Eric Patrick Clapton, nicknamed Slowhand, is a Grammy Award-winning English rock guitarist, singer, songwriter and composer. He is one of the most successful musicians of the 20th and 21st centuries, garnering an unprecedented three inductions into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame (The Yardbirds, Cream, and solo). Often viewed by critics and fans alike as one of the greatest guitarists of all time, Clapton was ranked fourth in Rolling Stone Magazine’s list of the “100 Greatest Guitarists of All Time” and #53 on their list of the Immortals: 100 Greatest Artists of All Time.
Although Clapton’s musical style has varied throughout his career, it has always remained rooted in the blues. Clapton is credited as an innovator in several phases of his career, which have included blues-rock (with John Mayall & the Bluesbreakers and The Yardbirds) and psychedelic rock (with Cream). Clapton has also achieved great chart success in genres ranging from Delta blues (Me and Mr. Johnson) to pop (”Change the World”) and reggae (Bob Marley’s “I Shot the Sheriff”). Clapton also achieved fame with Derek and the Dominos through the hit song “Layla”.
Tears in Heaven
“Tears in Heaven” is a ballad written by Eric Clapton and Will Jennings about the former’s pain he felt following the 1991 death of his four-year-old son, Conor, who fell from a 53rd-story window in his mother’s New York City condominium. By all accounts, the death was simply a tragic accident, and Clapton was distraught for months afterwards.
Clapton stopped playing it in 2004, as well as the song “My Father’s Eyes.”
“I didn’t feel the loss anymore, which is so much a part of performing those songs. I really have to connect with the feelings that were there when I wrote them. They’re kind of gone and I really don’t want them to come back, particularly. My life is different now. They probably just need a rest and maybe I’ll introduce them for a much more detached point of view.”
Would you know my name
If I saw you in heaven?
Would it be the same
If I saw you in heaven?I must be strong
And carry on,
‘Cause I know I don’t belong
Here in heaven.Would you hold my hand
If I saw you in heaven?
Would you help me stand
If I saw you in heaven?I’ll find my way
Through night and day,
‘Cause I know I just can’t stay
Here in heaven.Time can bring you down,
Time can bend your knees.
Time can break your heart,
Have you begging please, begging please.Beyond the door,
There’s peace I’m sure,
And I know there’ll be no more
Tears in heaven.Would you know my name
If I saw you in heaven?
Would it be the same
If I saw you in heaven?I must be strong
And carry on,
‘Cause I know I don’t belong
Here in heaven.
Cocaine
The most commonly known song titled “Cocaine” was written and recorded by J.J. Cale in 1975. It was famously covered by Eric Clapton. There are many other songs with the same or similar titles, such as Davy Graham’s “Cocaine” and Blind Gary Davis’ “Coco Blues”, causing some confusion as to who wrote it. Despite these mix-ups, full writing credit for the song “Cocaine” covered by Clapton is given to J.J. Cale.
Contrary to popular belief, “Cocaine” is an anti-drug song, according to Eric Clapton:
“It’s no good to write a deliberate anti-drug song and hope that it will catch. Because the general thing is that people will be upset by that. It would disturb them to have someone else shoving something down their throat. So the best thing to do is offer something that seems ambiguous–that on study or on reflection actually can be seen to be ‘anti’–which the song “Cocaine” is actually an anti-cocaine song. If you study it or look at it with a little bit of thought… from a distance… or as it goes by… it just sounds like a song about cocaine. But in actual fact, it is quite cleverly anti-cocaine.”
Over the years, Clapton has added the lyrics ‘that dirty cocaine’ in live shows to underline the anti-drug message of the song. Clapton was a heavy heroin user in the early ’70s (upon his return to England after recording Layla and Other Assorted Love Songs, he was spending Ł1500 per week), and got off it in 1974. He eventually founded the Crossroads Centre in Antigua to help others who are fighting addiction.
If you wanna hang out
You’ve gotta take her out
Cocaine
If you wanna get down
Down on the ground
CocaineShe don’t lie
She don’t lie
She don’t lie
COCAINEIf you got bad news
You wanna kick them blues
Cocaine
When your day is done
And you wanna run
CocaineShe don’t lie
She don’t lie
She don’t lie
COCAINEIf your thing is gone
And you wanna ride on
Cocaine
Don’t forget this fact
You can’t get it back
CocaineShe don’t lie
She don’t lie
She don’t lie
COCAINEShe don’t lie
She don’t lie
She don’t lie
COCAINE
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