Me and Mr. Johnson
{{Short description|2004 studio album by Eric Clapton}}
{{Use British English|date=January 2014}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=June 2021}}
{{Infobox album
| name = Me and Mr. Johnson
| type = studio
| artist = Eric Clapton
| cover = EC Me and Mr Johnson.jpg
| alt =
| released = {{start date|2004|03|23|df=y}}
| recorded = 2004
| studio = The Town House, London
| genre =
| length = {{Duration|m=49|s=31}}
| label = Reprise
| producer =
- Eric Clapton
- Simon Climie
| prev_title = One More Car, One More Rider
| prev_year = 2002
| next_title = Back Home
| next_year = 2005
| misc = {{Singles
| name = Me and Mr. Johnson
| type = studio
| single1 = If I Had Possession Over Judgement Day (Promotional)
| single2 = Come On in My Kitchen
| single2date = April 2004
}}
}}
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.{{cite web|url=http://ultimateclassicrock.com/eric-clapton-albums-ranked/#photogallery-1=21|work=ultimateclassicrock.com|title=Eric Clapton Albums Ranked Worst to Best|first=Michael|last=Gallucci|date=23 September 2015 }} The album cover was painted by Sir Peter Blake, using a series of photographs of Clapton.{{Not verified in body|date=August 2023}} 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.
Me and Mr. Johnson sold more than two million albums worldwide and reached the Top 10 in more than 15 countries. A companion album and video release entitled Sessions for Robert J was released on 7 December 2004, and featured different versions of each of the songs from the studio album.
Background
At the beginning of 2004, Clapton set out to record a new album, working with his long-time collaborator Simon Climie on several songs that Clapton wrote about love, peace and happiness. However, when it came time to record in the studio, there were not enough finished songs for an album, so Clapton suggested the band play some songs composed by Delta blues great Robert Johnson. In just two weeks, Clapton and his studio band – Andy Fairweather Low, Billy Preston, Steve Gadd, Doyle Bramhall II, and Nathan East – recorded an entire album consisting of Johnson cover songs. Clapton was very pleased with the recordings, as was Warner Bros. Records and Reprise Records manager Tom Whalley. Clapton eventually finished his original material, which was released on the album Back Home in 2005.{{cite book|last=Clapton|first=Eric|year=2007|title=Mein Leben|trans-title=My Life|location=Germany|edition=3|publisher=Kiepenheuer & Witsch|pages=297–299|isbn=978-3-462-03934-4|language=de}}
In February 2004, Clapton was interviewed about his new studio album:
{{blockquote|"It is a remarkable thing to have been driven and influenced all of my life by the work of one man", Clapton said. "And even though I accept that it has always been the keystone of my musical foundation, I still would not regard it as an obsession; instead, I prefer to think of it as a landmark that I navigate by, whenever I feel myself going adrift. I am talking, of course, about the work of Robert Johnson. Up until I heard his music, everything I had ever heard seemed as if it was dressed up for a shop window somewhere, so that when I heard him for the first time, it was like he was singing only for himself, and now and then, maybe God. At first, it scared me in its intensity, and I could only take it in small doses. Then I would build up strength and take a little more, but I could never really get away from it, and in the end, it spoiled me for everything else. Now, after all these years, his music is like my oldest friend, always in the back of my head, and on the horizon. It is the finest music I have ever heard. I have always trusted its purity, and I always will".{{Quote without source|date=December 2019}}}}
Critical reception
{{music ratings
|rev1 = The Penguin Guide to Blues Recordings
|rev1score = {{Rating|2.5|4}}{{cite book |last1=Russell |first1=Tony |last2=Smith |first2=Chris |title=The Penguin Guide to Blues Recordings |year=2006 |edition=|publisher=Penguin |isbn=978-0-140-51384-4|page=122}}
|rev2 = AllMusic
| rev3 = Blender
| rev3Score = {{Rating|3|5}}{{Cite magazine |last=Hadley |first=Frank-John |date=May 2004 |title=Eric Clapton: Me and Mr. Johnson |url=https://archive.org/details/blender-2004-05-courtney-love-26-c/page/118/mode/2up |magazine=Blender |pages=119–120}}
}}
