Ok Sean I have a little different take on this than the other guys. We all agree that you have a good ear and a lot of technique. I like many of the songs you have posted in the past. This one is not my favorite and I am a big die-hard Clapton fan.
There are essentially three ways to cover someone else's music:
1. You can work it up verbatim and get it really close to the original.
2. You can work it up loosely and get it in the neighborhood without bringing any new fire into the song.
3. You can work it up with a whole new groove and really create something by putting your personal stamp on it.
Most musicians do a little of each. This version of Badge sounds a lot like option #2. (not true to the original track, no new fire or gripping inspiration, just jamming along somewhere in the neighborhood of the song). Nothing wrong with jamming along, it just doesn't really move an audience.
What does move an audience? A lot of players think that to do a song verbatim is the goal. A lot of people like to hear songs very close to the original track. I don't. I think it's a trap, it's boring, and I am guilty of doing it myself a lot. I think the best covers are always option #3. Where the player takes a basic song framework and pours their own fresh groove, inspiration, and interpretation on it. Really epic covers don't come from the local bar band hitting every note. Epic covers are loaded with fresh groove and inspiration like when Hendrix covered Dylan, Santana covered Peter Green, EVH covered Roy Orbison, Rush covered Eddie Cochran, SRV covered Hendrix, Clapton covered Robert Johnson, and on and on.
"Take what you need and make it your own" is the old bluesman philosophy and it still rings true today. Cover songs that really move an audience are familiar songs with fresh, interesting and new ideas that take a song through a whole new door.
Cajundaddy
