After leaving John Mayall’s Bluesbreakers, Eric jumped at drummer Ginger Baker’s offer to start a new band. Eric suggested bassist Jack Bruce to Baker, unaware of the animosity that existed between the two men from their days with the Graham Bond Organisation. Despite the animosity, the three joined to form CREAM.
EC: “[Cream] was a very arrogant kind of — we actually saw ourselves as this, as the cream of the crop, you know? We were the main musicians on the English rock scene. And said it and used it.” (From the 1998 CNN Larry King Live interview)
During its two-year life span, the band released four albums: Fresh Cream (1966), Disraeli Gears (1967), Wheels of Fire (1968), and Goodbye (1968). The ensemble sunk under the weight of the members’ personality conflicts and was crippled by the pressure of massive U.S. Tours. Because of the acrimonious break up, the three men did not play together again until their induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in January 1993. It was announced in December 2004 that Cream will reunite for four shows at London’s Royal Albert Hall in May 2005.
In December 1968, just weeks after Cream’s final performances at London’s Royal Albert Hall, Eric took part in the filming of the Rolling Stone’s film “Rock And Roll Circus”. He joined the one-off group, WINSTON LEGTHIGH AND THE DIRTY MAC, along with John Lennon, Keith Richards, and Mitch Mitchell (Jimi Hendrix Experience). The performance resulted in two tracks: a cover of The Beatles’ “Yer Blues” and an instrumental jam. The album and film remained unreleased until 1995. It is now available on DVD and CD.
Eric’s next band was BLIND FAITH, rock music’s first “supergroup.” The band evolved out of informal jamming at Eric’s home with Steve Winwood in February 1969. Winwood suggested adding Ginger Baker to the line-up. In March 1969, the lineup was complete when Rick Grech joined on bass. Blind Faith’s debut was at a free concert in London’s Hyde Park on 7 June 1969. Before the band jelled into a cohesive unit, a self-titled album was released and they set out on an extensive U.S. Tour.
To get away from the hype surrounding Blind Faith during their only U.S. Tour, Clapton started hanging out with the support act, DELANEY & BONNIE & FRIENDS. Husband and wife team, Delaney and Bonnie Bramlett fronted the band. Other “friends” included Rita Coolidge, Bobby Whitlock, Carl Radle and Jim Gordon. Blind Faith faded away after less than a year together.
When the Blind Faith tour ended, Eric headed to California with the Friends to work on their next album. Before returning home, he asked his manager to arrange a European Tour for them. Immediately upon his return to England, Eric was invited by John Lennon to become part of the Plastic Ono Band for a one-off charity concert in Toronto, Canada in September 1969. Meeting at the airport, the “band” rehearsed on the plane. The performance resulted in a live album, “Live Peace In Toronto”. Upon their return to England, the Plastic Ono Band went into the studio to record Lennon’s song “Cold Turkey”.
Eric toured Europe with Delaney and Bonnie, which resulted in a live album, “Delaney And Bonnie And Friends On Tour With Eric Clapton”. Their first gig was at London’s Royal Albert Hall. Impressed by what he had seen that evening, George Harrison asked Delaney Bramlett if he could sign on as a friend. Harrison played on all the remaining dates of the tour. After the tour, Clapton used the Friends and others, including Steven Stills, to record his first solo album, “Eric Clapton” (released in 1970). When the Bramletts started counting on his long-term participation, he left.
A few months later, three former members of the Friends contacted Eric in hope of forming a band. Eric was amenable, so Carl Radle, Bobby Whitlock, and Jim Gordon went to England and DEREK AND THE DOMINOS was born. At this time, Eric was much in demand as a session player at this time as well. Along with his new bandmates, they would back George Harrison on his classic three-album set “All Things Must Pass”.
Over the years, Eric has told two different stories on how Derek And The Dominos got its name. The most widely known story is that Eric assumed the identity of “Derek” in an attempt at anonymity. However, in an interview which appeared in the book, “Conversations With Eric Clapton” (1976), he told a different story.
