Crossroad Blues

Eric Clapton

Eric Clapp was born in 1945 and was brought up by his grandparents in Surrey who bought him his first guitar in 1959.  After playing guitar with The Roosters and Casey Jones and The Engineers, Eric Clapton joined The Yardbirds in October 1963.

The Yardbirds were the next resident band after the Rolling Stones at the Crawdaddy Club.  During his time with The Yardbirds, Clapton earned the nickname “Slowhand”.  As The Yardbirds became more popular, their style of music moved away from blues and towards mainstream pop music.  Clapton became disillusioned with the bands direction, and after touring with Sonny Boy Williamson, left The Yardbards.

John Mayall offered Clapton the role of guitarist in The Bluesbreakers in 1965.  The classic blues album Bluesbreakers was recorded in 1966.  Also known as the Beano album, as Eric Clapton is reading a copy of he Beano on the cover, this album showed the world that white English boys could play the blues!  Clapton had well and truly arrived!

Clapton met bass player Jack Bruce and drummer Ginger Baker, and the three of them decided to form a group together.  Cream was the first supergroup.  Ginger Baker and Jack Bruce didn’t really get on, but played well together.  Cream were an outstanding live act, and were very successful commercially. As well as reworking blues standards, Cream wrote songs that have become classics, including Sunshine Of Your Love, and White Room.  The most well known Cream song has to be Robert Johnson’s Crossroad Blues.  Live, this was an amazing sight and sound, and gave Eric the chance to show off his guitar playing.

By 1968, Eric had grown tired of Cream, and formed Blind Faith, after playing the solo on The Beatles’ song While My Guitar Gently Weeps. After meeting Delaney and Bonnie in America, he went on the road with them, and the line up featured George Harrison and Dave Mason.Eric recorded many blues songs with the Delaney and Bonnie group of musicians, as well as working with George Harrison and John Lennon. 

1970 saw Eric record with Duane Allman as part of Derek and the Dominos.  The album Layla and Other Assorted Love Songs saw more commercial success.  By this time Eric had a severe heroin habit, and was selling guitars to feed his drugs habit.  The Who’s Pete Townsend helped Eric kick heroin, and enjoy his guitar playing again. 

By late 1973, Eric’s career had taken off with a string of successful albums and world tours.  Despite a severe alcohol problem, Eric continued to be a success.  During this period, the blues were less prevalent than rock and pop in Eric’s music. 

In 1991, Eric played a record 24 nights at the Royal Albert Hall in London, which included some blues only nights, featuring Buddy Guy, Albert Collins, Robert Cray, Jimmie Vaughan and Jimmie Johnson.  The 1992 MTV Unplugged album was a return to the blues, and features classic versions of Layla, Malted Milk, and Walkin’ Blues.  Since then, albums such as From The Cradle, Riding With The King (with BB King) and the recent Me and Mr Johnson, show that Clapton still loves the blues.

Eric Clapton is still a very popular musician, and still very influential.  Almost everyone who has picked up a guitar has learnt the famous Layla riff, or tried to play Sunshine Of Your Love. 

In fact it is because of Eric Clapton that the Gibson Les Paul is still in production today.  Eric Clapton bought a lot of them whilst in America, after Gibson had stopped making them.  After a break of a few years, Gibson reintroduced the Les Paul, and the rest is history!  Eric Clapton’s famous Fender Stratocaster nicknamed Blackie, became the most expensive guitar ever, when it was sold in 1994 for $959 500 to raise funds for his Antiguan Crossroads drugs rehabilitation centre.

There is an Eric Clapton Fender Stratocaster available which will help you create those signature sounds. A recently introduced Eric Clapton "Crossroads" effects pedal will also recreate the famous tones used on the Beano album and many more.