“The tone EC achieved on that record has become one of the classic archetypes for how an electric guitarshould sound”: How Eric Clapton got his tone on John Mayall and the Bluesbreakers’ ‘Beano’ album

Eric Clapton plays a Gibson Les Paul in the early days of Cream, not long after he set the template for Les Paul and Marshall tone with John Mayall and the Bluesbreakers.

Few guitarists will forget the first time they heard Clapton’s ecstatic playing on the track Hideaway from the Bluesbreakers’ ‘Beano’ album.

The tone EC achieved on that record has become one of the classic archetypes for how an electric guitar should sound. His Les Paul is pushed hard, its voice a full-throated yet expressive song – with the dynamics to reveal the nuance of every phrase – but enough sustaining compression to really take flight when Eric lets rip.