by Eric Clapton
First published 2007
Eric Clapton opens his life story with brutal honesty about his pattern of self-destruction. Born illegitimate in 1945, he grew up believing his mother was his sister until age nine. The guitar became his refuge as a teenager, launching him from London club cult hero to global superstar with Cream, the world's first supergroup. His musical journey took him through short-lived bands like Blind Faith and Derek and the Dominos, creating enduring songs like "Layla." He played alongside Hendrix, Dylan, and the Beatles, but his obsession with George Harrison's wife Pattie Boyd drove him into heroin addiction and isolation. Recovery brought the hit album 461 Ocean Boulevard and marriage to Pattie, but alcohol replaced heroin as his vice. The 1980s brought sobriety and fatherhood, then devastating tragedy when his four-year-old son Conor died in an accident. This time, instead of fleeing into addiction, Clapton channeled his grief into "Tears in Heaven." His memoir chronicles a survivor who reached music's pinnacle despite battling extraordinary demons.
336 pages · ebook · Three Rivers Press