This felt like one of those sordid, scandalous, tell-all biographies published during 1950s and 1960s with intention to sell tons of copies by sheer strength of amount of dirt in them (see Billie Holiday, Anita O'Day books) - one difference is that those books were so focused on drugs & alcohol abuse that music was rarely mentioned, while to be fair to Clapton, he discusses music lovingly as a leading force in his life. Than he talks about getting drunk again.
I must have been the only person in the world who was not aware of the fact that Eric Clapton spent most of his life as either drug or alcohol addict. Very celebrated and highly respected addict, but addict nevertheless. For some reason - probably because I was kind of aware of his presence but never truly interested to go that way - I simply assumed he is part of British rock aristocracy and left it at that. Besides some casual facts collected from magazines, I didn't know much about him so I have approached this book with real curiosity, while I listened his albums at the same time (which I started to kind of like, to my surprise).
Well, well.
It's interesting how people decide to describe their life: some get all flowery and poetic, other hide behind telling basically nothing, third dive into warts and all, like its some kind of therapy. Clapton obviously goes the third way. It could be the only honest way, considering his age and point in life, you probably have clearer view from a certain point and no need to hide anymore, I guess. He is absolutely adorable as long as he was describing childhood and upbringing in a sleepy little provincial town - first books, first records, radio programs, TV shows and his love for Buddy Holly - but as soon as he approaches adolescence and substances rear their heads, my eyebrows lifted in suspicion. And they basically stayed there for the rest of the book. Yes, I understand these were 1960s and everybody was supposed to do drugs all the time but following the cattle was never my priority and it repels me. Once I got over my own necessary, youthful period of experiments and wrapped my head around the fact what makes me happy, I consciously stayed clear from anything that could affect my mood and decided that messing with substances is immature. Its for teenagers to get smashed and roll in their own vomit. Which is what Clapton was doing a lot, according to his book.
To be fair to Eric Clapton, he really admits his own weaknesses, obsessions and attempts to clean up - which was very difficult, considering most of his buddies were hard drinking, drugs users so sooner or later he was pulled back into old habits. And towards the end of the book he dies clean up his act and turns into happy family man, grandfatherly figure surrounded with daughters who probably charm him off his feet. I feel his whole reason to come up with this book might be not so much to come clean to himself as perhaps support to countless potential addicts around the world who might get inspired by his example. After all, this is a man who after a lifetime of all sorts of addictions, eventually left them all behind. It was a fascinating read and I still have lots of love for Clapton as musician, its just that I am not so sure about all this dope, boozing and drugs - it simply does not appeal to me and I don't think its "cool" - it is so wide-spread and accepted as social behavior that not participating in it almost makes you a weirdo, which is the situation I am nowadays. Even Clapton himself admits that once he stopped boozing it was hard - but not impossible - to collected pieces and find other hobbies and ways to live.
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