How One of The Greatest Rock Songs of All Time Came to Be
There are many songs that have been inspired by politics, education, and many other things. However, it is by no coincidence that some songs really stand out and have massive impact on the masses.
This has got to be one of the prime examples. Layla by Clapton's short-lived blues-rock band Derek and the Dominoes from their one and only record Layla and Other Assorted Love Songs (1970).
A word about the Band:
Derek and the Dominoes began as Delaney Bonney & Friends, a band featuring Clapton and his former Blind Faith veteran Steve Winwood as well as Dave Mason who contributed to Derek and the Dominoes' early recordings and shows, Mason alongside Winwood both being of Traffic fame. Three of the members of the American soul band, drummer Jim Gordon, bass player Carl Radle, and keyboardist/additional vocalist Bobby Whitlock, backed Clapton on his self-titled debut solo album released 1970. Radle and Gordon also worked with Clapton off and on on some of his records in the 70s including 1977's Slowhand.
Now there was NEVER a Derek in the band. The band was going to be called Eric Clapton and Friends, though Geroge Harrison, Clapton's best friend at the time, suggested Del and the Dominoes (after Delaney). Ultimately, the name was taken before a 1970 benefit concert in Liceyum that the band had already picked that name unbeknownst to many. While Clapton liked the name being the sole Brit, the other three members, being American, were afraid of being mistaken for a Doo-Wop group.
The band disbanded in 1971 sadly due to sadness of the recent death of Jimi Hendrix as well as Duane Allman, the latter who contributed some slide guitar on the Lalya album as an unofficial fifth member.
So what about "Layla"?
Being Eric Clapton's signature song, it was then presumed that the song was about Clapton's infatuation with Harrison's then wife Pattie Boyd (Harrison married the model four years before). There is, however, another, more-accepted explanation.
The way this song came about was from an ancient story in 7th Century Arabia, which five centuries later, led to the story Layla and Majnum written by Persian author Nizami Ganjavi. Clapton first heard the story when playwright actor Ian Dallas gave him a copy of the story. Basically the story is about a man who hopelessly fell in love with a girl he could not marry.
So what about Harrison and Boyd?
As mentioned, Harrison married Pattie Boyd in 1966. In the late 1960s, Clapton and Harrison saw a lot of each other, Clapton contributing the guitar solo on Harrison's 1968 song While my Guitar Gently Wheeps for The White Album. The following year, George returned the favor by playing rhythm guitar on one of Cream's last hits, Badge (being credited as L'Angelo Misterioso). Clapton was infatuated by Boyd and married her in 1979 - two years after her divorce from Harrison. Clapton also penned another hit for her, the 1978 single Wonderful Tonight off his Slowhand record. George Harrison did not want revenge and even attended the wedding! Clapton's marriage to Boyd lasted until the end of the following decade when it ended in divorce.
The Song:
Neither the song, or its parent record, gained much chart success or radio attention despite being critically praised. While Layla was released in 1971, it was unsuccessful (after all it was a good 7 minutes or so). Radio stations were reluctant to play such long tracks anymore (which may have contributed to the gradual demise of progressive rock), but a March 1972 single release was a massive chart success after the longer version was issued in 1972 (#7 UK, #10, USA). An unplugged version two decades later won a Grammy Award in 1993 for Best Rock Song.
The song's iconic riff was composed by Clapton's good friend Duane Allman. Late producer Tom Dowd calld their collaboration "two hands in a glove." The arpeggiated part of the riff was re-used in 1985 by Croatian (then Yugoslav) band Magazin for their hit Istambul. The riff was also played, slowed down, as part of Clapton's hit Old Love albeit slightly modified.
The so-called "Piano Exit," not featured in the original single release, was composed by Jim Gordon. A week after the first part was composed, Clapton heard Gordon playing the part in the studio and conviced him that it be attached to Layla. The piano line has been wrongly attributed to Gordon's girlfriend, Rita Coolidge, as it was based on a song called Time, composed by her during the D&B era (with assistance from Gordon).
Layla came to prominence again in unplugged form after Clapton was invited to play at Bray Studios for an MTV Unplugged performance. Andy Fairweather-Low, who backed Clapton for the show, wanted to record his own version. The key, being in D minor, pushed Clapton to his upper singing limits with Fairweather-Low suggesting Clapton sing it an octave lower. Clapton thought this was jazz-esque and liked it. He introduced this heavily reworked version, by saying "Let's see if you can spot this one," as you can hear in the video.
