Tell the Truth
The band's first single, soon withdrawn and remade at a slower pace in Miami.
Derek & The Dominos, from Layla and Other Assorted Love Songs (1970)
- Written by
- Eric Clapton, Bobby Whitlock
- Released
- 1970
- Length
- 6:45
- Album
- Layla and Other Assorted Love Songs
"Tell the Truth" was cut first on 18 June 1970 at the Beatles' Apple Studio in London, with Phil Spector producing and George Harrison on guitar. That version was upbeat. Atco released it in September 1970 backed with "Roll It Over", but the band felt Spector's Wall of Sound did not suit them and had it withdrawn. It was part of their set on the August 1970 British tour.
At Criteria on 28 August, with Allman playing slide, the song was recorded again as a long, slow jam, and the vocal version on the album keeps that slower pace. Both vocal versions were later collected on The History of Eric Clapton (1972). Live versions from the Fillmore East appear on both In Concert and Live at the Fillmore, taken from different sets.
More songs by Derek & The Dominos
Layla, Bell Bottom Blues, Key to the Highway, Little Wing, Have You Ever Loved a Woman
Sources
- Derek and the Dominos, Wikipedia
- Layla and Other Assorted Love Songs, Wikipedia
- In Concert (Derek and the Dominos album), Wikipedia
- Bobby Whitlock obituary, The Guardian (2025-08-13)