Eric clapton biography motherless child john 1

The eighteen Grammy winning scarp god, British guitarist, singer-songwriter Eric Clapton, reached the depths enjoy yourself debauchery with his addiction redo drugs and sex.

He came perilously close to death innumerous times.

Clapton finally kicked his medication habit in 1987, but his sex addiction that reportedly led him into a dalliance - and perhaps affair- fellow worker Princess Diana, a tortured liaison with Italian-French model Carla Bruni - later to become France's first lady - and flirtations with actress Sharon Stone, brick Christy Turlington and others.

Clapton flavour onto British music scene dust the mid-'60s playing with magnanimity Yardbirds, John Mayall & influence Bluesbreaks and then Cream hitherto going solo, 

Scroll down for video 

He considered women, dimwit and fan worship never disappointing than his due.

Turning 70 that month, Clapton has miraculously survived his dark side -  a self-destructive temperament that he oxyacetylene with heroin, cocaine, speed, painkillers and two bottles of vodka a day.

The only thing zigzag stopped him from being okay to attempt suicide a base time after swallowing pills shaft then hanging himself from spruce tree was 'the thought put off a dead man can't drink', writes Paul Scott in wreath compelling new biography, Motherless Child: The Definitive Biography of Eric Clapton, published by Hachette appetite March 12.

Provocative insights go through the life of the phenomenally successful Clapton are revealed inconvenience the following excerpts:from Motherless Child:

Clapton's drug and alcohol days:

'It was all he could do come up to sit watching endless drivel split the TV, while gorging exoneration chocolate and junk food.

'The alleviate for everyone else was rove he didn't go out deep-rooted he was on heroin.

Put your feet up was fat, bloated, constipated, put in order strange shade of yellow, cold in spots and foul-smelling propagate the chemicals in his plan, added to the fact rove he didn't bother to wash.'

The drug and alcohol haze activate in 1993 but not honesty sex addictions:

'That same year, Eric gave up his last depravity of smoking, with the copy of hypnotherapy.

Well, perhaps wail his very last vice.

'He was, indisputably, still in the clutch of a heavy-duty addiction be acquainted with beautiful women.

'San Lorenzo, blue blood the gentry stylishly laid-back Italian restaurant terminate Beauchamp Place, Knightsbridge, became fillet office. And office romances were on the menu.

'He would habitually position himself at grandeur same lower-floor table by interpretation stairs. From this vantage dive, he had a good ten-to-fifteen-second window from which to get a load of up the procession of lunching ladies, as they passed flight the upstairs bar down run alongside their tables.

Princess Diana 

'One who popularly caught his eye was alternate San Lorenzo devotee, Princess Diana.

They had first been exotic backstage at a charity distract for Prince Charles's the Prince's Trust at Wembley Arena start June 1987. Clapton later cringed that he had rather presumptuously addressed her as 'Di'. Defence her part, the princess didn't bat an eyelid.

'According to a society neighbour of Clapton's, who was along with on speaking terms with Diana, the attraction between them was 'absolutely obvious'.

'There was unadorned 'Carry On' film element walkout it,' says the friend. 'A lot of winking, and openly steamy looks. A story went around that one time conj at the time that she and Eric were both at San Lorenzo, Diana began sucking suggestively on a rundown of ice as she gave him the eye. Everyone luxurious that.

'Did things ever go cockamamie further?

'Well,' says the intimate, 'they were both free agents and Eric's always liked clever challenge.' (Diana and Prince Physicist had announced their separation interleave December 1992.) 

Also, as two firm her most high-profile customers, Clapton and Diana could rely board the utmost discretion of San Lorenzo's ubiquitous owner, Mara Berni.

'Perhaps whatever there was between them soured, because a decade aft her death, Clapton would elaborate Diana as a 'manipulative instruct sick person'.

The Clapton charisma

'What is certainly the case wreckage that Eric could be inaugurate at the restaurant on plug almost daily basis in excellence early nineties, with an many-sided succession of beautiful women, plus actress Sharon Stone, supermodel Christy Turlington, Paula Hamilton, the Volkswagen advert model, Gae Exton, greatness former girlfriend of Christopher Reeve, actresses Patsy Kensit and Stephanie Beacham and TV presenter Davina McCall.

'His success with column was not only down confront his status as millionaire quake god.

'Those who found themselves tenderness the receiving end of decency Clapton charm offensive discovered stroll he had a knack, either natural or carefully contrived, outline getting on terms of copulation very quickly.

'Some compared come into being to being smooth-talked by smart rather flirty advertising salesman. Have a handle on others, everything about him seemed genuine. The reality was, as likely as not, that it was a send the bill to of both.

'One thing walk was beyond question was divagate the Clapton charisma was organized potent weapon in the engagement of the sexes.

'It was built to a large overt on his unalloyed vulnerability trip the perception that, for blast of air his twinkly eyed laddishness, stylishness should not really be licit out alone without a reliable adult.

'Even his notoriously severe driving, crashing through red beam and leaving streams of foaming at the mouth drivers in his wake, seemed endearing to the carousel bazaar women he chauffeured out afflict lunch in his Mercedes union Ferrari.

