Rock guitarist and singer, born in Ripley, Surrey, SE England, UK. In the 1960s he was in British rhythm-and-blues bands The Yardbirds and John Mayall’s Bluesbreakers, then ‘supergroups’ Cream and Blind Faith. He has since played and recorded with most of the great names of rock music. ‘Layla’, recorded in 1970 with Duane Allman and others under the name of Derek and the Dominoes, is considered a rock classic by many, as are ‘I Shot the Sheriff’, ‘Lay Down Sally’, and ‘Wonderful Tonight’. His album Eric Clapton: Unplugged reached number 3 in the UK charts in 1992, and he was voted Variety Club Best Recording Artist the same year. One of his guitars became the most expensive to sell at auction, fetching £527 000 in 2004.