Derek and the Dominos were a
blues-rockBlues-rock is a hybrid musical genre combining bluesy improvisations over the 12-bar blues and extended boogie jams with rock and roll styles. The core of the blues rock sound is created by the electric guitar, bass guitar and drum kit, with the electric guitar usually amplified through a tube...
band formed in the spring of 1970 by guitarist and singer
Eric ClaptonEric Patrick Clapton, CBE is an English blues-rock guitarist, singer, songwriter, and composer. Clapton has been inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a member of the Yardbirds, of Cream, and as a solo performer, being the only person ever to be inducted three times...
with keyboardist
Bobby WhitlockBobby Whitlock is a songwriter and musician, best known for being a member of Derek and the Dominos.- Biography :...
, bassist
Carl RadleCarl Dean Radle was a bass guitarist who toured and recorded with several of the most influential recording artists of the late 1960s and 1970s. Radle's first success, though, was as a member of Gary Lewis & the Playboys in 1965...
and drummer
Jim GordonJames Beck "Jim" Gordon is an American recording artist, musician and songwriter. The Grammy Award winner was one of the most requested session drummers in the late 1960s and 1970s, recording albums with many well-known musicians of that time and was the drummer of the blues-rock supergroup, Derek...
, who had all played with Clapton in
Delaney, Bonnie & FriendsDelaney & Bonnie and Friends was a rock/soul revue fronted by husband-and-wife singer/songwriters Delaney and Bonnie Bramlett.-Career:Delaney Bramlett learned the guitar in his youth, and migrated to Los Angeles in 1959...
.
The band released only one studio album,
Layla and Other Assorted Love SongsLayla and Other Assorted Love Songs is a rock album by Derek and the Dominos, released in December 1970. It is often regarded as Eric Clapton's greatest musical achievement....
, which featured prominent contributions from guest guitarist
Duane AllmanHoward Duane Allman was an American lead guitarist, co-founder of the Southern rock group The Allman Brothers Band, and respected session musician...
from
the Allman Brothers BandThe Allman Brothers Band is a Southern rock band once based in Macon, Georgia, United States. The band was formed in Jacksonville, Florida, in 1969 by brothers Duane Allman and Gregg Allman...
. The album went on to receive critical acclaim, but initially faltered in sales and in radio airplay. Although released in 1970 it was not until March 1972 that the album's single "
Layla"Layla" is a song by rock band Derek and the Dominos and the thirteenth track from their album Layla and Other Assorted Love Songs, released in December 1970. It is considered one of rock music's definitive love songs, featuring an unmistakable guitar figure, played by Eric Clapton and Duane...
" (a tale of unrequited love inspired by Clapton's relationship with his friend
George HarrisonGeorge Harrison MBE was an English rock guitarist, singer-songwriter and film producer who achieved international fame as lead guitarist in The Beatles. Often referred to as "the quiet Beatle", Harrison embraced Indian mysticism, and helped broaden the horizons of the other Beatles, as well as...
's then wife,
Pattie Boyd HarrisonPatricia Anne "Pattie" Boyd is an English model and photographer, and the former wife of both George Harrison and Eric Clapton...
) would make the top ten in both the United States and the United Kingdom. The album, which has received praise from both critics and fans alike, is often considered to be the defining achievement of Clapton's career.
Beginnings
The seeds of Derek and the Dominos can be found in their involvement with
Delaney, Bonnie & FriendsDelaney & Bonnie and Friends was a rock/soul revue fronted by husband-and-wife singer/songwriters Delaney and Bonnie Bramlett.-Career:Delaney Bramlett learned the guitar in his youth, and migrated to Los Angeles in 1959...
of which they were all members, including Duane Allman who had played before Clapton. The members' departures from the group were caused by the constant infighting between Delaney and Bonnie Bramlett, Whitlock explains: Gordon and Radle left D&B to play on
Joe CockerJohn Robert "Joe" Cocker, OBE is an English rock/blues singer who came to popularity in the 1960s, and is most known for his gritty voice, his idiosyncratic arm movements while performing and his cover versions of popular songs, particularly those of The Beatles...
