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(’62-date) Eric Clapton (guitar / vocals)

[Ed – As with The Jam, we’ll look to keep the content early or local, with occasional interesting bits and bobs]

Clapton was born on 30 March 1945 in Ripley, Surrey. He was given his first guitar, an acoustic Hoyer, for his 13th birthday. Steel-strings are hard and he briefly lost interest. Two years later he picked it up again and started playing once more. Influenced by the blues he practiced for hours, playing along to records to learn the chords; recording his practice sessions using his portable Grundig reel-to-reel tape recorder, listening to them over and over until he felt he’d got it right.

In ’61, after leaving Hollyfield School in Surbiton, Clapton studied at the Kingston College of Art but was dismissed at the end of the academic year because his focus remained on music rather than art. At 16 he was getting noticed and busked around Kingston, Richmond, and the West End. Clapton would turn up at L’Auberge, Richmond “…with a guitar and long thumbnails,” according to Chris Dreja, who played alongside Clapton in The Yardbirds.

In ’62, he joined forces with David Brock in pubs around Surrey. When he was 17, he joined early British R&B group, The Roosters, whose other guitarist was Tom McGuinness. He stayed with this band from January until August ’63. In October ’63, Clapton did a seven-gig stint with Casey Jones & the Engineers. Following Top Topham’s departure from The Yardbirds, Clapton replaced him in late October ’63. On 15 December ’63, The Rolling Stones took to the stage at the Civic Hall, Guildford, thanks to the Ricky Tick Club promoters, John Mansfield and Philip Hayward. Also, on the bill that night were The Yardbirds, with Clapton.

Crawdaddy Club impresario Giorgio Gomelsky became the Yardbirds manager and first record producer. Under Gomelsky’s guidance the Yardbirds toured Britain as the back-up band for blues legend Sonny Boy Williamson II from 5 December ’62 to 24 May ’65 appearing at the Town Hall, Farnborough on 3 March. The Yardbirds signed to EMI’s Columbia label in Feb ’64.

The big draw, for the Ricky Tick Club at The Harvest Moon Club, Guildford on 17 March ’66 was John Mayall & The Blues Breakers, which then included Clapton; at which they previewed, for all present, most of the ‘Blues Breakers’ LP. On 14 July ’66 John Mayall’s Bluesbreakers played The Stoke Hotel, Guildford. After the 25 June that year Eric Clapton failed to show at several gigs as his time with the Bluesbreakers drew to a close – this was not one of them. David Gale recalls, in Guildford Past and Present, standing in the bar listening to John Mayall and hearing an additional blues guitar playing, which turned out to be Clapton joining in.

Cream, Clapton’s next band, were a notable headliner at the Atlanta Ballroom, Woking on 19 September ’66. They had come directly from recording their slot for 30 December broadcast of Guitar Club for the BBC Home Service show. The venue was packed for them, but down the front of the crowd was a gentleman yelling at Clapton, “Oi, Eric you’re useless. Can’t play at all. Rubbish…!” One of the bouncers pulls this heckler aside and held him against the wall, to whom Clapton shouted out “Put my uncle down!”. Well, that’s how the story went when Adrian Clapton told it to Adam Russel.

Then there was the short-lived Blind Faith that started with jam sessions in Ripley / Ewhurst. In 1970, the Winter Gardens, Malvern hosted Clapton on 14 August, along with Dene Mason and Friends, Derek and the Dominoes, Origin, and Our House. On 3 December ’71, Clapton attended Leon Russell and The Shelter People’s second night at the Rainbow Theatre, London. After the show, Russell invited Clapton to join them the next night. Following the first number, on 4 December ’71, Clapton walked onto the stage but kept out of the limelight.

