Eric Clapton paid tribute to his former Derek and the Dominos bandmate, Bobby Whitlock, following the keyboardist and singer’s death at age 77.
On August 11, Clapton, 80, posted a throwback photo of Whitlock to Instagram with the caption, “Our dear friend Bobby Whitlock has passed away at 77. Our sincere condolences to Bobby’s wife CoCo and his family…. RIP Bobby xxx.”
Whitlock’s death was announced by his manager Carol Kaye, on Aug. 10. “With profound sadness, the family of Bobby Whitlock announces his passing at 1:20am on Aug. 10 after a brief illness. He passed in his home in Texas, surrounded by family,” the statement read, per Ultimate Classic Rock.
In 1970, Clapton and Whitlock co-founded Derek & the Dominos alongside bassist Carl Radle and drummer Jim Gordon, after previously playing together in Delaney & Bonnie and Friends.
Bobby Whitlock Co-Wrote Half of Derek & the Dominos’ Songs
Whitlock co-wrote seven songs with Clapton for the classic—and only— Derek and the Dominos album, Layla and Other Assorted Love Songs, including the radio staple, "Bell Bottom Blues.” But for years, he was never credited for the song.
In an interview posted by Medium, Whitlock revealed that Clapton started writing "Bell Bottom Blues" and played part of it for him, and then he added to it with several crucial lines.
“I decided I’d write to him,” he said of Clapton. “I had his email address. So I wrote to him and I told him the story, I said, do you remember how it went down? And within three minutes he wrote back to me, said, ‘You’re absolutely right. I’ve been thinking about this and I’m going to make it right.’ And he did. So from now on, ‘Bell Bottom Blues’ reads ‘Written by Eric Patrick Clapton and Robert Stanley Whitlock.’”
In the same interview, Whitlock revealed that with the Dominos, the group only did everything once.
“We only did one small tour of England, we did one studio album, we did one U.S tour. Everything was once,” he said. “Jim Gordon and Carl both already had plans. …The band was Eric’s and my band. They were just a drummer and a bass player. They weren’t committed. Eric and I were real committed.”
With the death of Whitlock, Clapton is the last surviving member of the classic Derek and the Dominos lineup. Radle died in 1980 at age 37, and Gordon died in 2023 at age 77.
Related: Black Sabbath Legend Recalls Final Moments With Ozzy Osbourne
from Men's Journal https://ift.tt/qGsLlAB
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