Layla - Beyond The Original Album

Beyond The Original Album

The album Layla and Other Assorted Love Songs opened to lacklustre sales (the album never reached the charts in Britain), possibly in part because Clapton's name was found only on the back cover. In addition, the song's length proved prohibitive for radio airplay; as a result an edited version of the song, trimmed to 2:43, was released as a single in March 1971 by Atco Records (US). It peaked at #51 on the Billboard Hot 100.

When "Layla" was re-released on the 1972 compilation The History of Eric Clapton and then released as a single, it charted at #7 in the UK and #10 in the US. In 1982 "Layla" was re-released as a single in the UK, and peaked at #4. This time the whole 7 minute single charted, containing the trailing two-thirds which is instrumental only.

Critical opinion since has been overwhelmingly positive. Dave Marsh, in The Rolling Stone Illustrated History of Rock and Roll, wrote that "there are few moments in the repertoire of recorded rock where a singer or writer has reached so deeply into himself that the effect of hearing them is akin to witnessing a murder or a suicide... to me 'Layla' is the greatest of them." Marsh listed "Layla" at #156 in his The Heart of Rock & Soul: The 1001 Greatest Singles Ever Made.

In May 1980 it was covered by the London Symphony Orchestra, but without the lyrics, being recorded at EMI Studio One, Abbey Road, London. A similar version has been performed by the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra.

On 20 September 1983 a benefit show called the ARMS Charity Concert for Multiple Sclerosis at the Royal Albert Hall in London featured a jam with Eric Clapton, Jeff Beck, and Jimmy Page performing "Layla". Clapton, Beck, and Page were the Yardbirds' successive lead guitarists from 1963 to 1968.

In 1992 Clapton was invited to play for the MTV Unplugged series. His subsequent album, Unplugged, featured a number of blues standards and his new "Tears in Heaven." It also featured an "unplugged" version of "Layla". The new arrangement slowed down and reworked the original riff and dispensed with the piano coda. Clapton introduced this version to the unsuspecting live audience by stating "See if you can spot this one." This version climbed to #12 on the US pop chart, but failed to chart in Britain. In 1992 it won the Grammy Award for Best Rock Song, beating out "Smells Like Teen Spirit" by Nirvana, one of the ten biggest upsets in Grammy history, according to Entertainment Weekly.

In 2003 the Allman Brothers Band began playing the song in concert. Warren Haynes sang the vocal, Gregg Allman played the piano part, and Derek Trucks played Duane Allman's guitar parts during the coda. The performances were seen as a tribute not only to Allman, but also to producer Tom Dowd, who had died the previous year.