AllMusic critic Stephen Thomas Erlewine notes Clapton sounds very "comfortable and relaxed" on the album, "as if he was having fun making music".{{cite web|first=Stephen Thomas|last=Erlewine|url=http://www.allmusic.com/album/me-and-mr-johnson-mw0000329329|title=Me and Mr. Johnson – Eric Clapton |work=AllMusic|publisher=Rovi Corporation|access-date=13 December 2015}} Erlewine calls the album "simply the most enjoyable record he's made" since From the Cradle with the possible exception of Riding with the King. Comparing the album to From the Cradle, the music critic notes: "in some respects it's a better blues album than that since it never sounds as doggedly serious as that guitar-heavy affair". Erlewine finishes his review liking the album: "Some [...] may find the album too slickly produced – admittedly, blues albums should never boast a credit for Pro Tools, as this does – but this is a heartfelt tribute that's among Clapton's most purely enjoyable albums". He awarded the release three and a half out of five possible stars. Rolling Stone critic David Fricke felt that "Clapton [goes] back to blues school on [this] cover [album], but [does] so with mutual fealty and honest delight".{{cite magazine |first=David|last=Fricke |url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/albumreviews/me-and-mr-johnson-20040324|title=Eric Clapton Me and Mr. Johnson Album Review |magazine=Rolling Stone|publisher=Rollingstome.com|date=24 March 2004|access-date=13 December 2015}} He notes that Clapton limits his guitar solos to "a blistering chorus or two" in some of the songs, "to better show off the dirty-rubber swing of Clapton's longtime road-and-studio band". The journalist finishes his review finding "Clapton pays broad tribute to Johnson as a composer and public-domain synthesist". The British Uncut magazine liked the background work of Clapton's studio band, as they seem to be an "authentic, bottomless thump" to the Johnson tunes and leave Clapton enough space to play "devastating" guitar and sing "like a man who has faced down more than a few canine devils of his own".{{cite web |url=http://www.uncut.co.uk/reviews/album/eric-clapton-me-mr-johnson |title=Eric Clapton – Me & Mr Johnson |work=Uncut Magazine|publisher=Time, Inc. |date=1 April 2004|access-date=13 December 2015}} The magazine awarded the release four out of five points.
Journalist Edna Gundersen from USA Today calls the 2004 studio album a "homage to the genre's godfather in 14 electric versions of acoustic blueprints that laid the groundwork for the '60s rock explosion" and rates the album with three and a half out of four possible stars, calling the songs "greasy as they are graceful, conveying an earthy intensity".{{cite web |first=Edna|last=Gundersen |url=http://usatoday30.usatoday.com/life/music/reviews/2004-03-29-listen-up_x.htm |title=Clapton, Aerosmith dabble in the blues|work=USA Today|publisher=Gannett Satellite Information Network, Inc.|date=29 March 2004|access-date=13 December 2015}} Critic Robert Gauthier from Entertainment Weekly opined that Me and Mr. Johnson "will likely become a coffee-table album" and notes "Clapton sounds reinvigorated in these 14 songs by "Crossroads" soul-salesman Robert Johnson, with phlegm in his throat and (relative) fire in his belly".{{cite magazine|first=Robert|last=Gauthier|url=http://www.ew.com/article/2004/03/29/me-and-mr-johnson|title=Me and Mr. Johnson |magazine=Entertainment Weekly|publisher=Entertainment Weekly, Inc.|date=29 March 2004|access-date=13 December 2015}} He also liked Billy Preston's work on keyboards and awarded the release a "B+" rating, meaning "very good". Rob Webb from BBC Music feels that: "Clapton is no longer God: he now plays the Devil. For him to take on Johnson's catalogue makes perfect sense. With both wailing electric guitar and acoustic-slide under his arm, Eric runs through 'When You Got a Good Friend', 'Milkcow's Calf Blues', 'Come On In My Kitchen' and a dozen other tried and tested Johnson tunes. They are all delivered with sincerity, love and respect. The band are as tight as a bottle-stop, the recording is as clear as a bell and Clapton's singing and playing sound just fine. Me and Mr Johnson will appeal to his AOR audience after a bit of authentic as much as it will to staunch blues fans hungry for digital-age renditions of Johnson standards".{{cite web |first=Rob|last=Webb |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/music/reviews/5dqv |title=Eric Clapton – Me And Mr Johnson – Review |work=BBC Music|publisher=The BBC|year=2003|access-date=13 December 2015}} Billboard critic Christopher Walsh thinks that on Me and Mr. Johnson "Clapton is in fine form, setting aside the slick instrumentation and production that have marked much of his more recent work in favor of a smaller ensemble", creating as the result "a sparse sound, allowing Clapton's usual outstanding lead and slide guitar work to shine. Clapton and the stellar musicians behind him are obviously passionate about the music". Although Walsh liked the music on the album, he would like Clapton to "let it loose" more.
