366Art | Eric Clapton

Eric Clapton was born on March 30, 1945, in Ripley, Surrey, England. He began playing guitar at a young age and quickly developed a passion for blues music. In the early 1960s, he played in various bands, including Yardbirds and John Mayall & the Bluesbreakers, with the highlight being the album  Bluesbreakers With Eric Clapton. He already had the reputation of being one of the best guitarists in the United Kingdom.

One of Clapton's most iconic periods was his time with the supergroup Cream, along with Jack Bruce and Ginger Baker. Cream is considered one of the first true supergroups and produced classic songs such as White Room, Sunshine of Your Love, and Crossroads. After Cream, Clapton formed the band Blind Faith with Steve Winwood, releasing the famous single Presence Of The Lord' and then briefly joined Derek & the Dominos where he wrote the legendary song Layla  Clapton has also had an extensive solo career with numerous hits, including Tears in Heaven, Lay Down Sally, Wonderful Tonight, en I Shot the Sheriff. 

In 1979, he married Patti Boyd, the ex-wife of George Harrison. The two divorced in 1988, followed by some tough years. Clapton struggled with drug and alcohol addiction, and many friends from the music industry tried to help him out of this haze. In 1991, Clapton faced another huge blow when his 4-year-old son Conor died from a fall out of an open window. The touching song Tears in Heaven reflects this sorrow. The difficult years left a mark on Clapton's style of playing the guitar and compositions; he became somewhat quieter.

In 1994, Clapton had a remarkable concert during MTV’s Unplugged, which gained him a new generation of fans. For the Unplugged album, he received six Grammy Awards. In 1996, he had another hit with Change The World, the soundtrack of the film Phenomenon. After this, several studio albums were released: Reptile, Me and Mr. Johnson (a musical tribute to blues singer/guitarist Robert Johnson), Back Home, The Road to Escondido and the album Clapton. In 2013, his 19th studio album titled  Old Sock was released. Some good acquaintances of Clapton worked on this album, such as Steve Winwood, JJ Cale, and Paul McCartney.

Eric Clapton remains an influential and respected figure in the music world, with a career spanning decades and a lasting impact on generations of musicians and fans. The expression "Clapton is God" is a famous graffiti that appeared in London in the 1960s. It was a tribute to Eric Clapton and illustrates the enormous admiration many people had (and still have) for his talent as a guitarist. At the time, it was a symbol of worship of Clapton as a musical legend and is still often associated with his status as one of the greatest guitarists of all time.