's
Mad Dogs and EnglishmenMad Dogs and Englishmen may refer to:*Mad Dogs and Englishmen , 1932 song by Noel Coward that originated the above phrase*Mad Dogs and Englishmen , 1970 live album by Joe Cocker and others...
tour with
Leon RussellClaude Russell Bridges known professionally as Leon Russell, is an American singer-songwriter, pianist, and guitarist....
, but Whitlock remained on with the Bramletts for a short time.
Whitlock was looking for a gig, and
Steve CropperSteve "The Colonel" Cropper is an American guitarist, songwriter and producer. As part of the Stax Records house band Booker T. & The MG's, he played on hundreds of recordings by Stax artists such as Otis Redding, Sam & Dave, Carla and Rufus Thomas and Johnnie Taylor, also acting as producer on...
suggested he visit Clapton in England; Whitlock would subsequently live in Clapton's house and during that period the two would jam, hang out and write the bulk of the Dominos' catalogue.
Soon after, they called the rest of their former Delaney and Bonnie musicians,
Dave MasonDavid Thomas Mason is an English musician, singer, songwriter, and guitarist from Worcester, who first found fame with the rock band Traffic. In his long career, Mason has played and recorded with many of the era's most notable musicians, including Jimi Hendrix, Michael Jackson, The Rolling...
,
Carl RadleCarl Dean Radle was a bass guitarist who toured and recorded with several of the most influential recording artists of the late 1960s and 1970s. Radle's first success, though, was as a member of Gary Lewis & the Playboys in 1965...
and
Jim GordonJames Beck "Jim" Gordon is an American recording artist, musician and songwriter. The Grammy Award winner was one of the most requested session drummers in the late 1960s and 1970s, recording albums with many well-known musicians of that time and was the drummer of the blues-rock supergroup, Derek...
and together the quintet became the backing band for
George HarrisonGeorge Harrison MBE was an English rock guitarist, singer-songwriter and film producer who achieved international fame as lead guitarist in The Beatles. Often referred to as "the quiet Beatle", Harrison embraced Indian mysticism, and helped broaden the horizons of the other Beatles, as well as...
's album
All Things Must PassAll Things Must Pass is a triple album by George Harrison recorded and released after the break-up of The Beatles. The first triple album by a solo artist, the original vinyl release featured two records of rock songs, while the third, entitled "Apple Jam" was composed of informal jams led by...
. Gordon was not the first choice as drummer, it was
Jim KeltnerJim Keltner is a session drummer who has contributed to the work of many well-known artists.-1970s:...
, who like Radle, was from Tulsa and also been involved with Russell and Cocker.
The origin of the name "Derek and the Dominos" has had attached to it a variety of stories over the years. One is that, due to Eric Clapton's feelings for Patty Boyd Harrison, the group decided to call the band Derek and The Dominoes (a combination of Duane Allman's and Eric Clapton's names) featuring Eric Clapton so that Layla would not be associated to him and, therefore, his emotional inclinations would be kept a secret.
Another, according to Jeff Dexter (compere on the Delaney & Bonnie and Friends Tour and a close friend of Clapton's), a name had yet to be chosen by the night of the group's 14 June 1970 official debut at London's
Lyceum TheatreThe Lyceum Theatre is a 2,000-seat West End theatre located in the City of Westminster, on Wellington Street, just off the Strand. There has been a theatre with this name in the locality since 1765, and the present site opened on 14 July 1834 to a design by Samuel Beazley. The building was unique...