Track listing
{{Track listing
|headline=Me and Mr. Johnson track listing
|total_length=49:31
|all_writing=Robert Johnson
|title1=When You Got a Good Friend
|length1=3:20
|title2=Little Queen of Spades
|length2=4:57
|title3=They're Red Hot
|length3=3:25
|title4=Me and the Devil Blues
|length4=2:56
|title5=Traveling Riverside Blues
|length5=4:31
|title6=Last Fair Deal Gone Down
|length6=2:35
|title7=Stop Breakin' Down Blues
|length7=2:30
|title8=Milkcow's Calf Blues
|length8=3:18
|title9=Kind Hearted Woman Blues
|length9=4:06
|title10=Come on in My Kitchen
|length10=3:35
|title11=If I Had Possession Over Judgement Day
|length11=3:27
|title12=Love in Vain
|length12=4:02
|title13=32-20 Blues
|length13=2:58
|title14=Hellhound on My Trail
|length14=3:51}}
Personnel
- Eric Clapton – vocals, guitars, slide guitar
- Billy Preston – acoustic piano, Hammond organ
- Andy Fairweather Low – guitars
- Doyle Bramhall II – guitars, slide guitar
- Nathan East – bass (1–4, 6–14)
- Pino Palladino – bass (5)
- Steve Gadd – drums (1–4, 6–14)
- Jim Keltner – drums (5)
- Jerry Portnoy – harmonica
Production
- Producers – Eric Clapton and Simon Climie
- Recording Engineer – Alan Douglas
- Second Assistant Engineer – Bea Henkel
- Assistant Engineers – Philippe Rose and Tom Stanley
- Mixed by Mick Guzauski
- Mix Assistant – Tom Bender.
- Pro Tools Engineer – Simon Climie
- Additional Pro Tools – Joel Evenden and Jonathan Shakhovsky
- Mastered by Bob Ludwig at Gateway Mastering (Portland, ME).
- Guitar Technician – Lee Dickson
- Project Coordinator – Mick Double
- Album Cover Concept and Liner Notes – Eric Clapton
- Cover Illustration – Peter Blake
- Design – Catherine Roylance
- Photography – Toru Moriyama
Commercial success
=North America and Asia=
When the album was officially announced, experts from the American Billboard magazine concluded Me and Mr. Johnson would sell more than 100,000 copies in its first week on the U.S. Billboard 200 album chart. As it turned out, the blues cover album sold 128,000 copies in its first week in the U.S., peaking at number six on the Billboard chart in 2004. The album reached the same position on the magazine's Top Internet Albums chart and topped the Billboard Blues albums chart for a total of eleven weeks and stayed 90 weeks on the chart.{{citation needed|date=December 2019}} While charting on the Top 200 albums chart in its twelfth week, Me and Mr. Johnson became the week's greatest gainer with sales of 17,000 copies in July 2004.{{cite journal|first=Geoff|last=Mayfield|url=http://www.americanradiohistory.com/Archive-Billboard/00s/2004/BB-2004-07-03.pdf|title=Over the Counter|journal=Billboard Magazine|publisher=Nielsen Business Media, Inc.|volume=116|number=27|page=57|issn=0006-2510|date=3 July 2004|access-date=16 December 2015}} On 7 July the same year, the album was certified with a gold disc by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) commemorating sales of 500,000 copies in the U.S. The album stayed a total of 18 weeks on the Billboard 200 albums chart. Overall in 2004, Me and Mr. Johnson was the 137th best-selling album as well as the 21st most-purchased album over the Internet and the best-selling blues album in the United States for this period. In 2005, the album was the 5th best-selling blues album in North America.{{cite journal|url=http://www.americanradiohistory.com/Archive-Billboard/00s/2005/BB-2005-12-24.pdf|title=2005 in Music & Touring > Blues|journal=Billboard Magazine|publisher=Nielsen Business Media|volume=117|number=52|page=YE-72|issn=0006-2510|date=24 December 2005|access-date=15 December 2015}} In Canada, the album peaked at number three on the Canadian Albums Chart, compiled by the Billboard magazine and was later awarded a Gold presentation by the Canadian Recording Industry Association (CRIA), selling more than 50,000 copies in the country. However, the album went on to sale more than 60,000 units. In Japan, the album peaked at number eight on the Oricon albums chart in 2004 and went on to become the 84th best-selling album in Japan in 2004. It was also certified with a Gold disc in that region by the Recording Industry Association of Japan (RIAJ) for sales exceeding 100,000 copies and had sold more than 150,000 copies in the nation. In South Korea, the album sold about 2,500 copies and peaked at number seven on the Gaon albums chart for international releases. The album reached position 22 in the state of Hong Kong.
=Africa, South America and Oceania=
In South Africa, the album peaked at number three on the charts, compiled by the Recording Industry of South Africa (RiSA). Me and Mr. Johnson was also successful in South America, as it went to number nine on the Mexican albums chart and stayed a total of 32 weeks on the official albums chart compiled by Asociación Mexicana de Productores de Fonogramas y Videogramas (AMPROFON) for the nation. A little less successful was the release in Brazil, where the album only peaked at number 49 on the album charts and stayed just two weeks on the Associação Brasileira dos Produtores de Discos (ABPD) compilation. In Oceania, the album was slightly more successful as it peaked at number 23 on the ARIA charts in Australia, where it stayed three weeks on chart. For the year-ending of 2001, Me and Mr. Johnson was the 11th best-selling Jazz/Blues album in the country. In New Zealand however, the album was certified with a Platinum disc by the Recording Industry Association of New Zealand (RIANZ), exceeding sales figures of more than 15,000 copies in the country as Me and Mr. Johnson peaked at number 14 and stayed four weeks on chart.
