Eric Clapton Reveals Five-Date 2023 North American Tour

Days before his 78th birthday on March 30, Eric Clapton has revealed a five-date tour. He says the shows will be his only dates in North America in 2023.

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Featuring special guest Jimmie Vaughan, Clapton’s short run of shows is set to kick off on September 8 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Additional stops will be made in Ontario, Canada; Missouri, and Minnesota before wrapping up in Denver, Colorado, on September 16.

Clapton’s current band joining him on tour features Sonny Emory, Chris Stainton, Doyle Bramhall II, Paul Carrack, and Nathan East, with backing vocalists Katie Kissoon and Sharon White.

In 2022, Clapton released his 21st album, and first-holiday release, Happy Xmas. He also dropped a number of singles since the pandemic, including his most recent, “Pompous Fool,” which he said was inspired by former U.K. Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s retirement announcement.

Clapton, who has been outspoken against the Covid vaccine and the policies surrounding the pandemic lockdown, and Van Morrison collaborated on another anti-lockdown song “Stand & Deliver” in the midst of the pandemic in 2020. By 2021, Clapton also released the song “This Has Gotta Stop,” which was followed by “Heart of a Child,” a song he co-wrote with vaccine skeptic Robin Monotti.

The guitarist said that he suffered severe reactions to the AstraZeneca vaccine, which left his hands and feet numb for weeks, making him question whether he would ever be able to play guitar again.

On his previous tour in 2022, Clapton tested positive for COVID-19 shortly after his second concert at Royal Albert Hall in London and was forced to cancel several dates on his European Tour.

In April, Clapton will also perform six nights at Budokan in Tokyo, followed by two Jeff Beck tribute concerts at the Royal Albert Hall in London on May 22 and 23. The tribute show will also feature guests including Johnny Depp, Rod Stewart, Billy Gibbons, and Gary Clark Jr., among others.

Clapton, who was replaced by Beck in The Yardbirds in 1965, paid tribute to Beck in the wake of his death, posting a photo of the late guitarist with the caption “Always and ever.” 

A percentage of the proceeds from the two concerts will be donated to Folly Wildlife Rescue located in Tunbridge Wells in Kent, England.

Eric Clapton North American Tour 2023

Sept. 8 – Pittsburgh, PA @ PPG Paints Arena
Sept. 10 – Toronto, ON @ Scotiabank Arena
Sept. 12 – St. Louis, MO @ Enterprise Center
Sept. 14 – St. Paul, MN @ Xcel Energy Center
Sept. 16 – Denver, CO @ Ball Arena

Photo: Frank Hoensch/Redferns

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