, where they had been billed simply as "Eric Clapton and Friends" (for what would prove Mason's lone appearance). According to Dexter, he'd asked Eric whether they couldn't give the band a proper name “instead of his (Dexter's) going out front and introducing yet another round of
And Friends?” To this Clapton and George Harrison quickly agreed, resulting in a mad rush by everyone to remember and name past favourites. In the course of this process were included Two-Tone Special, and Fats Domino, and the whole thing was brought to a conclusion with Dexter's cry of “that’s it:
Derek and the Dominoes--it’s classic!” (Clapton having been previously nicknamed at the start of the "Delaney & Bonnie and Friends" tour
Derek by Tony Ashton). While the rest of the band—all of them Americans—felt convinced they would be mistaken for a
doo-wopDoo-wop is a style of vocal-based rhythm and blues music, which developed in African-American communities in the 1940s and which achieved mainstream popularity in the 1950s and 1960s. An African-American vocal style known as doo-wop emerged from the streets of northeastern and industrial midwest...
act, the two Brits were instantly for it, and were introduced to the packed Lyceum audience to polite, if respectful applause accorded unknowns. After a few moments, however, the audience caught wise to the diversion and the hall erupted in pandemonium. In Dexter's telling he'd introduced Ashton to Clapton just before boarding the tour bus heading for Bristol, and a nervous Ashton, instead of saying "pleased to meet you, Eric," called him
Derek instead, causing everyone to fall about and resulting in Clapton's being called "Derek" for the remainder of the tour.
According to Bobby Whitlock, however, upon leaving the stage at the close of his set,
Tony AshtonTony Ashton was an English rock pianist, keyboardist, singer, composer, producer and artist.-Biography:...
of
Ashton, Gardner and DykeAshton, Gardner and Dyke were a power rock trio, most popular in the early 1970s. They are best remembered for their song, "Resurrection Shuffle", a transatlantic Top 40 success in 1971...
had simply mispronounced their provisional name of "Eric and the Dynamos," calling them instead
Derek and the
Dominos. Yet another version emerges from Clapton's biography in which the guitarist maintains that it was Ashton that suggested to Clapton the name "Del and the Dominos" ("Del" being his nickname for Clapton). Del and Eric were combined and the final name became "Derek and the Dominos." Either way, the band took up the new name and embarked on a summer tour of small clubs in England where Clapton chose to play anonymously, still weary from the fame and high-profile chaos that he had felt plagued
CreamCream were a 1960s British blues-rock band and supergroup consisting of bassist/vocalist Jack Bruce, guitarist/vocalist Eric Clapton, and drummer Ginger Baker. Their sound was characterised by a hybrid of blues, hard rock and psychedelic rock...
and
Blind FaithBlind Faith was an English blues-rock band that consisted of Eric Clapton, Ginger Baker, Steve Winwood and Ric Grech. The band, which was one of the first "super-groups", released their only album, Blind Faith, in August 1969...
. Dexter’s account of the facts appears somewhat more plausible at least than Whitlock's, as Ashton, Gardener and Dyke were never on the “Eric Clapton and Friends" tour.
From late August to early October 1970, working at
Criteria StudiosCriteria Studios is a music-recording studio in Miami, Florida, started in 1958 by Mack Emerman.-Notable artists:A selected list of artists who have recorded singles and/or albums at the studio include:...
in Miami under the guidance of
Atlantic RecordsAtlantic Records is an American record label best known for its many recordings of rhythm & blues, rock and roll, and jazz...
producer
Tom DowdTom Dowd was an American recording engineer and producer for Atlantic Records. He was credited with innovating the multi-track recording method. Dowd worked on a virtual "who's who" of recordings that encompassed blues, jazz, pop, rock and soul records.- Early years :Born in Manhattan, Dowd grew...
, the band recorded
Layla and Other Assorted Love SongsLayla and Other Assorted Love Songs is a rock album by Derek and the Dominos, released in December 1970. It is often regarded as Eric Clapton's greatest musical achievement....
, a
double albumA double album is an audio album which spans two units of the primary medium in which it is sold . A double album is typically, though not always, released because the recording is longer than the capacity of the medium...
now regarded by many critics as Clapton's masterpiece. Most of the material, including
Layla"Layla" is a song by rock band Derek and the Dominos and the thirteenth track from their album Layla and Other Assorted Love Songs, released in December 1970. It is considered one of rock music's definitive love songs, featuring an unmistakable guitar figure, played by Eric Clapton and Duane...
