used to have a cassette one called Backtrackin’ or something similar. Did the job. I bought it when I was 14, just for Layla really.