'Clapton' recounts guitarist's years of making music and mistakes

By Taryn Lentes, Staff Writer

November 14, 2007 | 2:43 a.m.

Plenty of famous musicians have written autobiographies touting their days of sex, drugs and rock ‘n' roll. However, Eric Clapton is probably the only one who has to work in the bit where he stole George Harrison’s wife.

“Clapton” seems as though it is an autobiography that the author was reluctant to write. The best musicians are usually those who border on genius, but they also tend to border on self-obsession and self-destruction, as well. Clapton fits this mold -- the type of musician who can write a song that elevates him to the level of “God” in the eyes of his fans, but first he has to be allowed to lock himself in a room for a few days, possibly with a large stash of drugs.

Clapton admits repeatedly in his book that he has a difficult time explaining himself to others, probably because of a combination of communication failure and the simple fact that he doesn’t really understand his own inner workings that well, so the decision to write a book about his life seems out of character. At times, Clapton struggles to find his voice, explaining seemingly juicy situations with the barest of facts, almost as if the best he can offer is a shrug and an apologetic, “What else is there to say?”

Clapton wastes no time by establishing the fact that he has -- and has always had -- a lot of issues. During the first few chapters that focus on his childhood and teen years, he intersperses stories of his first guitar purchase with the disillusionment that came with the realization that his parents were actually his grandparents. Clapton rarely saw his mother, who he had previously believed to be his older sister, and never fully reconnected with the grandparents who had raised him.

Clapton also recounts a story in which he found homemade pornography in a park during his primary education, and, without knowing what it meant, asked a girl in his class if she fancied a shag. The result was a trip to the principal’s office along with a sound beating, and Clapton blames this incident for his inability for most of his life to have a decent relationship with a woman.

While these stories are interesting, Clapton seems to bounce between making apologies and making excuses for his actions and personality, something he continues for the rest of the book. He makes a somewhat awkward narrator at first, but he really hits his stride once he focuses on what he knows best: the music.

Clapton seems able to remember every guitar he has owned in his life, and for the Les Paul or Stratocaster junkie, his loving descriptions of both their visual and tonal traits will be appreciated. He also goes into detail about the development of his playing style. The progression from a kid who copied records in his bedroom to the man whose fans left graffiti reading “Clapton is God” on the sides of buildings is one of the most satisfying parts of the book.

Woven with Clapton’s musical adventures in bands such as the Yardbirds, Cream, Blind Faith and the Dominos are tales about all other up-and-coming artists with whom he struck up friendships, and the list is impressive. On any given night, Clapton could have been hanging out with The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, Jimi Hendrix, Bob Dylan and numerous other iconic figures. It's enough to make readers wish they could have witnessed at least one of these impromptu jam sessions.

Clapton’s personal journey isn’t that surprising in some ways; descriptions of a series of groupie-like girlfriends, addictions to heroine and alcohol and his hitting rock bottom are expected. However, Clapton also chronicles what has become a piece of rock 'n’ roll folklore: how he ended up stealing George Harrison’s wife, Pattie. Clapton recounts honestly how he pined over her for years, begging her to leave George (his best friend) and even hooking up with her sister in order to make her jealous. He is also honest about the fact that once he had married Patti, most of the attraction wore off, and they were miserable until the marriage ended. It may not be admirable, but it’s easy to get sucked into the story when he’s telling it so bluntly.

Eric Clapton is an artist who expresses himself extremely eloquently through the strings of his guitar, but not so much through the pen. He seems to have difficulty getting out of his own head enough to do much more than lay out the facts of his life as he remembers them, and there probably won’t be much of interest there for those unfamiliar with his music. However, the musical anecdotes, coupled with his brutal honesty, should be enough to keep any of his guitar disciples satisfied. Clapton probably best sums up his life and his book by explaining that he was “on a journey into the darkness and had to see it through to find out what was on the other side.”

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