Still riding high from his recent collaboration with blues legend B.B. King, Eric Clapton announced he will spend part of the year 2001 on a world-wide tour supporting his most recent release - Riding With The King. In fact, it turned out that the tour supported his new album, Reptile (out in March 2001). It was his first full road trip in almost three years.
Clapton began his ambitious trek in grand fashion, with a five-night stand at London's Royal Albert Hall (six shows had originally been announced, but one was cancelled due to Eric's illness). He's done several of these multi-show runs at the world famous venue. Clapton toured arenas in the United Kingdom through February 16, then he headed for the Continent with stops in several countries. The 25-city European tour ended in Moscow on April 11.
Eric Clapton and B.B. King shared a Grammy at the 43rd Annual Grammy Awards on 21st February in the category of "best traditional blues album" for their collaboration "Riding with the king". Eric did not attend the ceremony at Los Angeles due to the schedules of his recent European tour.
During the first leg of the North American part of the world tour, Eric performed 25 concerts in 22 cities, starting on May 10 in Dallas, Texas, and ending with a three-night stand at New York's Madison Square Garden (last concert on June 23).
Eric Clapton was among the inductees into the Songwriters Hall of Fame (SHOF). The 32nd annual awards ceremony was held June 14 at the Sheraton New York Hotel & Towers. Due to his recent tour schedules, Clapton was not on hand to receive his award.
An all-star open-air charity concert took place on 7th July 2001 at Wintershall Estate in Bramley, Surrey. The special invitation only black-tie event was billed as "A Picnic Concert by the Chapel on the Lake". As he did for two similar events in 1988 and 1989, Eric Clapton once again joined the "Band du Lac".
The second leg of the North American tour started on July 17 in St. Paul, Minnesota, and ended with two shows in Chicago (last concert on August 18). Eric performed 20 concerts in 18 cities. In October, Eric was on the road again with further performances in South America where he performed 8 concerts in 6 countries. The world tour ended with 16 concerts in Japan in November and December.
After the first rumours in 1998 about a retirement, once again, it is said that the current world tour may well be Eric's last extensive outing. It is to be hoped that he will not retire completely from business. According to his spokesperson, Eric will tour on a smaller scale in the future, and Eric said he'll probably still play one-off shows from time to time.
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Guest appearance with Wyclef Jean |
 | Fri | 19-Jan-2001 | Carnegie Hall | New York City, New York (United States) |
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Reptile - European Tour (U.K. leg) |
| Sat | 03-Feb-2001 | Royal Albert Hall | London (England) |
| Sun | 04-Feb-2001 | Royal Albert Hall | London (England) |
| Tue | 06-Feb-2001 | Royal Albert Hall | London (England) |
| Wed | 07-Feb-2001 | Cancelled: Royal Albert Hall | London (England) |
| Fri | 09-Feb-2001 | Royal Albert Hall | London (England) |
| Sat | 10-Feb-2001 | Royal Albert Hall | London (England) |
| Mon | 12-Feb-2001 | Sheffield Arena | Sheffield, South Yorkshire (England) |
| Wed | 14-Feb-2001 | Manchester Evening News Arena | Manchester (England) |
| Fri | 16-Feb-2001 | National Exhibition Centre | Birmingham (England) |
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Reptile - European Tour (Continental leg) |
| Tue | 20-Feb-2001 | Pavilhão Atlântico | Lisboa (Portugal) |
