Eric Clapton Biography

Eric Patrick Clapp was born in Ripley, Surrey, England, on the 30th of March, 1945. Raised by his grandparents after his mother left young Eric under their care (he was born out of wedlock), Clapton believed his grandparents were his parents until he learned the truth at the age of 9.

Already passionate about R&B and the Blues, Clapton was forever influenced by music after seeing Jerry Lee Lewis perform on television. He attended the Kingston College of Art, but was expelled for playing the guitar in class. Fate took its course, and turned a would-be artist into a future musician. A 17-year-old Clapton began working in manual labor while playing the electric guitar (his grandparents bought one for him).

Clapton would imitate the great Blues' guitarists, and was on his way to becoming a guitar legend himself after he joined the Roosters, a local R&B group. After a short 8 months with the band, Clapton left with one of his bandmates, Tom McGuinness, to join Casey Jones and the Engineers. Then, in 1963, Clapton was recruited by the Yardbirds to replace their guitarist, Tony Topham.

Earning the nickname "Slowhand" to describe his fascinating guitar-playing skills, Clapton rose to fame as a member of the group which went on to include guitar greats, Jimmy Page, Jeff Beck, and Clapton. The success of the band's first two albums, Five Live Yardbirds and For Your Love was not enough to keep Clapton, who flew from the yardbird coop in 1965 because he felt they were straying more towards commercial pop, rather than their bluesy roots.

Clapton then continued his rounds as a member of John Mayell's Bluesbreakers, and it didn't take long before he became the power behind the group -- his fans yelling, "Clapton is God" can attest to the fact. But it was in 1966 that Clapton finally formed his own group, Cream, that became one of the greatest bands of the '60s, if not music history. After the success of albums such as Fresh Cream and Wheels of Fire, the trio finally saw its end in 1968 thanks to some hotheaded egos and some drug dabbling.

Then in 1969 -- the same year the Goodbye album was released -- Clapton formed the "supergroup" Blind Faith, along with Rick Grech and Steve Winwood. The band was a huge success, which eventually led to its demise as the members parted ways after several months. In the meantime, Clapton released a debut solo album that was a disappointment, but bounced back with the album's collaborators -- Carl Radle, Bobby Whitlock and Jim Gordon -- to form Derek and the Dominos.

The Dominos released the successful Layla and Other Assorted Love Songs, which, of course, featured the title track, Layla, based on Clapton's infatuation with Patty Harrison, the wife of friend and Beatle, George Harrison. And yet another one of Clapton's bands bit the dust after only one album. At this point, the emotionally and professionally distraught guitarist was in the midst of a heroin addiction. His addiction led him to the state of even pawning his guitars in order to maintain his bad habit.

Finally, The Who's Pete Townshend encouraged Clapton to get rid of the addiction, and after a 2-year hiatus on Clapton's part, Townshend organized the Eric Clapton At the Rainbow concert in support if his friend. This led to Clapton's heroin rehabilitation, which even involved an electro-acupuncture procedure. Clapton was back with an appearance in the film adaptation of Townshend's Tommy and several albums, including 461 Ocean Boulevard, There's One In Every Crowd and E.C. Was Here, spawning the hit singles, "I Shot The Sheriff" and "Swing Low, Sweet Chariot".

He even succeeded to bounce back and win over a whole new slew of fans, with the help of the albums Slowhand and Backless, and the singles "Cocaine" and "Wonderful Tonight". And although the '70s were proving to be more positive for Clapton -- he even won the heart of Patty Harrison and married her in 1979 -- he jumped back onto the addiction bandwagon, only this time with alcohol.

Clapton released Just One Night in 1980, which was a throwback to the guitar-playing skills that the god was once loved for (his devoted fans were disappointed by his efforts in the '70s, which featured more emphasis on vocals rather than guitar-playing). In 1981, his drinking habits led him to be hospitalized for a time, but again he bounced back with a string of successful albums in the 1980s, including 1983's Money and Cigarettes, 1985's Behind the Sun, 1986's August, and 1989's Journeyman.

Throughout his professional and personal highs and lows, the 1988 release of Crossroads made it clear that Clapton had reached the pinnacle of success; the four-CD compilation was named Best Historical Album and won the award for Best Linear Notes at the Grammys.

Although the '90s were marked with its highs -- 24 nights of shows at London's Royal Albert Hall in 1991 and a Live Aid appearance -- they were also marred with tragic lows. In late 1990, guitarist Stevie Ray Vaughan and road crew members of Clapton's, Colin Smythe and Nigel Browne, were killed in a helicopter crash, and his son Conor (who he shared with Lori Del Santo; Clapton and Patti had divorced in 1988) fell to his death from the 49th floor of a high-rise Manhattan apartment later that year.

In 1992, Clapton won the Grammy for the song, "Tears in Heaven", the musician's tribute to his late son. The multi-Grammy winning live album, Unplugged went on to sell 10 million copies by 1996, making it one of Clapton's most successful albums. Then in 1994, Clapton returned to his electric blues roots with the album, From the Cradle, and followed it up with 1998's Pilgrim.

Already having collaborated with greats such as Phil Collins, Joe Cocker, Bob Dylan, and Aretha Franklin, Clapton recorded with contemporary musician Babyface for the soundtrack to the film, Phenomenon. The song, "Change The World" earned Grammys for Record of the Year and Best Make Pop Vocal Performance in 1997.

Already inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame for his work with the Yardbirds and Cream, Clapton doesn't stop giving fans what they want: he released Blues in 1999, and Riding With the King and Eric Clapton & Friends Live in 2000.

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ERIC CLAPTON BIOGRAPHY