EC: “Tony Ashton (of Ashton Gardner & Dyke) suggested it because he always used to call me Del and he wanted to call it Del and The Dominos…so it became Derek and The Dominos. It was last minute, in the dressing room before we went on stage at The Lyceum. We didn’t have a name up to that point. You don’t think of that when you’re forming a group. In fact, when someone suggests to you that you get a band title, that’s when you really start to worry about whether you should have a band at all, because you realize so much hinges on the name of the group… that all you need to do is give it a bad name and you’ve blown the whole gig no matter what the music’s like.” Clapton goes on to say that it wasn’t a conscious attempt at anonymity. “…We presumed that everyone would know what it was all about. That it would be an open joke.”
After a short UK Tour in August 1970, The Dominos flew to Miami, Florida’s Criteria Studios to record their first album. Duane Allman, of the Allman Brothers Band, joined them in the studio. The sessions resulted in the seminal rock album, “Layla And Other Assorted Love Songs”. The band toured Europe and America. A live album was released from the band’s 1970 performances at the Fillmore East in New York City. The band disintegrated in April 1971 during attempts to record a second studio album. The commercial failure of “Layla And Other Assorted Love Songs”, plus mounting personal and drug problems, led to Eric’s self-imposed seclusion between 1971 and mid-1973. Venturing out rarely, his only live performance of note was on 1 August 1971 at rock’s first large-scale charity concert — George Harrison’s Concert For Bangladesh. The concert was filmed and recorded for release.
The band lineups and the dates of Eric’s participation are as follows:
CREAM (July 1966-November 1968)
Eric Clapton (guitar / vocals), Jack Bruce (bass / piano / vocals), and Ginger Baker (drums / vocals). Producer Felix Pappalardi would occasionally join the band in the studio playing viola, mellotron, or piano. For more information, see the Cream web site: Those Were The Days
WINSTON LEGTHIGH AND THE DIRTY MAC (December 1968)
John Lennon (vocals / guitar), Mitch Mitchell (drums), Keith Richards (bass), Eric Clapton (guitar), Ivry Gitlis (violin), and Yoko Ono (vocals)
BLIND FAITH (February 1969 - January 1970)
Eric Clapton (guitar / vocals), Steve Winwood (vocals / keyboards), Ginger Baker (drums), and Rick Grech (bass)
DELANEY AND BONNIE AND FRIENDS (December 1969 - March 1970)
Delaney Bramlett (vocals / guitar), Bonnie Bramlett (vocals), Eric Clapton (lead guitar), Dave Mason (guitar), Bobby Whitlock (keyboards), Carl Radle (bass), Jim Gordon (drums), Jim Price (trumpet), Bobby Keys (sax), Tex Johnson (percussion), and Rita Coolidge (backing vocals). Note that Tex Johnson missed the second session for Clapton’s first solo album and that Dave Mason missed both sessions. The second session also featured Leon Russell (piano), Sonny Curtis (vocals), and Jerry Allison (vocals).
PLASTIC ONO BAND (13 September 1969 and studio session)
John Lennon (vocals / guitar), Eric Clapton (guitar), Klaus Voorman (bass), Alan White (drums), and Yoko Ono (vocals)
DEREK AND THE DOMINOS (May 1970 - April 1971)
Eric Clapton (guitar / vocals), Duane Allman (slide guitar), Carl Radle (bass), Jim Gordon (drums), and Bobby Whitlock (piano / vocals). Dave Mason (guitar) joined the band for their 14 June 1970 concert at the Lyceum in London.
THE CONCERT FOR BANGLADESH BAND (1 August 1971)
George Harrison (guitar / vocals), Eric Clapton (guitar), Ringo Starr (drums), Bob Dylan (guitar / vocals), Klaus Voorman (bass), Leon Russell (piano), Jim Keltner (drums), Billy Preston (organ), Jesse Ed Davis (guitar), Carl Radle (bass), The Memphis Horns (Jim Price, Jim Horn, Chuck Findley), Claudia Linnear (backing vocals), Jackie Kelso (backing vocals), Dolores Hall (backing vocals), and Badfinger (backing vocals)