Charts and certifications
{{col-begin}}
{{col-2}}
=Weekly charts=
{{col-2}}
=Year-end charts=
| class="wikitable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center;" |
| Chart (2005)
!Position |
|---|
| scope="row"|US Top Blues Albums (Billboard){{citation needed|date=December 2019}}
|5 |
=Certifications=
{{Certification Table Top}}
{{Certification Table Entry|type=album|region=Belgium|award=Gold|relyear=2004|certref={{cite web|url=http://www.directupload.net/file/d/4195/7otn8nz5_png.htm |title=Belgian album certifications – Eric Clapton – Me and Mr. Johnson |publisher=Belgian Entertainment Association |access-date=6 December 2015 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151207165045/http://www.directupload.net/file/d/4195/7otn8nz5_png.htm |archive-date=7 December 2015 }}|certyear=2004}}
{{Certification Table Entry|type=album|region=Canada|award=Gold|artist=Eric Clapton|title=Me and Mr. Johnson|access-date=6 December 2015|refname=CRIA|salesamount=60,000|salesref={{cite web|first=Astrid|last=Keil|url=http://www.directupload.net/file/d/3941/gvyt6pzf_pdf.htm|title=Dossier – The Music of Eric Clapton|publisher=Directupload|access-date=6 December 2015}}}}
{{Certification Table Entry|type=album|region=Denmark|award=Platinum|relyear=2004|certref={{cite web|url=http://www.directupload.net/file/d/4194/4j382rhz_png.htm |title=Danish album certifications – Eric Clapton – Me and Mr. Johnson |publisher=International Federation of the Phonographic Industry Denmark |language=da |access-date=6 December 2015 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151206164410/http://www.directupload.net/file/d/4194/4j382rhz_png.htm |archive-date=6 December 2015 }}}}
{{Certification Table Entry|type=album|region=France|award=Gold|certref={{cite web|url=http://www.directupload.net/file/d/4195/2ixrbs2e_png.htm |title=French album certifications |publisher=Syndicat National de l'Édition Phonographique |language=fr |access-date=7 December 2015 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151207190726/http://www.directupload.net/file/d/4195/2ixrbs2e_png.htm |archive-date=7 December 2015 }}|salesamount=170,000|salesref=}}
{{Certification Table Entry|type=album|region=Greece|award=Platinum|relyear=2004|certref={{cite web|url=http://www.directupload.net/file/d/4194/ka6zp3vq_png.htm |title=Top 50 Ξένων Άλμπουμ |trans-title=Top 50 Albums in Greece |publisher=International Federation of the Phonographic Industry Greece |language=el |access-date=6 December 2015 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151206170803/http://www.directupload.net/file/d/4194/ka6zp3vq_png.htm |archive-date=6 December 2015 }}}}
{{Certification Table Entry|type=album|region=Hungary|award=Platinum|artist=Eric Clapton|title=Me and Mr. Johnson|refname=MAHASZ|relyear=2004|certyear=2004|access-date=6 December 2015}}
{{Certification Table Entry|type=album|region=Italy|award=Platinum|relyear=2004|certref={{cite book|last=Armani|first=Luciano|date=December 2008|title=Premi della FIMI italiana|trans-title=FIMI certifications|language=it|location=Milan, Italy|page=23}}}}
{{Certification Table Entry|type=album|region=Japan|award=Gold|artist=Eric Clapton|title=Me and Mr. Johnson|access-date=6 December 2015|refname=RIAJ|salesamount=150,000|salesref=|certyear=2004|certmonth=3}}
{{Certification Table Entry|type=album|region=New Zealand|relyear=2004|award=Platinum|certref={{cite web|url=http://www.directupload.net/file/d/4181/vxmxrguy_png.htm |title=New Zealand album certifications – Eric Clapton – Me and Mr. Johnson |publisher=Recording Industry Association of New Zealand |access-date=6 December 2015 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151123203712/http://www.directupload.net/file/d/4181/vxmxrguy_png.htm |archive-date=23 November 2015 }}}}
{{Certification Table Entry|type=album|region=Norway|award=Gold|relyear=2004|certref=}}
{{Certification Table Entry|type=album|region=Spain|relyear=2004|award=Gold|certref={{cite web|url=http://www.directupload.net/file/d/4194/m22p2prx_png.htm |title=Spanish album certifications – Eric Clapton – Me and Mr. Johnson |publisher=Productores de Música de España |language=es |access-date=6 December 2015 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151206165823/http://www.directupload.net/file/d/4194/m22p2prx_png.htm |archive-date=6 December 2015 }}}}