(which later became an FM radio staple) was inspired by Clapton's unrequited love for
Pattie BoydPatricia Anne "Pattie" Boyd is an English model and photographer, and the former wife of both George Harrison and Eric Clapton...
, who was married to his best friend
George HarrisonGeorge Harrison MBE was an English rock guitarist, singer-songwriter and film producer who achieved international fame as lead guitarist in The Beatles. Often referred to as "the quiet Beatle", Harrison embraced Indian mysticism, and helped broaden the horizons of the other Beatles, as well as...
. It was not until several years later that Pattie would consent to an affair and later move in with Clapton in 1974, and marry him in 1979. They separated in 1985 when Clapton started a relationship with Lori Del Santo, and they divorced in 1988. Whitlock reminiscing would later say:
Duane Allman's inclusion
A few uninspired days into the
Layla sessions, Dowd, who was also producing for the Allmans for their album
Idlewild SouthIdlewild South is the second album of The Allman Brothers Band, released in 1970.Unlike the band's debut album, Idlewild South enjoyed some popular success as well as critical enthusiasm, mostly due to what Rolling Stone magazine called "briefer, tighter, less 'heavy' numbers" which were more...
, invited Clapton to an Allman Brothers outdoor concert in Miami, where he first heard
Duane AllmanHoward Duane Allman was an American lead guitarist, co-founder of the Southern rock group The Allman Brothers Band, and respected session musician...
play. After several hours in the studio earlier that day the band was sneaked into the show with the help of Dowd and sat between the riser and fans below. At the concert, Dowd distinctly remembers:
The next day, August 27, 1970, Duane arrived at the Criteria studios about 3 o'clock and quickly befriended Clapton; Dowd says their easiness with one another was instantaneous, saying they were
Those jams can be found on the second CD of
The Layla Sessions: 20th Anniversary EditionThe Layla Sessions: 20th Anniversary Edition released September 1999 is an anniversary edition reissue of the Layla and Other Assorted Love Songs album by Derek and the Dominos, who disbanded in 1971...
. After the jam sessions Clapton invited Allman to become the fifth and final member of the Dominos.
When Allman and Clapton met, The Dominos had barely started recording anything. Duane first added his slide guitar to "
Tell the Truth"Tell the Truth" is the eighth song from the album Layla and Other Assorted Love Songs by Derek and the Dominos. The song is composed primarily by Bobby Whitlock, and Eric Clapton added the last verse...
" on 28 August as well as "Nobody Knows You When You're Down and Out." In a window of only four days, the five-piece Dominos recorded "Key to the Highway," "Have You Ever Loved a Woman," and "Why Does Love Got to be So Sad." When September came around, Duane briefly left the sessions for gigs with his own band. In the two days he was absent, the four-piece Dominos recorded "I Looked Away," "Bell Bottom Blues," and "Keep on Growing." Duane returned on the 3rd to record "I am Yours," "Anyday," and "It's Too Late." On the 9th, they recorded Hendrix's "Little Wing" and the title track. The following day, the final track, "Thorn Tree in the Garden" was recorded. Many critics would later notice that Clapton played best when in a band composed of dual guitars; working with another guitarist kept him from getting "sloppy and lazy and this was undeniably the case with Duane Allman."
The Layla album
Although most commonly attributed to Clapton, the album was truly a group effort. Only two of the 14 songs on the album were written by Clapton alone and Whitlock wrote one of the tracks alone "Thorn Tree in the Garden". Rather, most of the songs were the product of Clapton and Whitlock's writing co-operation, but a number of blues standards were included as well, including "Nobody Knows You When You're Down and Out" (Jimmie Cox), "Have You Ever Loved a Woman" (a
Billy MylesWilliam Myles Nobles, known as Billy Myles, is an American R&B songwriter active in the 1950s and 1960s. He is best known for " All My Love" recorded by Jackie Wilson , and "Have You Ever Loved A Woman" recorded by Freddie King , then Eric Clapton .-History:Billy Myles specialised in love ballads ...
song originally recorded by
Freddie KingFreddie King also known as Freddy King and "The Texas Cannonball" , was an influential Afro-American blues guitarist and singer. He perfected his own guitar style based on Texas and Chicago influences and was one of the first bluesmen to have a multi-racial backing band on stage with him at live...
