A happy Listening Room birthday to Hall of Famer Eric Clapton, who turned 65 today.
Say what you will about the man, but he remains one of the premier electric blues guitar players of the modern era, and gets credit for helping expand the blues fan base.
So, happy birthday to Mr. Clapton.
Clapton was part of the British blues explosion of the 1960s, along with Jimmy Page, Jeff Beck and a host of others. He remains probably the most recognizable name from the era.
But think of the man’s complete resume. He founded the first real supergroup in Cream, was part of any number of classic rock bands, including Blind Faith and Derek & the Dominoes, and produced what I still consider one of the greatest rock albums of all time – Layla and Other Love Songs, the sole release from Derek & the Dominoes.
He played with everyone from Duane Allman to Steve Winwood, has jammed with absolutely everyone in the business, and somehow managed to crank out hit songs over more than four decades.
Clapton is one of those guys that we’ve come to take for granted, and maybe the new generation of music fans miss the impact that guys of Clapton’s generation had on today’s music.
So give him his day. Happy birthday Eric.
1 Comment
All of the things that you mentioned in this post are so true about one of the best guitar players to ever grace the stage, but we can’t also forget to mention the Crossroads festival Clapton hosts that includes a plethora of the best guitar players in the world. Music fans and guitarists are fortunate to have an influence like Clapton because he is so talented and it seems like everything he touches turns to gold.