{{Certification Table Entry|type=album|region=Sweden|relyear=2004|award=Gold|certref={{cite web|url=http://www.directupload.net/file/d/4195/zqgn956c_png.htm |title=Swedish album certifications – Eric Clapton – Me and Mr. Johnson |publisher=Swedish Recording Industry Association |language=sv |access-date=6 December 2015 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151207182838/http://www.directupload.net/file/d/4195/zqgn956c_png.htm |archive-date=7 December 2015 }}}}
{{Certification Table Entry|type=album|region=United Kingdom|relyear=2004|award=Gold|artist=Eric Clapton|title=Me and Mr. Johnson|refname=BPI|access-date=6 December 2015|certyear=2015|certmonth=1|id=4205-3230-2}}
{{Certification Table Entry|type=album|region=United States|award=Gold|artist=Eric Clapton|title=Me and Mr. Johnson|access-date=6 December 2015|refname=RIAA}}
{{Certification Table Summary}}
{{Certification Table Entry|type=album|region=Europe|award=Platinum|certref={{cite journal|first=Nigel|last=Murray|url=http://www.americanradiohistory.com/Archive-Billboard/00s/2004/BB-2004-07-31.pdf|title=One Million While On Tour|journal=Billboard Magazine|publisher=Nielsen Business Media, Inc.|volume=116|number=31|issn=0006-2510|date=31 July 2004|access-date=6 December 2015}}}}
{{Certification Table Bottom}}
{{col-end}}
''Sessions for Robert J''
{{Infobox album
| name = Sessions for Robert J
| type = studio
| longtype = / video
| artist = Eric Clapton
| cover = Sessions For Robert J Cover.jpg
| alt =
| released = {{Start date|df=yes|2004|12|07}}
| recorded = 14 March – 14 August 2004
| studio =
| genre =
| length = {{Duration|m=45|s=38}}
| label = Reprise
| director = Stephen Schible
| producer =
- Eric Clapton
- Simon Climie
| prev_title = One More Car, One More Rider
| prev_year = 2002
| next_title = Back Home
| next_year = 2005
| misc = {{Singles
| name = Sessions for Robert J
| type = studio
| single1 = Sweet Home Chicago (Promotional)
| single1date = 30 November 2004
}}
}}
Sessions for Robert J is the sixteenth solo studio album by the British rock guitarist and singer-songwriter Eric Clapton and was released on 7 December 2004 through Reprise Records. The release is a companion project to his previously released album Me and Mr. Johnson. A DVD shows Clapton and his band traveling around the United Kingdom and United States just before and after his 2004 Crossroads Guitar Festival, recording some takes of Johnson's songs on video. Songs that were not included on the first album include: "From Four 'Til Late", "Terraplane Blues", "Ramblin' on my Mind", "Sweet Home Chicago", and "Stones in My Passway". Several songs are performed in duet by Clapton on steel-string acoustic guitar and Doyle Bramhall II on steel string acoustic and dobro guitars. Between sessions, Clapton discusses Johnson's profound influence on him and other musicians. One notable segment features Clapton performing in the 508 Park Avenue building in Dallas, Texas, that served as a makeshift studio in 1937 for Johnson to cut his legendary recordings.
=Background=
In his 2007 autobiography, Clapton wrote that he asked his long-time friend Hiroshi Fujiwara to direct a video which would accompany some tracks from his then-new studio release Me and Mr. Johnson for either TV or Internet broadcasting, (but not for commercials). Fujiwara agreed to work with Clapton on the project but also suggested that his friend Stephen Schible, the producer of the movie Lost in Translation, work with him and Clapton. When Schible got to the scene, he quickly decided to go beyond the idea of doing some short-form videos that Clapton had suggested and film a whole documentary about why Clapton loved Robert Johnson and how Johnson influenced him, as well as other musicians and the blues in general. When Clapton agreed and finished filming for the video release, he was amazed by the recordings and consented to release them. With Sessions for Robert J, Clapton felt he had paid his dues to Robert Johnson.