), and "
Key to the Highway"Key to the Highway" is a blues standard first recorded by Charlie Segar in 1940. Segar, sometimes known as the "Key Board Wizard Supreme," was a blues pianist and occasional singer originally from Pensacola, Florida. He relocated to Chicago, where he made recordings with other blues artists,...
" (
William 'Big Bill' BroonzyBig Bill Broonzy was a prolific American blues singer, songwriter and guitarist. His career began in the 1920s when he played Country blues to mostly black audiences. Through the ‘30s and ‘40s he successfully navigated a transition in style to a more urban blues sound popular with white audiences...
).
The last of these was a pure accident — the band heard singer Sam Samudio ("
Sam the ShamSam the Sham is the stage name of rock 'n' roll singer Domingo “Sam” Samudio from Dallas, Texas, USA. Sam the Sham was later known for camp robe and turban and hauling his equipment in a 1952 Packard hearse with maroon velvet curtains...
") in another room at the studio doing the song, liked it, and spontaneously started playing it. The startled Dowd heard what was happening, and quickly told the engineers to "hit the goddamn machine!" and start the tape recorder running — which explains why the track starts with a fade-in to playing clearly already underway.
"
Tell the Truth"Tell the Truth" is the eighth song from the album Layla and Other Assorted Love Songs by Derek and the Dominos. The song is composed primarily by Bobby Whitlock, and Eric Clapton added the last verse...
" was initially recorded in June 1970 during the
All Things Must Pass sessions under the direction of
Phil SpectorHarvey Philip "Phil" Spector is an American pioneering record producer and songwriter who was convicted of murder in 2009....
as a fast upbeat song, and released soon after as a
singleIn music, a single is a short recording of one or more separate tracks. This can be released for sale to the public in a variety of different formats.-History:...
. But during the Layla sessions, "Tell the Truth" was recorded again, this time as a long and slow instrumental jam. The final version of the song that appears on the album is a combination of these two takes: the frantic pace of the single is slowed down to the laid-back speed of the instrumental. The two previous versions of "Tell the Truth" were later released on "History of Eric Clapton" (1972).
An excellent video version of the "Layla" album's "It's Too Late" can be seen on the recently-issued 2-DVD set of "The Best of the Johnny Cash TV Show". Cash's program, which premiered on ABC in June 1969, ran for 58 episodes (with the final show broadcast in March 1971). The "It's Too Late" set is followed with Derek & the Dominos playing with Cash and Carl Perkins doing "Matchbox".
The most critically acclaimed and popular song off the album, "Layla", was recorded in separate sessions; the opening guitar section was recorded first, with the second section several months later. Duane Allman contributed the opening notes for the song. Clapton thought "Layla" was missing an acceptable ending; an abrupt conclusion would diminish the intensity of the music and a fadeout would detract from the urgency of the lyrics. The answer was an elegiac piano piece composed and played by drummer Jim Gordon. Gordon had been separately writing and playing songs during the Layla sessions for a solo album when Clapton accidentally heard the piano piece, Clapton asked Gordon to use the piano piece as the ending for "Layla", Gordon agreed and the song was complete.
