Eric Clapton
Latest about Eric Clapton

Pete Townshend says he doesn’t like being onstage, and would rather work alone
By Phil Weller published
The guitarist is still as creative as ever but is retreating further away from live shows and collaborative projects

Eric Clapton on the one guitarist who blew him away onstage
By Phil Weller published
The pair had become great friends, but when Slowhand stepped up for a guest spot, he got thrown for a loop

How a 20-year-old hot-shot guitarist convinced Eric Clapton to switch to Fender Strats
By Phil Weller published
Having made his name with the Gibson brand in the mid to late 1960s, Clapton made the dramatic switch in the ‘70s and hasn’t looked back since

Martin unveils its reissue of Eric Clapton’s 'Unplugged' acoustic — but his affinity for the brand began long before that seminal show
By Phil Weller published
The two new acoustics celebrate 30 years of collaboration between Martin and Clapton, but the luthier’s builds were shaping his career decades earlier

When Albert Lee received a Les Paul Custom from Eric Clapton, he had no idea how much history it held
By Phil Weller published
Clapton made the guitar famous, but it’s been played by a host of guitar icons and was featured on two of his vital classic rock albums

When George Harrison’s “Lucy” Les Paul was “kidnapped” in 1973, he went to extreme measures to get it back
By Phil Weller published
The cherry-finished Les Paul — dubbed Lucy — had been owned by several famous guitarists, including Eric Clapton, who gifted it to Harrison in 1968

Why Rory Gallagher rejected the chance to bring Cream back from the dead in 1968
By Phil Weller published
Clapton’s power trio imploded almost as quickly as it had arrived, but the band’s management didn’t want the party to end

Pete Townshend on how Jimi Hendrix led him to write ‘Tommy,’ the Who's 1969 breakthrough
By Matt Resnicoff published
“I realized that what I had was a bunch of gimmicks which he had come and taken away from me,” the Who guitarist told us. “I took refuge in my writing”
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