Not my favorite band,although one of them...Eric and Duane are 2 of my favorite guitarists, but there are some I like more. The band itself was more of an indulgence for Eric and Duane and Co. , just an opportunity to get together and have a meeting of the minds. I say all that to say this: Layla and Other Assorted Love Songs is the finest rock and roll album ever recorded. It is, in its own way,a masterpiece. 'Layla' is a definite classic rock love song. Take Layla off the album and this would STILL be the greatest record ever made. It doesnt feel right to me to hear Layla without first having heard 'Have You Ever Loved a Woman, Little Wing and It's Too Late strung back to back,(not the only way to hear them,but the BEST way)! LAYLA is just like a dessert that you have just enough room for. The Little Wing arrangement, apples to oranges with Hendrixs' original, is a mind-blowing eargasm that may take several hundred listenings for you to reach the realization that, if all you had to wake up for tomorrow morning was an opportunity to listen to it, you would get to bed early. In the realm of album-oriented rock, its not about singles, its about music. And musically, Layla and Other Assorted Love Songs is AS GOOD AS IT GETS!!!