When the album was released in December 1970, it was a critical and commercial flop. The album failed to make the top 10 in the United States and didn't even chart in the United Kingdom. It garnered little attention which some blamed on Polydor for a lack of promoting the record and general unawareness of Clapton's presence in the band. However, the song "Layla" when released in 1972 as a single would be a smash hit, charting in both the US (#10) and the UK (#7) and again charting in 1982. Clapton reworked the song as an acoustic ballad in 1992 for his
MTV: UnpluggedUnplugged is an album by Eric Clapton released in 1992. It was recorded live in England for the MTV Unplugged series and includes acoustic versions of both the hit single "Tears in Heaven" and a heavily reworked "Layla"...
album. The song charted at #12 in the US and also won a
Grammy AwardThe Grammy Awards —or Grammys—are presented annually by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences of the United States for outstanding achievements in the music industry...
.
Layla and Other Assorted Love Songs has continued to be noticed by critics and has been named one of the best albums of all time by
VH1VH1 is an American cable television network based in New York City...
(#89). and
Rolling StoneRolling Stone is a United States-based magazine devoted to music, politics, and popular culture that is published every two weeks. Rolling Stone was founded in San Francisco in 1967 by Jann Wenner and music critic Ralph J. Gleason.The magazine was named after the 1948 Muddy Waters song of the same...
(#115)..
Live shows
After the recording of
Layla and Other Assorted Love Songs, the group undertook a drug-riddled and vice-prone US tour that didn't include Allman, who had returned to
The Allman Brothers BandThe Allman Brothers Band is a Southern rock band once based in Macon, Georgia, United States. The band was formed in Jacksonville, Florida, in 1969 by brothers Duane Allman and Gregg Allman...
after the recording process. However, Allman did perform two shows with the group at Curtis Hixon Hall, in Tampa, Florida, on 1 December 1970, and at the Onondaga County War Memorial in Syracuse, New York, the following night. Whitlock recalls their drug situation as: Despite the drugs, the tour resulted in a well received live double album,
In ConcertIn Concert is a live double album, recorded by Derek and the Dominos in October 1970 at the Fillmore East and released January 1973.Six of the nine track were included on Live at the Fillmore...
, which was recorded from a pair of shows at the
Fillmore EastFillmore East was entertainment promoter Bill Graham's late 1960s – early 1970s rock palace in the East Village area of the Manhattan borough of New York City, New York.-Pre-Fillmore East history:...
in New York, New York. Six of the recordings from that album were digitally remastered and expanded with additional material from the same shows to become
Live at the FillmoreLive at the Fillmore is a live double album, recorded by Derek and the Dominos in two performances at the Fillmore East in October 1970. Released February 22, 1994, it includes material from the In Concert album, live material from Eric Clapton's Crossroads box set, and several previously...
, released in 1994.
Tragedy and dissolution
Tragedy dogged the group throughout its brief career. During the sessions, Clapton was devastated by the death of his friend and professional rival,
Jimi HendrixJames Marshall "Jimi" Hendrix was an American guitarist, singer and songwriter...
; eight days previously the band had cut a version of "
Little Wing"Little Wing" is a song written by Jimi Hendrix. He first recorded the song on the 1967 album Axis: Bold as Love. It is ranked #357 on Rolling Stone magazine's list of "the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time", and has been covered by numerous artists, notably Derek and the Dominos, Rod Stewart, Andy...
", which was added to the album as a tribute. One year later, on the eve of the group's first American tour, Duane Allman was killed in a motorcycle accident. Adding to Clapton's woes, the
Layla album received only lukewarm reviews and weak album sales upon release; Clapton took this personally, accelerating his spiral into drug addiction and depression. In 1985 when talking about the band Clapton remarked:
The band disintegrated messily in London just before they could complete their second LP. Much later in an interview with music critic
Robert PalmerRobert Franklin Palmer Jr. was a 20th century American writer, musicologist, clarinetist, saxophonist, and blues producer...
, Clapton said the second album "broke down halfway through because of the paranoia and tension. And the band just ... dissolved." Although Radle worked with Clapton for several more years, the split between Clapton and Whitlock was apparently a bitter one. Radle died in 1980 of complications from a kidney infection associated with alcohol and drug use. Jim Gordon, who was an undiagnosed schizophrenic, killed his mother with a hammer in 1983 during a psychotic episode. He was confined to a mental institution in 1984, where he remains today.
