Eric Clapton Addressed Love Letters to Pattie Boyd to ‘Layla,’ the Name of the Song He Wrote for Her
In 1970, Eric Clapton wrote his secret love, Pattie Boyd, one of the most famous classic rock love songs, “Layla.” Before he showed his tune to the object of his affection, Clapton sent Boyd, the wife of his best friend, George Harrison, love letters. He addressed them to “Layla.”
Eric Clapton briefly dated Pattie Boyd’s sister while she began having problems with George
Boyd met George Harrison on the set of The Beatles’ A Hard Day’s Night in 1964. He proposed to her that day. She broke up with her boyfriend to date George. Suddenly everything came to Boyd faster, but being the girlfriend and later wife of a Beatle wasn’t always a walk in the park.
Boyd dealt with George’s fans, who assaulted her and sent her hate mail. In the late 1960s, Boyd and George started their spiritual journey. Soon, George became more interested in being God-conscious than married to her. She felt left out and abandoned. However, Boyd loved her husband, although she claims he started being unfaithful.
Meanwhile, George and Clapton started hanging out a lot. Suddenly, Boyd realized that Clapton thought she was attractive and went out of his way to make her laugh and smile whenever he came over to visit George.
“I was aware that Eric found me attractive and I enjoyed the attention he paid me,” Boyd said (per the Daily Mail).
“It was hard not to be flattered when I caught him staring at me or when he chose to sit beside me. He complimented me on what I was wearing and the food I had cooked, and he said things he knew would make me laugh. Those were all things that George no longer did.”
In December 1969, Boyd took her 17-year-old sister Paula to see Clapton perform. Paula was “a bit of a wild child” and earned Clapton’s attention. Eventually, Paula moved in with Clapton. However, she wasn’t exactly the Boyd sister Clapton wanted to be with.
In March 1970, George and Boyd moved into their new home, a huge quirky mansion called Friar Park. Shortly after moving in, Boyd got a mysterious letter addressed to “Layla.”
Clapton wrote a love letter to Boyd
Boyd received a letter in the mail one morning with the words “express” and “urgent” written on the envelope.
“Inside I found a small piece of paper… I read: ‘Dearest l, as you have probably gathered, my own home affairs are a galloping farce, which is rapidly degenerating day by intolerable day . . . it seems like an eternity since I last saw or spoke to you!’
“He needed to ascertain my feelings: I’d I still love my husband or did I have another lover? More crucially, did I still have feelings in my heart for him? He had to know, and urged me to write. ‘Please do this, whatever it may say, my mind will be at rest . . .’all my love, E.'”
Boyd assumed it was from “some weirdo.” Still, Boyd showed the love letter to George who laughed and dismissed it. That evening, Boyd got a call from Clapton. He said, “Did you get my letter?”
According to The Telegraph, Boyd received many love letters from Clapton, all addressed to “Layla,” “a reference to an ancient Arabian love story.” One of his letters appears in Boyd’s new book, My Life In Pictures. In one, he writes, “If you want me, take me, I am yours.”
Clapton later wrote Boyd a song named “Layla.”
The guitarist wrote ‘Layla’ for Boyd
Later, Clapton wrote a song called “Layla” for Boyd. They secretly met, and Clapton played her the song.
“He switched on the tape machine, turned up the volume and played me the most powerful, moving song I had ever heard,” Boyd said. “It was Layla, about a man who falls hopelessly in love with a woman who loves him but is unavailable.
“He played it to me two or three times, all the while watching my face intently for my reaction. My first thought was: ‘Oh God, everyone’s going to know this is about me.'”
Boyd was still with George, but Clapton “had been making his desire for me clear for months. I felt uncomfortable that he was pushing me in a direction in which I wasn’t certain I wanted to go.”
Clapton pleaded with Boyd to leave George. “But with the realisation that I had inspired such passion and creativity, the song got the better of me. I could resist no longer,” Boyd explained.
That evening, Boyd saw a show. After the intermission, Boyd found Clapton sitting next to her when she returned to her seat. After the show, Clapton appeared at the same party Boyd attended at Robert Stigwood’s home. Boyd was secretly thrilled Clapton was there, and they spent the whole evening together.
Then, George arrived and asked for his wife. He found her in the garden with Clapton. “George came over and demanded: ‘What’s going on?’ To my horror, Eric said: ‘I have to tell you, man, that I’m in love with your wife,'” Boyd said.
“I wanted to die. George was furious. He turned to me and said: ‘Well, are you going with him or coming with me?'” Boyd stayed with George, but his infidelities continued. She went to Clapton for comfort. Eventually, Boyd and George separated, and she began dating Clapton. They married in 1979. However, their marriage only lasted 10 years.
Even though Boyd doesn’t consider herself a muse, “Layla” has remained one of the most famous rock ‘n’ roll love songs.
