Clapton listened to Sgt. Pepper of the Beatles and did not sleep for 3 days

In 1967 Eric Clapton it was not a big fan of Beatlesbut equally participated in the listening party of “Sgt. Pepper’sLonely Hearts Club Band “ (Read the review here), the eighth album of the Liverpool band. Clapton later said that he found the experience of listening to the moving album. An experience that lasted for a few days, probably due to the consumption of a new kind of LSD that felt for the first time on that occasion.

This is the story of the British musician as reported in his book

‘Clapton: The Autobiography’: “I was at the club with my girlfriend Charlotte when the Beatles entered with an acetate of their new album,“ Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band “. Shortly after, the Monkees arrived and one of them started distributing these pills, which said they were called stp. I had no idea what they were, but someone explained that it was a super strong acid, which would last for several days”.

After listening to the album, the whole company came out on the street in the early hours of the morning. Although it was a long night, Clapton couldn’t sleep. And he would not have succeeded for the following days. Still from his Memoir: “I was done for another three days. I could not sleep and I saw the most extraordinary things. Without Charlotte’s guide, I would probably have gone mad. Most of my view seemed to be as through a glass screen with hieroglyphics and mathematical equations painted above, I remember that I could not eat meat because it seemed to me the animal.

As said Eric Clapton it was not a big fan of Beatlesbut he heard that he should have gone to that listening. He writes again in the autobiography: “Although I was not in the least intimidated by the Beatles, I was aware that this was a very special moment for anyone there. Their music had gradually evolved over the years and everyone expected that this album was their masterpiece. It is assumed that it was written under the effect of acid, so it was an incredible experience listening to it in our conditions. The influence of George, and a certain point the song “Hare Krishna, Hare Krishna, Hare Krishna” began to be heard in the club.

Just a year later,
Eric Clapton
He played the guitar in an album of
Beatles
. His friend
George Harrison
He invited him to play a guitar solo in
“While My Guitar Gently Weeps”
for the
“White Album” (read the review here)
. The then 23 -year -old Clapton admitted that he was rather surprised by the request, as in his way of seeing Harrison was a talented guitarist. However, he felt he could not refuse. “I was quite flattered, thinking that not many people are asked to play on a Beatles record. I hadn’t even brought my guitar with me, so I had to borrow his.”