=Critical reception=
Canadian music journalist Darryl Sterdan from Jam! magazine liked both the compact disc and DVD video release, noting that Clapton "picked up where he left off with last spring's Me and Mr. Johnson, covering more classics by Delta blues pioneer Robert Johnson in assorted settings". Sterdan awarded the release four out of five possible stars, especially enjoying the recordings from 508 Park Avenue, where several blues icons had recorded their music more than 60 years ago.{{cite web |first=Darryl|last=Sterdan |url=http://jam.canoe.com/Music/Artists/C/Clapton_Eric/AlbumReviews/2005/01/07/823712.html |title=CANOE – JAM! Clapton, Eric: SESSIONS FOR ROBERT J |work=Canoe.com|publisher=Sun Media Postmedia Integrated Advertising|date=7 January 2005|access-date=6 December 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160603145814/http://jam.canoe.com/Music/Artists/C/Clapton_Eric/AlbumReviews/2005/01/07/823712.html|archive-date=3 June 2016|url-status=dead}} AllMusic critic Thom Jurek liked Sessions for Robert J and awarded the release three out of possible five stars.{{cite web|first=Thom|last=Jurek|url=http://www.allmusic.com/album/sessions-for-robert-j-mw0000633930|title=Sessions for Robert J – Eric Clapton | Songs, Reviews, Credits | AllMusic|publisher=Rovi Corporation|work=AllMusic|access-date=6 December 2015}} For his review for the AllMusic website, Jurek notes:
{{Blockquote|text=It appears that Eric Clapton had more Robert Johnson in his blood than he thought – or perhaps it was planned this way. This DVD/CD set […], showcases Clapton mining the Robert Johnson vein ever more deeply in no less than four different settings. The DVD features 19 acoustic and electric performances recorded in rehearsal spaces in Dallas and in England, as well as in the 508 Park Avenue in Dallas, a studio Johnson himself recorded in, in 1937. There is one more segment, a recorded solo acoustic in a hotel room in California. The band that joins Clapton in the rehearsal studios is composed of guitar master Doyle Bramhall II, organist Billy Preston, Steve Gadd on drums, pianist Chris Stainton and Nathan East on bass. The electric performances, particularly 'Milkcow's Calf Blues', 'Stop Breakin' Down Blues', and especially 'I Wish I Had Possession Over Judgment Day', have some real life and stomp in them. Of the acoustic tracks, 'Terraplane Blues' works best. The DVD also contains a selection of behind-the-scenes footage that will be of interest only to those fans who need to see everything. The CD contains 11 cuts culled from the DVD and the sequencing is in some ways preferable.|author=Thom Jurek, AllMusic}}
=Chart performance=
Sessions for Robert J was not very successful on the album charts, possibly due to its predecessor released earlier in Spring of 2004. However, the compact disc album peaked at number 74 on the official Austrian album charts where it stayed for one week on the chart in 2004. In France, the album reached number 120 on the album charts, compiled by the Syndicat National de l'Édition Phonographique and spent a total of six weeks on the chart, reaching even into the next year. In Japan, Sessions for Robert J sold about 6,000 units in its first week on the chart, peaking at number 189. By the end of 2011, however, the release sold 60,000 copies in the Asian country. In Canada, the album did not reach the music charts, but was a medium success, selling about 20,000 copies in the country. In the United Kingdom, the album also did not reach the official albums chart, however, it sold close to 25,000 copies. In the United States, both the album and the video release were most successful, reaching position 172 on the Billboard 200 albums chart, where the album stayed for two weeks. The release also topped the Billboard magazine's Blues albums chart, and spent a total of 49 weeks on the genre chart until 2006. The video DVD release reached number 21 on the American Top Music Video charts, also compiled by Billboard magazine. In the United States alone, the album sold more than 230,000 copies. In total, Sessions for Robert J has sold more than 400,000 copies worldwide. For the year-ending of 2005, Sessions for Robert J was the 3rd best-selling blues album in the United States.
