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The Latest Breaking News from Eric Clapton

"I remember Jimmy yelling at us and calling us hooligans": Jimmy Page, Keith Moon, Jeff Beck and the chaotic session that sowed the seeds for Led Zeppelin

In a small London studio, two Yardbirds, one member of The Who and a pair of passing session maestros united to record a spontaneous instrumental track. Things would never be the same again.

Louder

“I’m not a great lyricist or songwriter or producer. It's when you put all these things together — that makes me”: The 5 George Harrison post-Beatles songs you need to hear

Freed from the creative confines of The Beatles, George Harrison set out to realise his true creative potential. Here are five of his finest works…

MusicRadar

“Eric, I know I can bring out something great in you”: In 1971, John Lennon wrote to Eric Clapton asking him to help form a new band – now that letter is going up for auction

Lennon sought out Slowhand as he set about establishing a new band, pitching to Clapton they could “make the kind of sound that could bring back the balls in rock 'n' roll”

Guitar World

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“I know I can bring out something great in you... I hope to bring out the same kind of greatness in all of us”: Newly unearthed Lennon letter to Clapton reveals plans for supergroup

Ex-Beatle hoped group would “bring the balls back in rock 'n’ roll”

MusicRadar

"You could make the kind of sound that could bring back the balls in rock ‘n’ roll": John Lennon's eight-page letter to Eric Clapton asking to start a band with him is headed to auction

After their brief collaboration together in 1969 with the Plastic Ono Band, John Lennon had hopes of recruiting Clapton for a "revolutionary" new supergroup, one where wives and girlfriends were "welcome" on the road instead of "frowned upon"

Louder

John Lennon’s damning view on touring with The Beatles revealed in letter to Eric Clapton

Musician made no secret of how he felt as he wrote to Clapton with an idea for a ‘supergroup’

The Independent UK

The 13 most controversial album covers of all time, from The Beatles to Nirvana: ‘We’re all naked really’

THE COUNTDOWN: From flagrant nudity to cartoon bestiality, there are all sorts of reasons cover art can spark controversy. Kevin E G Perry picks some of the most memorable examples

The Independent UK

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John Lennon letter inviting Eric Clapton to join supergroup to be auctioned

1971 letter proposes group including Klaus Voormann and Phil Spector to ‘bring back the balls in rock’n’roll’

The Guardian - UK

John Lennon's 1971 draft letter to Eric Clapton expected to fetch at least €100,000 at auction

John Lennon's draft letter to Eric Clapton asking him to join his new band is set to go under the hammer.

BANG Premier

What to stream: Michael Fassbender spies, yacht rock doc, Ben Stiller, the Beatles and Lindsay Lohan

The Oscar-nominated animated charmer “Robot Dreams” and the romantic comedy “Sweethearts” are some of this week’s new streaming entertainment releases

The Independent UK

“One of the most important guitars in rock and roll history”: George Harrison’s Futurama smashes auction estimate and sets a new record with staggering $1.27 million sale

The oddball electric – which was used during the Beatles’ early years, and saw action in over 300 historic shows – becomes the most expensive electric guitar formerly owned by a Beatle to sell at auction

Guitar World

“One of the most important guitars in rock and roll history and formative to The Beatles’ sound, has made history”: George Harrison’s Futurama electric sells for a record $1.27 million at auction

The 1959 electric Harrison played during the Beatles' early days joins the one-million dollar club and Mary Kaye’s 1956 Strat sells for $222,250

MusicRadar

Vic Flick, guitarist on the James Bond theme, dies aged 87

Famed session musician, who also performed with the Beatles, Tom Jones, Jimmy Page and Eric Clapton, died after being diagnosed with Alzheimer’s

The Guardian - AU

“We are honoured that our company’s relationship with the legendary guitar player continues to this day”: Dunlop salutes wah pedal pioneer Eric Clapton with a gold-plated signature Cry Baby

Doing that scrapyard bling...

MusicRadar

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What Hi-Fi?

That Was Then... Argo and Alecto: Michell's forgotten amplifier gems

Turntable legends, Michell Engineering once built terrific amplifiers too...

Guitar World

“I’m playing a nice old Gibson ES-335 through Lowell George’s Dumble amplifier…” Joe Bonamassa brings out the holy grail gear to explain how to get into a slow blues jam – and, crucially, how you can get out of it

In this exclusive video lesson, the bluesman walks us through an essential skill for the blues guitar player, the slow blues… And he’s going to demonstrate how using an amp it took him 15 years to track down

MusicRadar

“Jim took the melody from Rita’s song and didn’t give her credit for writing it”: The piano that was used to record the famous coda from Derek & The Dominos' Layla is up for sale, but the writing credit for it remains controversial

Rita Coolidge claims that she wrote the part with her then boyfriend Jim Gordon, but her contribution was never officially acknowledged

Guitar World

“Bringing back the classic rock tones that started a revolution”: Behringer rolls out a $65 Tone Bender copy – promising the fuzz sounds of Eric Clapton, Jimmy Page and Pete Townshend in an ultra-affordable format

The budget pedal offers two modes inspired by different iterations of the legendary fuzz stompbox, as well as a smaller ergonomics to maximize pedalboard space

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MusicRadar

“I asked him if he played air guitar. He said, ‘Why would I when I can play real guitar?’”: Eric Clapton had a perfectly logical response when comedian Frank Skinner asked him if he ever plays air guitar

Skinner also argues that “Queen were to rock music what Showaddywaddy were to ‘50s rock’n’roll”

Guitar World

“I might have done better in the Bluesbreakers than in the Yardbirds, but I certainly wouldn't have had the same kind of free rein to experiment”: Jeff Beck on his relationship with Eric Clapton, jamming with Hendrix, and turning down John Mayall

In a 2010 chat with GW, the always creatively restless virtuoso discusses his love of John McLaughlin, what he sought out to do when venturing into the world of classical music, and the musical icon he wished he had had the chance to collaborate with

Guitar World

“You can only imagine the effect this had on the young Keith Richards and Eric Clapton”: 9 must-hear albums that fueled the British blues guitar boom

The essential records that chart blues music’s epic journey – from its Delta roots through to the masterpiece that launched the heavy rock movement

Louder

“People used to say to me, ‘Oh, you’re better than Eric Clapton.’ I didn’t know where to put myself”: The triumph and tragedy of Peter Green, the man who founded Fleetwood Mac

Peter Green was one of the greatest guitarists of the late 60s British blues boom – but he never truly conquered his demons

Guitar World

“It’s the most beautiful musical instrument that humans have constructed. It’s an impossibility, and truly an American invention”: Justin Vernon, aka Bon Iver, on why he put pedal steel guitar front and center on his latest release

Vernon reunited with pedal steel guitar master Greg Leisz – who previously worked with Eric Clapton, David Crosby, and Sheryl Crow – for his 2024 release SABLE

Guitar World

“The tone EC achieved on that record has become one of the classic archetypes for how an electric guitarshould sound”: How Eric Clapton got his tone on John Mayall and the Bluesbreakers’ ‘Beano’ album

The ‘Beano’ album has become a benchmark for how a Les Paul ’Burst and a Marshall could sound together. But how Clapton got that tone is a little more complex than that...

Guitar World

What if Jimi Hendrix jammed with Eric Clapton, or Gary Moore traded solos with Joe Bonamassa? We imagine 5 all-star fantasy blues jams and what they would sound like

Welcome to an all-star fantasy blues jam, featuring a greatest hits of blues players, their signature licks, and how to put them together and incorporate them in your own playing

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