Clapton is credited as an innovator in
several phases of his career, which have included blues-rock with John Mayall
& The Bluesbreakers and The Yardbirds (1963-1965), early single hit “Come
With Me” by The Roosters, blues-hard rock (with Cream), and work as a sideman
and a solo artist; he has achieved chart success in genres ranging from delta
blues (Unplugged) and psychedelic rock (Sunshine of Your Love) to pop (Change
the World) and reggae (I Shot the Sheriff).
Eric Clapton was a friend of George
Harrison of the Beatles. It is believed that he wrote Layla about Harrison’s
wife, Pattie Boyd, whom he married in 1979 after she divorced George Harrison.
They divorced in 1988. Eric Clapton has also dated singers Marianne Faithfull
and Rosanne Cash, actresses Patsy Kensit and Sharon Stone, and rock muses
Cynrinda Fox and Geraldine Edwards, who was one of the inspirations for Penny
Lane in Almost Famous. He is now married to Melia McEnry and has been since
2002. They have three daughters together.
