History YMMV / EricClapton

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* AdaptationDisplacement - Clapton almost exclusively played the UnpluggedVersion of "Layla" in live shows for a time due to the [[EpicRocking extreme difficulty]] of coordinating the song outside the studio. These days, it mostly depends on which sidemen he has.

* CoveredUp - Clapton didn't write "Cocaine". That was J.J. Cale.

* CreatorBreakdown: After the death of his son, Conor, in 1991. He came back with "Tears In Heaven".

* FaceOfTheBand - Much as he tried to avoid this, Music/DerekAndTheDominos is best known for Eric Clapton. On the other hand, while Music/{{Cream}} is best remembered as one of Clapton's bands, back in TheSixties all three members got equal attention. Bassist Jack Bruce [[LeadBassist was even the front-man]].

* GrowingTheBeard - The first time he grew a full beard was in 1969 with Blind Faith, when was getting disillusioned with his "guitar hero" status. After the tour, he joined Blind Faith's little-known supporting act Delaney and Bonnie and Friends. The duo encouraged him to work on his singing and song-writing abilities. He became more than just a guitarist and more well-rounded as an artist. This led directly to his first self-titled album and a very successful solo career. In fact, the most well-known image of him is with a beard during the 1970's and 1980's rather than the baby-faced (or thin-moustachioed) kid from The Yardbirds, The Bluesbreakers and Cream.

* MemeticMutation - CLAPTON IS GOD.
* NeverLiveItDown - Going on stage, dead drunk in 1976, and stumbling into an anti-immigration rant including such choice sayings as "Throw the wogs out! Keep Britain white!". Clapton has tried to defend it in the past as drunken trolling, but mostly him, his fans, and his numerous multi-ethnic collaborators all just pretend it never happened.

* SeinfeldIsUnfunny - Clapton is best known now for his unplugged solo material and his lighter pop hits, but back in the 60s he was an even more influential guitarist than Music/JimiHendrix. This was even the guy who influenced Hendrix.

* TearJerker: "Tears In Heavens". Oh, goodness, [[GriefSong "Tears In Heaven"]]. The story behind his five-year-old son Conor's death is just heartbreaking.

* CargoShip: "I've Got a Rock 'N' Roll Heart" amusingly sounds like it's about this if you take lyrics too literally:

** Most people know "I Shot the Sheriff" was originally a Music/BobMarley song, but some think it's a Clapton original.

*** Clapton actually covered up Cale twice with "After Midnight". Clapton's uptempo 1970 version was based on Cale's obscure 1966 original. When Cale re-recorded it in 1971 he [[RearrangeTheSong rearranged it]] into a slow, bluesy song, and when Clapton re-recorded it in 1987 it was more in line with that take of the song.

** "Change the World" was first sung by Wynonna Judd.

* EpicRiff: Several, especially "Crossroads", where his arragnement is the most famous.

* FaceOfTheBand - Much as he tried to avoid this, Music/DerekAndTheDominos is best known for Eric Clapton. On the other hand, while Music/{{Cream}} is best remembered as one of Clapton's bands, back in TheSixties all three members got equal attention. Bassist Jack Bruce [[LeadBassist was even the frontman]].
** Music/DerekAndTheDominos was in fact an attempt to avert this. When the song "Layla" appeared on the compilation album ''The History of Eric Clapton'', sales shot up for the band's ''Music/LaylaAndOtherAssortedLoveSongs''...all because people realized Clapton played on the record.
* GrowingTheBeard - The first time he grew a full beard was in 1969 with Blind Faith, when was getting disillusioned with his "guitar hero" status. After the tour, he joined Blind Faith's little-known supporting act Delaney and Bonnie and Friends. The duo encouraged him to work on his singing and songwriting abilities. He became more than just a guitarist and more well-rounded as an artist. This led directly to his first self-titled album and a very successful solo career. In fact, the most well-known image of him is with a beard during the 1970's and 1980's rather than the baby-faced (or thin-mustachioed) kid from the Bluesbreakers and Cream.
** Prior to that was the level of virtuosity and feel Clapton acquired between leaving The Yardbirds (where he was already well regarded as an impressive player) and the "Beano" album, which set the scene for the rest of Clapton's career.

* MemeticMutation - CLAPTON IS GOD

* SuspiciouslySimilarSong: Goes both ways with "Let It Grow". Reviewers in 1974 noted the resemblance of the melody to [[Music/LedZeppelin "Stairway to Heaven"]]. Fast forward eight years, and [[{{Music/Toto}} "Africa"]] has melodic similarities to "Let It Grow".
* TearJerker: "Tears in Heavens". Oh, goodness, [[GriefSong "Tears in Heaven".]] The story behind his five-year-old son Conor's death is just heartbreaking.

*** "Wonderful Tonight" from ''24 Nights'', his Royal Albert Hall performance and two-disc set. It's slower-paced and a lot gloomier--if the original one is the main couples' dance at ''your'' wedding, then this one is you watching the new couple have their first dance, while feeling that you must examine your own life a bit harder if you're ever to have that shining moment.

* AdaptationDisplacement - Clapton almost exclusively plays the UnpluggedVersion of "Layla" in live shows these days due to the [[EpicRocking extreme difficulty]] of coordinating the song outside the studio.

* EpicRiff: Several, especially "Crossroads", where his arragement is the most famous.