Eric Clapton, who was more used to arenas and stadiums, played the Village Hall, Cranleigh at least twice, the first was opened by Chas n’ Dave. That night, the 11 February ’77, Clapton’s band – formed by Ronnie Lane (guitar), Bruce Rowlands (drums), Charlie Hart (piano), and Brian Belsham (bass) – performed for over two hours, all of which was initiated by Roger Swallow of the village’s Swallow Tiles. Adam Russel recalls a few, who couldn’t get tickets, climbing onto the roof of a local garage from where a view of the stage could be gained. 30 minutes before the end of the show the doors were opened and they piled in with others, and Eric’s uncle got Russel backstage where he hung for a while.

In ’78 he appeared, supporting headliner Bob Dylan, at The Picnic at Blackbushe. After flying over the gathered masses at Blackbushe Airport, Yateley; Clapton landed and played a fantastic set, including Wonderful Tonight as the sun was setting. A set watch by Billy Connolly, who recalls finding himself standing next to Dylan to watch Clapton. The Picnic, which was attended by some 160-200,000 plus people, also featured Joan Armatrading, Graham Parker & The Rumour, Lake, and Merger. On 7 Dec ’78, local lad, Clapton along with Elton John (piano), George Harrison (guitar), and Muddy Waters (guitar / vocals) were in the Civic Hall, Guildford’s spotlights.

Clapton – who’d cut his US tour short a little earlier in the year for a perforated ulcer – returned to the Village Hall, Cranleigh, on 7 September ’79, this time with Albert Lee on guitar, as did Russel. Stuart Reffold’s band Poker were the support, and the hall was packed and crowded around Clapton who stood in the middle of them all. Poker paused between songs, and Clapton was heard to shout “Come on get on with it … it’s show business“…

The next year, on 18 May ’80, Clapton is back at Guildford’s Civic Hall.

Graham Cooper, once guitarist with Jackie Lynton’s Happy Days Band, would be later found performing solo under the Graham “Cupcake” Cooper moniker, and some recall Clapton joining him and other local musicians onstage at The Royal, Guildford for a charity gig in the early ’80s with Bruce Foxton of The Jam in the audience.

Clapton, supported by Chas n’ Dave, closes out his Money and Cigarettes tour at the Civic Hall, Guildford on 18 May ’83. To wrap up his set Clapton is joined on stage by Jimmy Page – Page’s first live appearance since he jammed with Foreigner on 12 May 1982. They perform Further up the Road and Cocaine before being joined by Phil Collins for Roll Over Beethoven. Then out came Chas & Dave to play You Win Again and Matchbox with the growing ensemble. Finally, Paul Brady comes out and they close proceedings with Goodnight Irene.

On 23 December ’89, at the Village Hall, Chiddingfold, there was a benefit fundraising concert for local charities organized by Gary Brooker, at which Clapton and No Stiletto Shoes, consisting of Brooker (keyboards / vocals), Andy Fairweather-Low (guitar / vocals), Dave Bronze (bass), Henry Spinetti (drums), and Frank Mead (sax), rocked a 300-ish audience.

Late in ’91, Guildford based Genesis Publications, an ‘art house’ publisher in the fields of modern music and culture, published ‘24 Nights‘ by Clapton, Peter Blake, and Derek Taylor. This documented the run of 24-consequetive-nights across February to March ’91 Clapton performed at the Royal Albert Hall, London to close out the Journeyman World Tour. This two-volume book and CD boxed set was Clapton’s first with Genesis, with a limited 3,500 signed copies produced.

Then for two consecutive nights, the 15 and 16 December ’95, Clapton returned to guest with No Stiletto Shoes – Brooker, Fairweather-Low, Bronze, Spinetti, and Geoff Whitehorn (guitar), – on stage, supported by Big Town Playboys.

On 20 December ’03 and 18 December ’04, Brooker’s charity Christmas gig featured Clapton again, as it did on 15 December ’06, when Clapton sat in on four songs with No Stiletto Shoes, for what was now a tradition at The Chidd. But earlier in the 2000s, on Sunday, 4 January 4, 2004, Eric Clapton, Kenney Jones, Paul Jones, and Gary Brooker played the last gig ever at the Civic Hall.

[Ed – there is more images to add and bio to write.]

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