After the dissolution, Clapton turned away from touring and recording to nurse an intense heroin addiction resulting in a career hiatus interrupted only by
George HarrisonGeorge Harrison MBE was an English rock guitarist, singer-songwriter and film producer who achieved international fame as lead guitarist in The Beatles. Often referred to as "the quiet Beatle", Harrison embraced Indian mysticism, and helped broaden the horizons of the other Beatles, as well as...
's Concert for Bangladesh in 1971 and the
Rainbow ConcertEric Clapton's Rainbow Concert is an album recorded live at London's Rainbow Theatre on January 13 1973, and released within the year. The concert was organized by Pete Townshend and marked Eric Clapton's comeback after the 1971 Concert for Bangladesh...
in 1973 (see
1973 in music-January–April:*January 9 - Mick Jagger's request for a Japanese visa is rejected on account of a 1969 drug bust, putting an abrupt end to The Rolling Stones' plans to perform in Japan during their forthcoming tour of Hawaii, Australia and New Zealand....
), the latter organised by
The WhoThe Who are an English rock band formed in 1964. The primary lineup consisted of guitarist Pete Townshend, vocalist Roger Daltrey, bassist John Entwistle, and drummer Keith Moon. They became known for energetic live performances including the pioneering spectacle of instrument destruction...
's
Pete TownshendPeter Dennis Blandford "Pete" Townshend is an English rock guitarist, vocalist, songwriter and author, known principally as the guitarist and songwriter for The Who, as well as for his own solo career...
to help Clapton kick the drug and build momentum for his return.
Song material from the group has been present on many of Clapton's compilation albums (e.g.,
History of Eric Clapton), and music from the abortive second album sessions was later released in a 4CD/cassette box set
CrossroadsCrossroads is a music collection box set by Eric Clapton. The set includes his work with the Yardbirds, John Mayall's Blues Breakers, Cream, Blind Faith, Delaney, Bonnie & Friends, and Derek and the Dominos, as well as his solo career...
.
The group's sole studio album,
Layla and Other Assorted Love Songs, although initially a critical and commercial flop in 1971, has since charted in 1972 and 1982 and is now considered not only one of Clapton's most outstanding achievements, but also consistently appears in listings of the best rock albums ever recorded. The band's producer, Tom Dowd, said of it that he "felt it was the best ... album I'd been involved with since
The Genius of Ray CharlesThe Genius of Ray Charles is a 1959 album by Ray Charles. In 2003, the album was ranked number 263 on Rolling Stone magazine's list of the 500 greatest albums of all time....
" and was disappointed at the lack of acclaim it garnered on its release.
Members
- Eric Clapton
Eric Patrick Clapton, CBE is an English blues-rock guitarist, singer, songwriter, and composer. Clapton has been inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a member of the Yardbirds, of Cream, and as a solo performer, being the only person ever to be inducted three times...
- guitar, vocals
- Bobby Whitlock
Bobby Whitlock is a songwriter and musician, best known for being a member of Derek and the Dominos.- Biography :...
- keyboards, vocals, acoustic guitar
- Carl Radle
Carl Dean Radle was a bass guitarist who toured and recorded with several of the most influential recording artists of the late 1960s and 1970s. Radle's first success, though, was as a member of Gary Lewis & the Playboys in 1965...
- bass guitar
- Jim Gordon
James Beck "Jim" Gordon is an American recording artist, musician and songwriter. The Grammy Award winner was one of the most requested session drummers in the late 1960s and 1970s, recording albums with many well-known musicians of that time and was the drummer of the blues-rock supergroup, Derek...
- drums, piano
- Duane Allman
Howard Duane Allman was an American lead guitarist, co-founder of the Southern rock group The Allman Brothers Band, and respected session musician...