| Thu | 22-Feb-2001 | Palacio de los Deportes | Madrid (Spain) |
| Fri | 23-Feb-2001 | Palacio de los Deportes | Madrid (Spain) |
| Sun | 25-Feb-2001 | Palau Sant Jordi | Barcelona (Spain) |
| Mon | 26-Feb-2001 | Zenith | Toulouse (France) |
| Wed | 28-Feb-2001 | Palasport | Firenze (Italy) |
| Fri | 02-Mar-2001 | Filaforum | Milano (Italy) |
| Sat | 03-Mar-2001 | BPA Palas | Pesaro (Italy) |
| Mon | 05-Mar-2001 | Hallenstadion | Zürich (Switzerland) |
| Tue | 06-Mar-2001 | Schleyerhalle | Stuttgart (Germany) |
| Thu | 08-Mar-2001 | Köln Arena | Köln (Germany) |
| Fri | 09-Mar-2001 | Festhalle | Frankfurt am Main (Germany) |
| Tue | 20-Mar-2001 | Palais Omnisports de Paris Bercy | Paris (France) |
| Wed | 21-Mar-2001 | Palais Omnisports de Paris Bercy | Paris (France) |
| Fri | 23-Mar-2001 | Flanders Expo | Gent (Belgium) |
| Sun | 25-Mar-2001 | Ahoy Hall | Rotterdam (Netherlands) |
| Mon | 26-Mar-2001 | Ahoy Hall | Rotterdam (Netherlands) |
| Wed | 28-Mar-2001 | Forum | København (Denmark) |
| Thu | 29-Mar-2001 | Forum | København (Denmark) |
| Sat | 31-Mar-2001 | Scandinavium | Göteborg (Sweden) |
| Sun | 01-Apr-2001 | Spektrum | Oslo (Norway) |
| Tue | 03-Apr-2001 | Globen | Stockholm (Sweden) |
| Thu | 05-Apr-2001 | Hartwall Areena | Helsinki (Finland) |
| Fri | 06-Apr-2001 | Hartwall Areena | Helsinki (Finland) |
| Sun | 08-Apr-2001 | Ledoviy Dvoryec (Ice Palace) | S.-Peterburg (Russia) |
| Tue | 10-Apr-2001 | Kremlyovskiy Dvoryec Syezdov (Kremlin Convention Centre) | Moskva (Russia) |
| Wed | 11-Apr-2001 | Kremlyovskiy Dvoryec Syezdov (Kremlin Convention Centre) | Moskva (Russia) |
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Reptile - North American Tour (1st leg) |
| Thu | 10-May-2001 | Reunion Arena | Dallas, Texas (United States) |
| Sat | 12-May-2001 | Alamodome | San Antonio, Texas (United States) |
| Mon | 14-May-2001 | Compaq Center | Houston, Texas (United States) |
| Tue | 15-May-2001 | New Orleans Arena | New Orleans, Louisiana (United States) |
| Fri | 18-May-2001 | National Car Rental Center | Sunrise, Florida (United States) |
| Sat | 19-May-2001 | Ice Palace Arena | Tampa, Florida (United States) |
| Mon | 21-May-2001 | Philips Arena | Atlanta, Georgia (United States) |
| Tue | 22-May-2001 | The Pyramid | Memphis, Tennessee (United States) |
| Thu | 24-May-2001 | Gaylord Entertainment Center | Nashville, Tennessee (United States) |
| Fri | 25-May-2001 | Charlotte Coliseum | Charlotte, North Carolina (United States) |
| Sun | 27-May-2001 | MCI Center | Washington D.C. (United States) |
| Wed | 30-May-2001 | Bryce Jordan Center | State College, Pennsylvania (United States) |
| Fri | 01-Jun-2001 | Nationwide Arena | Columbus, Ohio (United States) |
| Sat | 02-Jun-2001 | Conseco Fieldhouse | Indianapolis, Indiana (United States) |
| Mon | 04-Jun-2001 | Gund Arena | Cleveland, Ohio (United States) |
| Wed | 06-Jun-2001 | Palace of Auburn Hills | Auburn Hills, Michigan (United States) |
| Sat | 09-Jun-2001 | Air Canada Centre | Toronto, Ontario (Canada) |
| Mon | 11-Jun-2001 | Fleet Center | Boston, Massachusetts (United States) |
| Tue | 12-Jun-2001 | Fleet Center | Boston, Massachusetts (United States) |
| Fri | 15-Jun-2001 | HSBC Arena | Buffalo, New York (United States) |
| Sat | 16-Jun-2001 | Pepsi Arena | Albany, New York (United States) |
| Sun | 17-Jun-2001 | First Union Center | Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (United States) |
| Thu | 21-Jun-2001 | Madison Square Garden | New York City, New York (United States) |
| Fri | 22-Jun-2001 | Madison Square Garden | New York City, New York (United States) |
| Sat | 23-Jun-2001 | Madison Square Garden | New York City, New York (United States) |