Being a lower octave, E.C. has done an electric version of this version in recent years of performing live. The song was also used in the movie Goodfellas.
This has got to be one of the prime examples. Layla by Clapton's short-lived blues-rock band Derek and the Dominoes from their one and only record Layla and Other Assorted Love Songs (1970).
A word about the Band:
Derek and the Dominoes began as Delaney Bonney & Friends, a band featuring Clapton and his former Blind Faith veteran Steve Winwood as well as Dave Mason who contributed to Derek and the Dominoes' early recordings and shows, Mason alongside Winwood both being of Traffic fame. Three of the members of the American soul band, drummer Jim Gordon, bass player Carl Radle, and keyboardist/additional vocalist Bobby Whitlock, backed Clapton on his self-titled debut solo album released 1970. Radle and Gordon also worked with Clapton off and on on some of his records in the 70s including 1977's Slowhand.
Now there was NEVER a Derek in the band. The band was going to be called Eric Clapton and Friends, though Geroge Harrison, Clapton's best friend at the time, suggested Del and the Dominoes (after Delaney). Ultimately, the name was taken before a 1970 benefit concert in Liceyum that the band had already picked that name unbeknownst to many. While Clapton liked the name being the sole Brit, the other three members, being American, were afraid of being mistaken for a Doo-Wop group.
The band disbanded in 1971 sadly due to sadness of the recent death of Jimi Hendrix as well as Duane Allman, the latter who contributed some slide guitar on the Lalya album as an unofficial fifth member.
So what about "Layla"?
Being Eric Clapton's signature song, it was then presumed that the song was about Clapton's infatuation with Harrison's then wife Pattie Boyd (Harrison married the model four years before). There is, however, another, more-accepted explanation.
The way this song came about was from an ancient story in 7th Century Arabia, which five centuries later, led to the story Layla and Majnum written by Persian author Nizami Ganjavi. Clapton first heard the story when playwright actor Ian Dallas gave him a copy of the story. Basically the story is about a man who hopelessly fell in love with a girl he could not marry.
So what about Harrison and Boyd?
As mentioned, Harrison married Pattie Boyd in 1966. In the late 1960s, Clapton and Harrison saw a lot of each other, Clapton contributing the guitar solo on Harrison's 1968 song While my Guitar Gently Wheeps for The White Album. The following year, George returned the favor by playing rhythm guitar on one of Cream's last hits, Badge (being credited as L'Angelo Misterioso). Clapton was infatuated by Boyd and married her in 1979 - two years after her divorce from Harrison. Clapton also penned another hit for her, the 1978 single Wonderful Tonight off his Slowhand record. George Harrison did not want revenge and even attended the wedding! Clapton's marriage to Boyd lasted until the end of the following decade when it ended in divorce.
The Song:
Neither the song, or its parent record, gained much chart success or radio attention despite being critically praised. While Layla was released in 1971, it was unsuccessful (after all it was a good 7 minutes or so). Radio stations were reluctant to play such long tracks anymore (which may have contributed to the gradual demise of progressive rock), but a March 1972 single release was a massive chart success after the longer version was issued in 1972 (#7 UK, #10, USA). An unplugged version two decades later won a Grammy Award in 1993 for Best Rock Song.
The song's iconic riff was composed by Clapton's good friend Duane Allman. Late producer Tom Dowd calld their collaboration "two hands in a glove." The arpeggiated part of the riff was re-used in 1985 by Croatian (then Yugoslav) band Magazin for their hit Istambul. The riff was also played, slowed down, as part of Clapton's hit Old Love albeit slightly modified.
The so-called "Piano Exit," not featured in the original single release, was composed by Jim Gordon. A week after the first part was composed, Clapton heard Gordon playing the part in the studio and conviced him that it be attached to Layla. The piano line has been wrongly attributed to Gordon's girlfriend, Rita Coolidge, as it was based on a song called Time, composed by her during the D&B era (with assistance from Gordon).
Layla came to prominence again in unplugged form after Clapton was invited to play at Bray Studios for an MTV Unplugged performance. Andy Fairweather-Low, who backed Clapton for the show, wanted to record his own version. The key, being in D minor, pushed Clapton to his upper singing limits with Fairweather-Low suggesting Clapton sing it an octave lower. Clapton thought this was jazz-esque and liked it. He introduced this heavily reworked version, by saying "Let's see if you can spot this one," as you can hear in the video.
Being a lower octave, E.C. has done an electric version of this version in recent years of performing live. The song was also used in the movie Goodfellas.
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