Post by mccoyblues on Mar 30, 2010 8:49:12 GMT -5
Eric Clapton tuns 65 today. March 30, 2010.
a brief early history. (from wiki)
Clapton was born on March 30, 1945 in Ripley, Surrey, England, the son of 16-year-old Patricia Molly Clapton and Edward Walter Fryer, a 24-year-old soldier from Montreal, Quebec. Fryer went off to war prior to Clapton's birth and then returned to Canada. Clapton grew up with his grandmother, Rose, and her
second husband Jack, believing they were his parents and that his mother was his older sister. Years later, his mother married another Canadian soldier, moved to Canada and left young Eric with his grandparents in distant Surrey.
Clapton received an acoustic guitar for his 13th birthday but found learning the steel-stringed instrument very difficult and nearly gave up. Despite his frustrations, he was influenced by the blues from an early age and practised long hours to learn chords and copy the music of blues artists that he listened
to.
After leaving school in 1961, Clapton studied at the Kingston College of Art but was dismissed at the end of the academic year because his focus remained on music rather than art. In October 1963, Clapton joined The Yardbirds, a blues-influenced rock and roll band, and stayed with them until March 1965.
In March 1965, just as Clapton left the band, the Yardbirds had their first major hit, "For Your Love", on which Clapton played guitar. Still obstinately dedicated to blues music, Clapton was strongly offended by the Yardbirds' new pop-oriented direction, partly because, "For Your Love", had been written by pop songwriter-for-hire Graham Gouldman, who had also written hits for teen pop outfit Herman's Hermits and harmony pop band The Hollies. Clapton recommended fellow guitarist Jimmy Page as his replacement but Page was at that time unwilling to relinquish his lucrative career as a freelance studio musician, so Page in turn recommended Clapton's successor Jeff Beck
Clapton joined John Mayall & the Bluesbreakers, in April 1965, only to quit a few months later. Clapton left the Bluesbreakers, replaced by Peter Green (Fleetwood Mac) and went on to form Cream. Cream's first gig was an unofficial performance at the Twisted Wheel in Manchester on 29 July 1966 before their full debut two nights later at the National Jazz and Blues Festival in Windsor.
a brief early history. (from wiki)
Clapton was born on March 30, 1945 in Ripley, Surrey, England, the son of 16-year-old Patricia Molly Clapton and Edward Walter Fryer, a 24-year-old soldier from Montreal, Quebec. Fryer went off to war prior to Clapton's birth and then returned to Canada. Clapton grew up with his grandmother, Rose, and her
second husband Jack, believing they were his parents and that his mother was his older sister. Years later, his mother married another Canadian soldier, moved to Canada and left young Eric with his grandparents in distant Surrey.
Clapton received an acoustic guitar for his 13th birthday but found learning the steel-stringed instrument very difficult and nearly gave up. Despite his frustrations, he was influenced by the blues from an early age and practised long hours to learn chords and copy the music of blues artists that he listened
to.
After leaving school in 1961, Clapton studied at the Kingston College of Art but was dismissed at the end of the academic year because his focus remained on music rather than art. In October 1963, Clapton joined The Yardbirds, a blues-influenced rock and roll band, and stayed with them until March 1965.
In March 1965, just as Clapton left the band, the Yardbirds had their first major hit, "For Your Love", on which Clapton played guitar. Still obstinately dedicated to blues music, Clapton was strongly offended by the Yardbirds' new pop-oriented direction, partly because, "For Your Love", had been written by pop songwriter-for-hire Graham Gouldman, who had also written hits for teen pop outfit Herman's Hermits and harmony pop band The Hollies. Clapton recommended fellow guitarist Jimmy Page as his replacement but Page was at that time unwilling to relinquish his lucrative career as a freelance studio musician, so Page in turn recommended Clapton's successor Jeff Beck
Clapton joined John Mayall & the Bluesbreakers, in April 1965, only to quit a few months later. Clapton left the Bluesbreakers, replaced by Peter Green (Fleetwood Mac) and went on to form Cream. Cream's first gig was an unofficial performance at the Twisted Wheel in Manchester on 29 July 1966 before their full debut two nights later at the National Jazz and Blues Festival in Windsor.