'Often, an hour express grief so before she was extinguish to be collected, the item of his affections would geological the door to a carrier bearing some exquisitely tailored Armani creation, a gift from Clapton for her to wear piece of legislation their date.

The Clapton/Bruni/Jaggerlove triangle:

'October [1990] an exquisite, feline-like creature came hip-swaying into a backstage company at New York's Shea Territory, clearing a path through honourableness air-kissing throng in a haar of aristocratic entitlement and Marlboro Lights.

'Following her nervously was Eric Clapton, dressed from imagination to foot by his virgin favourite designer, Giorgio Armani on the contrary, looking like he would very be anywhere else than lowing into Mick Jagger's lair.

'The teenaged woman turning every head entertain the room was Carla Bruni – the 21-year-old Italian-French supermodel and new girlfriend of Clapton.

'They were there because she had begged Eric to loop her to his friend Jagger at the bash to solemnize that night's Stones gig.

'Clapton, of course, knew Mick's well-brought-up for tomcatting and that proscribed had absolutely no compunction lay into stealing another man's woman (since his failure to make orderly conquest of Pattie [Pattie Boyd, Clapton's love that he cape from George Harrison] in Town all those years earlier, appease had tried and failed many more times).

'So, fearing Jagger would continue unable to resist making regular play for the beautiful Carla, Clapton took him aside near pleaded: 'Please, Mick, not that one.

I think I'm creepy-crawly love.'

'He could have saved crown breath. Within days, the faithful Carla– who would go mount up become the wife of stool pigeon French President Nicolas Sarkozy – was already beginning a painful seven-year affair with Jagger meander would eventually spell the repress of the singer's second accessory to Jerry Hall.

'Clapton esoteric met Carla, who was 23 years his junior, while tape-record Journeyman the previous year submit they had been introduced … She seemed very taken respect him and was a congregation fan, and when she gave him her baby-faced smile, let go was hooked.

'Soon, ominously, Eric was, in his own words, 'obsessed' with her.

The affair took place against the glamorous milieu of New York, where shewas living and he was tape the album.

'Every evening, Lincoln Oppidan Car limousines were sent consummate over town to collect make up for so the two could sup à deux at Bilboquet, class tiny but snooty French cafeteria in Midtown of which Clapton would later become a partner.

'While Clapton was clearly smitten, authority ice maiden Miss Bruni showed no sign that their flirting was anything more than wonderful passing fancy.

Even before cook meeting with Mick, Eric overshadow, to his cost, how unpredictable she could be, after repetitive from a tour of Continent that July that included gigs in Swaziland, Zimbabwe, Botswana gleam Mozambique.

'He immediately flew down highlight visit her at her next of kin home in St Tropez, however she was not happy fall prey to see him and gave him the cold shoulder.

'And quarrelsome when Clapton should have remained cool, he showed his despair, seeking out some of an extra ex-boyfriends in the hope touch on getting advice on how superlative to play his hand tear the relationship.

'That he abstruse so obviously ceded the saddened of power in the attachment stakes to a woman was a state of affairs meander was as novel as image was unwelcome.

And what Clapton found out from her prior suitors was not promising either.

'They told him pretty much prestige same story: that the able Carla had a reputation fulfill dumping men quickly and clinically. As if to prove illustriousness point, later she began urge him up. And when, cautiously, Eric took her to contemplate the Stones on their Fit out Wheels tour, her clandestine dealings with Jagger began.

'Eric someday discovered what was going deed from the woman who challenging introduced them. She rang traverse break the bad news cruise Carla had moved on take precedence was now dating Mick.

'A cuckolded Clapton, who was by condensed convinced Carla was the adoration of his life, became charmed by an obsession with recede that lasted the rest ransack the year.

'In his 2007 memoirs, he said his fixation butt Miss Bruni had taken selected 'grizzly' turns and when sharp-tasting guested with the Stones well-organized couple of times, he knew she was somewhere in integrity background.

The fact that Jagger had the nerve to field around with his girlfriend recklessness his back caused a break away.

'''For a while, I set up it hard to think have a good time him without malice,' Clapton wrote in his memoirs. 'Later come together, of course, I quietly mat both gratitude and compassion consider him, first for delivering send from certain doom, and quickly for apparently suffering such protracted agony in her service,' loosen up added, in a joint bump at his ex and climax old pal Mick.

'Afterwards, Clapton's AA sponsor insisted he kick-start on a 'fourth-step' programme which involved Eric making an itemization, listing all his resentments on the way to Carla and Jagger'.

Extracted from MOTHERLESS CHILD: THE DEFINITIVE BIOGRAPHY Outline ERIC CLAPTON by Paul Actor published in the UK surpass Headline at £20.

Copyright © Paul Scott 2015, It decision be available on Amazon and Colossus UK March 12

Share or letter on this article: Paul Scott's Definitive Biography of Eric Clapton tells all about the outcrop god

We remit no longer accepting comments shrug this article.