- guitar
Albums
- 1970 - Layla and Other Assorted Love Songs
Layla and Other Assorted Love Songs is a rock album by Derek and the Dominos, released in December 1970. It is often regarded as Eric Clapton's greatest musical achievement....
- 1973 - In Concert
In Concert is a live double album, recorded by Derek and the Dominos in October 1970 at the Fillmore East and released January 1973.Six of the nine track were included on Live at the Fillmore...
- 1990 - The Layla Sessions: 20th Anniversary Edition
The Layla Sessions: 20th Anniversary Edition released September 1999 is an anniversary edition reissue of the Layla and Other Assorted Love Songs album by Derek and the Dominos, who disbanded in 1971...
- 1994 - Live at the Fillmore
Live at the Fillmore is a live double album, recorded by Derek and the Dominos in two performances at the Fillmore East in October 1970. Released February 22, 1994, it includes material from the In Concert album, live material from Eric Clapton's Crossroads box set, and several previously...
Singles
- "Tell the Truth
"Tell the Truth" is the eighth song from the album Layla and Other Assorted Love Songs by Derek and the Dominos. The song is composed primarily by Bobby Whitlock, and Eric Clapton added the last verse...
" / "Roll It Over" (Atco RecordsAtco Records is an American record label owned by Warner Music Group, currently operating through WMG's Rhino Entertainment.-Beginnings:Atco Records was founded by Herb Abramson in 1955 as a sub label of Atlantic Records; operating as an outlet for acts that did not fit the format of Atlantic,...
, 1970)
- "Layla
"Layla" is a song by rock band Derek and the Dominos and the thirteenth track from their album Layla and Other Assorted Love Songs, released in December 1970. It is considered one of rock music's definitive love songs, featuring an unmistakable guitar figure, played by Eric Clapton and Duane...
" / "Bell Bottom Blues" (Polydor RecordsPolydor Records is a record label currently headquartered in the UK, and is a subsidiary of Universal Music Group.-Beginnings:Polydor was originally an independent branch of the Deutsche Grammophon Gesellschaft. Its name was first used, as an export label, in 1924, the British and German branches...
, 1970)
- "Layla
"Layla" is a song by rock band Derek and the Dominos and the thirteenth track from their album Layla and Other Assorted Love Songs, released in December 1970. It is considered one of rock music's definitive love songs, featuring an unmistakable guitar figure, played by Eric Clapton and Duane...
" / "I Am Yours" (Atco RecordsAtco Records is an American record label owned by Warner Music Group, currently operating through WMG's Rhino Entertainment.-Beginnings:Atco Records was founded by Herb Abramson in 1955 as a sub label of Atlantic Records; operating as an outlet for acts that did not fit the format of Atlantic,...
, 1971)
- "Bell Bottom Blues" / "Keep On Growing" (Polydor Records
Polydor Records is a record label currently headquartered in the UK, and is a subsidiary of Universal Music Group.-Beginnings:Polydor was originally an independent branch of the Deutsche Grammophon Gesellschaft. Its name was first used, as an export label, in 1924, the British and German branches...
, 1971)
- "Bell Bottom Blues" / "Little Wing
"Little Wing" is a song written by Jimi Hendrix. He first recorded the song on the 1967 album Axis: Bold as Love. It is ranked #357 on Rolling Stone magazine's list of "the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time", and has been covered by numerous artists, notably Derek and the Dominos, Rod Stewart, Andy...
" (RSO RecordsRSO Records was a record label, formed by rock and roll and musical theatre impresario Robert Stigwood in 1973. The "RSO" stands for the Robert Stigwood Organisation. The company's main headquarters were at 67 Brook Street, in London's Mayfair...
, 1973)
- "Why Does Love Got to Be So Sad" [live] / "Presence of the Lord" [live] (RSO Records
RSO Records was a record label, formed by rock and roll and musical theatre impresario Robert Stigwood in 1973. The "RSO" stands for the Robert Stigwood Organisation. The company's main headquarters were at 67 Brook Street, in London's Mayfair...
, 1973)
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