Eric Clapton’s Signature Song “Layla”

Eric Clapton gives us one of the 1970s best classic hits “Layla.”

Eric Patrick Clapton professionally known as Eric Clapton is one of the popular music artists in the ’60s up to the present. He has been referred to as one of the most important and influential guitarists of all time. With this, Eric became the only three-time inductee of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, once as a solo artist and two as a member of the Yardbirds and the Cream.

Eric’s best-known songs are “Layla” and “Crossroads.” Upon the death of his son, Eric released his song “Tears in Heaven” where he expressed the pain he felt after he lost his child.

Clapton’s musical career has bagged numerous major awards including Grammy Awards and Lifetime Achievement Award. He is also considered as one of the best-selling musicians of all time having sold more than 100 million records worldwide. Today, let us look back on one of his best songs “Layla.”

“Layla”

It is a ballad love song penned by Eric Clapton and Jim Gordon. This track was popularized by the Blues-rock band Derek and the Dominos in 1970. In addition, “Layla” was released on September 9, 1970, as a single from their album Layla and Other Assorted Love Songs.

“Layla” was inspired by a love story that originated in the 7th century in Arabia. Years later, the song came out as the basis of The Story of Layla and Majnun made by the Persian poet Nizami Ganjavi.

When Clapton read this poet, he was touched because it is about a story of a young man who fell in love with a beautiful young girl. However, the girl went crazy, so as a result, the man couldn’t marry her.

According to Clapton “Layla” is one of the difficult songs to perform live. He stated,

‘Layla’ is a difficult one, because it’s a difficult song to perform live. You have to have a good complement of musicians to get all of the ingredients going, but when you’ve got that. … It’s difficult to do as a quartet, for instance, because there are some parts you have to play and sing completely opposing lines, which is almost impossible to do. If you’ve got a big band, which I will have on the tour, then it will be easy to do something like ‘Layla’—and I’m very proud of it. I love to hear it.

He added,

It’s almost like it’s not me. It’s like I’m listening to someone that I really like. Derek and The Dominos was a band I really liked—and it’s almost like I wasn’t in that band. It’s just a band that I’m a fan of. Sometimes, my own music can be like that. When it’s served its purpose to being good music, I don’t associate myself with it any more. It’s like someone else. It’s easy to do those songs then.

Listen to Eric Clapton’s “Layla” below: