Skip navigation

No more 'Tears in
Heaven' for Clapton

Guitar legend says he doesn't
feel loss of son anymore

Image: Clapton
Jeff Christensen / REUTERS
Music legend Eric Clapton wrote the song "Tears in Heaven" after the death of his son, Conor.
updated 10:37 a.m. ET March 11, 2004

NEW YORK - Two of Eric Clapton’s best-known songs are gone from his concert repertoire — perhaps for good.

The guitar legend found, during a series of concerts in Japan a few months ago, that he couldn’t perform “Tears in Heaven” and “My Father’s Eyes.”

The songs, both Grammy Award winners, deal with the loss of his 4-year-old son, Conor, who died when he fell from a New York apartment in 1991.

Story continues below ↓
advertisement | your ad here

“I didn’t feel the loss anymore, which is so much a part of performing those songs,” he said in an interview with The Associated Press.

“I really have to connect with the feelings that were there when I wrote them,” he said. “They’re kind of gone and I really don’t want them to come back, particularly. My life is a different life now.”

He said he’d feel conflicted to sing the songs at a time when he’s happy.

“They probably need a rest,” he said, “and maybe I’ll introduce them from a much more detached point of view.”

© 2009 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

  MORE FROM ROCK  
  
Pearl Jam boxes up shows for June release
 
Add Rock headlines to your news reader:
 

Sponsored links

Resource guide