* CargoShip: "I've Got a Rock 'N' Roll Heart" amusing sounds like it's about this if you take lyrics too literally:

*** Clapton actually covered up Cale twice with "After Midnight". Clapton's uptempo 1970 version was based on Cale's obscure 1966 original. When Cale re-recorded it one year later he [RearrangeTheSong rearranged it]] into a slow, bluesy song, and when Clapton re-recorded it in 1987 it was more in line with that take of the song.

* FaceOfTheBand - Much as he tried to avoid this, Derek & the Dominos is best known for Eric Clapton. On the other hand, while Music/{{Cream}} is best remembered as one of Clapton's bands, back in TheSixties all three members got equal attention. Bassist Jack Bruce was even the frontman.
** Derek & the Dominos was in fact an attempt to avert this. When the song "Layla" appeared on the compilation album ''The History of Eric Clapton'', sales shot up for the band's ''Layla and Other Assorted Love Songs''...all because people realized Clapton played on the record.

* FanDumb - Sometimes the case with people who worship his Bluesbreakers and Cream and perhaps Blind Faith tenures while despising his entire, varied solo career. They think that because he emphasized singing/songwriting over guitar playing, it meant that he never did long guitar solos again. A simple look at his live-- and some studio-- performances proves that notion wrong.

** "Bell Bottom Blues, you made me cry..." is an apt description of the effect the titular song can have.

* NeverLiveItDown - Going on stage, dead drunk, and stumbling into an anti-immigration rant including such choice sayings as "Throw the wogs out! Keep Britain white!". Clapton has tried to defend it in the past as drunken trolling, but mostly him, his fans, and his numerous multi-ethnic collaborators all just pretend it never happened.

* TearJerker: "Tears in Heavens". Oh, goodness, [[GriefSong "Tears in Heaven".]] The story behind his five-year-old son Conor's death is just heartbreaking.

* JumpedTheShark - He de-emphasized his guitar heroics.

* TearJerker: "Tears in Heavens". Oh, goodness, [[GriefSong "Tears in Heaven".]] The story behind his four-year-old son Conor's death is just heartbreaking.

* TearJerker: "Tears in Heavens". Oh, goodness, [[GriefSong "Tears in Heaven".]] The story behind his young son Conor's death is just heartbreaking.

* TearJerker: [[GriefSong "Tears in Heavens"]]. Oh, goodness, "Tears in Heaven".

** The image of a guitar hero playing a Gibson Les Paul through a Marshall amp arguably began with Eric.

* SeinfeldIsUnfunny - Clapton is best known now for his unplugged solo material and his lighter pop hits, but back in the 60s he was an even more influential guitarist than Music/JimiHendrix. This was even the guy who influenced Hendrix.

* SeinfeldIsUnfunny - Clapton is best known now for his unplugged solo material and his lighter pop hits, but back in the 60s he was more as influential on the guitar than Hendrix. This was even the guy who influenced Hendrix.

* FaceOfTheBand - Much as he tried to avoid this, Derek & the Dominos is best known for Eric Clapton. On the other hand, while Music/{{Cream}} best remembered as one of Clapton's bands, back in TheSixties all three members got equal attention. Bassist Jack Bruce was even the frontman.

* FaceOfTheBand - Much as he tried to avoid this, Derek & the Dominos is best known for Eric Clapton. On the other hand, while Music/{{Cream}} best remembered as one of Clpaton's bands, back in TheSixties all three members got equal attention. Bassist Jack Bruce was even the frontman.

* FaceOfTheBand - Much as he tried to avoid this, Derek & the Dominos is best known for Eric Clapton. On the other hand, while Music/{{Cream}} best remembered as one of Clpaton's bandsfor him, back in TheSixties all three members got equal attention. Bassist Jack Bruce was even the frontman.

* FaceOfTheBand - Much as he tried to avoid this, Derek & the Dominos is best known for Eric Clapton. Cream on the other hand is today mostly known for him, but back then was equal between all the three. Jack Bruce was even the frontman.

* AdaptationDisplacement - Clapton almost exclusively plays the UnpluggedVersion of Layla in live shows these days due to the [[EpicRocking extreme difficulty]] of coordinating the song outside the studio.
* CoveredUp - Clapton didn't write Cocaine. That was J.J. Cale.
** Most people know "I Shot the Sheriff" was originally a Bob Marley song, but some think it's a Clapton original.

** Ditto "Crossroads", a RobertJohnson tune.

** Most people know "I Shot the Sheriff" was originally a Bob Marley song, but some think it's a Clapton original

* JumpedTheShark:He de-emphasized his guitar heroics

* GrowingTheBeard - The first time he grew a full beard was in 1969 with Blind Faith, when was getting disillusioned with his "guitar hero" status. After the tour, he joined Blind Faith's little-known supporting act Delaney and Bonnie and Friends. The duo encouraged him to work on his singing and songwriting abilities. He became more than just a guitarist and more well-rounded as an artist. This led directly to his first self-titled album and a very successful solo career. In fact, the most well-known image of him is with a beard during the 1970's and 1980's rather than the baby-faced (or thin-mustachioed) kid from the Bluesbreakers and Cream. On the other hand, some fans think that he JumpedTheShark because he de-emphasized his guitar heroics, so this is definitely a case of YourMileageMayVary.