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ERIC CLAPTON
Eric Clapton Official Website
Would you know my name
If I saw you in heaven?
Would it be the same
If I saw you in heaven?
- Eric Clapton, "Tears In Heaven"
Eric Clapton Official Website
Would you know my name
If I saw you in heaven?
Would it be the same
If I saw you in heaven?
- Eric Clapton, "Tears In Heaven"
Eric Clapton Comprehensive Discography
Eric Clapton Youtube Channel
Eric Clapton is a guitarist from Ripley, Surrey, who was ranked as the 4th greatest guitarist of all time by magazine Rolling Stone, behind only B.B King, Duane Allman and Jimi Hendrix. Clapton rose to fame as a member of numerous bands, including The Yardbirds, Cream and Derek and the Dominos, and a broad, encompassing solo career has helped solidify Clapton as one of rock 'n roll's greats, despite numerous fights with alcohol and heroin addiction.
Eric Clapton was raised by his grandparents in Ripley, covered in a shroud of secrecy due to his status as a "bastard", a status which made Clapton both strive to make something of himself, and also withdraw into himself.
Growing up a fan of bluesmen such as Muddy Waters and Robert Johnson, Eric Clapton taught himself the guitar and landed himself a gig in The Yardbirds. Originally playing blues-infected songs, the Yardbirds eventually broke through with a more poppy single, For Your Love.
Clapton, however, soon grew disillusioned with the mainstream path the Yardbirds were taking, and left the band. He was replaced by Jeff Beck.
Clapton moved on to become the guitarist for the Bluesbreakers, the backing band for prominent British bluesman John Mayall. The move proved a godsend for both Mayall and Clapton as the ensuing album, Bluesbreakers with Eric Clapton, remains the most popular album in Mayall's catalouge, and catapulted Clapton into a lucrative career.
What resulted from Clapton's tenure in the Bluesbreakers was a meeting with drummer Ginger Baker. Eventually, Clapton and Baker, along with bassist Jack Bruce, formed what was called Britain's first "Supergroup" - Cream. Clapton originally wanted another guitarist in the band, nominating Traffic's Steve Winwood, but in the end they went with the 3 of them, creating a power trio format that inspired, among others, the Jimi Hendrix Experience.
Eventually, Cream could no longer work with each other due to the egos of the band members, and the ongoing feud between Baker and Bruce, and they disbanded.
Eric Clapton began another supergroup with Baker and Steve Winwood, called Blind Faith. The band was very short lived, and Clapton found himself bouncing between bands.
Clapton went and toured as a member of Delaney & Bonnie, joined John Lennon and Yoko Ono in Toronto as a member of the Plastic Ono Band, and worked with George Harrison on his album, All Things Must Pass, as well as creating his first solo album, Eric Clapton
Following the success of the album and his various previous projects, the reclusive Clapton found himself in an unwanted spotlight. Hoping to let his music do the talking, he secretly formed a group with Jim Gordon, Carl Radle, Bobby Whitlock and, briefly, Duane Allman, entitled Derek and the Dominos.
Only one album was produced by the Dominos, entitled Layla and Other Assorted Love Songs, most of which was made up of tracks written about George Harrison's wife, Pattie Boyd, such as "Layla" and "Bell Bottom Blues".
The album was not initially successful, and Clapton went down a dark path to heroin addiction, fueled by the current flop of Layla, the lack of response he was getting from Patty, the weight of fame, and the death of his good friend Jimi Hendrix.
Aside from a brief appearance at George Harrison's Concert For Bangladesh alongside Harrison, Ringo Starr, Leon Russell, Billy Preston, Bob Dylan and others, Clapton effectively disappeared from the music scene.
Eventually, with help from Harrison, Ginger Baker and Pete Townshend among others, Clapton kicked the heroin addiction and returned to the music scene, with albums throughout the 70's and 80's such as 461 Ocean Boulevard, Slowhand and Journeyman. Unfortunately, to replace his heroin addiction, Clapton became an alcoholic, and continued his cocaine habits.
After his first rehab for alcohol, Clapton recorded Money and Cigarettes, describing the album title as "All I've got left". However, he couldn't remain committed to staying sober.
After his second stint of rehab, Clapton found 2 things that helped him stay sober: Religion, and a family. His first son, Conor Clapton, was born.
Eric Clapton finally cleaned himself up for his son, and was eventually deemed responsible enough to be left alone with his son, who he took to the circus. It was the first time father and son had bonded alone, and it would turn out to be the last.
The day after the circus trip, on the 20th March, 1991, Conor Clapton, aged 4, fell out of a 53rd storey New York apartment window while with his mother.
Clapton's music immediately became more sombre, with his albums following the incident including Unplugged (featuring the now famous "Tears In Heaven"), blues album From the Cradle and what Clapton describes as "The saddest album I could think of", Pilgrim.
Since the turn of the century, Clapton has remarried, had 3 children, and worked with the likes of B.B. King, J.J. Cale, Jeff Beck, Steve Winwood and Derek Trucks, as well as releasing albums such as Reptile, Me and Mr. Johnson, Back Home and Clapton.
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