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The Picnic Concert by the Chapel on the Lake - Charity show in aid of HASTE |
| Sat | 07-Jul-2001 | Wintershall Estate | Bramley, Surrey (England) |
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Reptile - North American Tour (2nd leg) |
| Tue | 17-Jul-2001 | Xcel Energy Center | St. Paul, Minnesota (United States) |
| Thu | 19-Jul-2001 | Fargodome | Fargo, North Dakota (United States) |
| Sat | 21-Jul-2001 | Bradley Centre | Milwaukee, Wisconsin (United States) |
| Sun | 22-Jul-2001 | Savvis Center | St. Louis, Missouri (United States) |
| Tue | 24-Jul-2001 | United Center | Chicago, Illinois (United States) |
| Wed | 25-Jul-2001 | United Center | Chicago, Illinois (United States) |
| Fri | 27-Jul-2001 | Mark of the Quad Cities | Moline, Illinois (United States) |
| Sat | 28-Jul-2001 | Kemper Arena | Kansas City, Missouri (United States) |
| Mon | 30-Jul-2001 | Pepsi Center | Denver, Colorado (United States) |
| Wed | 01-Aug-2001 | Delta Center | Salt Lake City, Utah (United States) |
| Thu | 02-Aug-2001 | Idaho Center | Nampa, Idaho (United States) |
| Sat | 04-Aug-2001 | Seattle Center, KeyArena | Seattle, Washington (United States) |
| Sun | 05-Aug-2001 | General Motors Place | Vancouver, British Columbia (Canada) |
| Tue | 07-Aug-2001 | Rose Garden Arena | Portland, Oregon (United States) |
| Fri | 10-Aug-2001 | ARCO Arena | Sacramento, California (United States) |
| Sat | 11-Aug-2001 | Oakland Arena | Oakland, California (United States) |
| Mon | 13-Aug-2001 | Thomas & Mack Center | Las Vegas, Nevada (United States) |
| Wed | 15-Aug-2001 | America West Arena | Phoenix, Arizona (United States) |
| Fri | 17-Aug-2001 | Staples Center | Los Angeles, California (United States) |
| Sat | 18-Aug-2001 | Staples Center | Los Angeles, California (United States) |
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Reptile - South American Tour |
| Thu | 04-Oct-2001 | Estadio Nacional | Santiago (Chile) |
| Sat | 06-Oct-2001 | Estadio River Plate | Buenos Aires (Argentina) |
| Mon | 08-Oct-2001 | Cilindro Municipal | Montevideo (Uruguay) |
| Wed | 10-Oct-2001 | Estádio Olímpico | Porto Alegre (Brazil) |
| Thu | 11-Oct-2001 | Estádio do Pacaembu | São Paulo (Brazil) |
| Sat | 13-Oct-2001 | Praça da Apoteose | Rio de Janeiro (Brazil) |
| Tue | 16-Oct-2001 | Estacionamiento del Poliedro | Caracas (Venezuela) |
| Fri | 19-Oct-2001 | Foro Sol | Ciudad de México (Mexico) |
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"The Concert For New York City" Benefit |
| Sat | 20-Oct-2001 | Madison Square Garden | New York City, New York (United States) |
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Reptile - Japanese Tour |
| Mon | 19-Nov-2001 | Osaka Jo Hall (Castle Hall) | Osaka (Japan) |
| Wed | 21-Nov-2001 | Osaka Jo Hall (Castle Hall) | Osaka (Japan) |
| Thu | 22-Nov-2001 | Osaka Jo Hall (Castle Hall) | Osaka (Japan) |
| Sat | 24-Nov-2001 | Aichiken Taiikukan | Nagoya (Japan) |
| Mon | 26-Nov-2001 | Marine Messe | Fukuoka (Japan) |
| Wed | 28-Nov-2001 | Budokan | Tokyo (Japan) |
| Thu | 29-Nov-2001 | Budokan | Tokyo (Japan) |
| Fri | 30-Nov-2001 | Budokan | Tokyo (Japan) |
| Mon | 03-Dec-2001 | Budokan | Tokyo (Japan) |
| Tue | 04-Dec-2001 | Budokan | Tokyo (Japan) |
| Wed | 05-Dec-2001 | Budokan | Tokyo (Japan) |
| Sat | 08-Dec-2001 | Grande 21 | Sendai (Japan) |
| Mon | 10-Dec-2001 | Budokan | Tokyo (Japan) |
| Tue | 11-Dec-2001 | Budokan | Tokyo (Japan) |
| Fri | 14-Dec-2001 | Kanagawa (Yokohama Arena) | Yokohama (Japan) |
| Sat | 15-Dec-2001 | Kanagawa (Yokohama Arena) | Yokohama (Japan) |
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New Year's Eve Dance |
| Mon | 31-Dec-2001 | Woking Leisure Centre | Woking, Surrey (England) |