=Track listings=
{{Track listing
|headline=Compact disc track listing
|total_length=45:38
|all_writing=Robert Johnson
|title1=Sweet Home Chicago
|length1=5:17
|title2=Milkcow's Calf Blues
|length2=3:49
|title3=Terraplane Blues
|length3=3:36
|title4=If I Had Possession Over Judgement Day
|length4=3:23
|title5=Stop Breakin' Down Blues
|length5=2:56
|title6=Little Queen of Spades
|length6=5:27
|title7=Traveling Riverside Blues
|length7=4:26
|title8=Me and the Devil Blues
|length8=2:50
|title9=From Four Until Late
|length9=3:01
|title10=Kind Hearted Woman Blues
|length10=5:39
|title11=Ramblin' on My Mind
|length11=2:42}}
{{Track listing
|headline=DVD track listing
|total_length=96:54
|title1=Kind Hearted Woman Blues
|note1=Session 1 – recorded at 11:04am, on 14 March 2004 at Hook End Manor, Checkendon, England
|length1=5:18
|title2= They're Red Hot
|note2=Session 1 – recorded at 11:04am, on 14 March 2004 at Hook End Manor, Checkendon, England
|length2=3:20
|title3=Hellhound on My Trail
|note3=Session 1 – recorded at 11:04am, on 14 March 2004 at Hook End Manor, Checkendon, England
|length3=4:49
|title4=Sweet Home Chicago
|note4=Session 1 – recorded at 11:04am, on 14 March 2004 at Hook End Manor, Checkendon, England
|length4=5:51
|title5=When You Got a Good Friend
|note5=Session 1 – recorded at 11:04am, on 14 March 2004 at Hook End Manor, Checkendon, England
|length5=5:01
|title6=Milkcow's Calf Blues
|note6=Session 2 – recorded at 10:45am, on 2 June 2004 in Las Colinas, Irving, Texas
|length6=3:42
|title7=If I Had Possession Over Judgement Day
|note7=Session 2 – recorded at 10:45am, on 2 June 2004 in Las Colinas, Irving, Texas
|length7=3:17
|title8=Stop Breakin' Down Blues
|note8=Session 2 – recorded at 10:45am, on 2 June 2004 in Las Colinas, Irving, Texas
|length8=2:52
|title9=Terraplane Blues
|note9=Session 3 – recorded at 8:30pm, on 3 June 2004 in 508 Park Avenue, Dallas, Texas
|length9=3:30
|title10=Hellhound on My Trail
|note10=Session 3 – recorded at 8:30pm, on 3 June 2004 in 508 Park Avenue, Dallas, Texas
|length10=3:20
|title11=Me and the Devil Blues
|note11=Session 3 – recorded at 8:30pm, on 3 June 2004 in 508 Park Avenue, Dallas, Texas
|length11=2:43
|title12=From Four Until Late
|note12=Session 3 – recorded at 8:30pm, on 3 June 2004 in 508 Park Avenue, Dallas, Texas
|length12=3:03
|title13=Love in Vain
|note13=Session 3 – recorded at 8:30pm, on 3 June 2004 in 508 Park Avenue, Dallas, Texas
|length13=3:19
|title14=Ramblin' on My Mind
|note14=Session 4 – recorded at 10:16am, on 14 August 2004 at the Hotel Casa del Mar, Santa Monica, California
|length14=2:46
|title15=Stones in My Passway
|note15=Session 4 – recorded at 10:16am, on 14 August 2004 at the Hotel Casa del Mar, Santa Monica, California
|length15=2:29
|title16=Love in Vain
|note16=Session 4 – recorded at 10:16am, on 14 August 2004 at the Hotel Casa del Mar, Santa Monica, California
|length16=2:53
|title17=Little Queen of Spades
|note17=DVD Bonus
|length17=5:53
|title18=Traveling Riverside Blues
|note18=DVD Bonus
|length18=4:23
|title19=Behind the Scenes Footage
|note19=DVD Bonus
|length19=5:04
|title20=Interviews
|note20=DVD Bonus
|length20=n/a
|title21=Credits
|note21=DVD Bonus
|length21=6:00}}
References
{{Reflist}}
{{Eric Clapton}}
{{Robert Johnson}}
{{Authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Me And Mr. Johnson}}
Category:Eric Clapton video albums
Category:Blues albums by English artists
Category:Blues rock albums by English artists
Category:Reprise Records albums
Category:Warner Records albums