Layla

File:George Harrison and Pattie Boyd.jpg

In 1966, Beatles guitarist George Harrison married Pattie Boyd, a model he met two years before during the filming of A Hard Day's Night. During the late 1960s, Clapton and Harrison became close friends. Clapton contributed uncredited (although openly acknowledged) guitar work on Harrison's song "While My Guitar Gently Weeps" on the Beatles' self-titled double album (also known as the White Album), and Harrison co-wrote and played guitar on Cream's "Badge" from Goodbye. However, between his tenures in Cream and Blind Faith, Clapton fell in love with Boyd.{{sfn|Clapton|2007|p=106}}

The title of "Layla" was inspired by the story of Layla and Majnun, which Clapton had been told by his friend Ian Dallas,{{sfn|Clapton|2007|p=109}} who was in the process of converting to Islam. Nizami's tale, about a moon princess who was married off by her father to a man she did not love, resulting in Majnun's madness, struck a deep chord with Clapton.{{cite web|last=Patterson|first=Jean|url= http://www.azer.com/aiweb/categories/magazine/63_folder/63_articles/63_clapton.html|title=Crazy About "Layla": Eric Clapton Song Inspired by Nizami, 12th century Azerbaijani Poet|date=Autumn 1998|publisher=Azerbaijan International|access-date=14 June 2011}}

Boyd divorced Harrison in 1977 and married Clapton in 1979 during a concert stop in Tucson, Arizona.{{sfn|Boyd|Junor|2008|p={{page needed|date=June 2020}}}} Harrison was not bitter about the divorce and attended Clapton's wedding party with his former bandmates Ringo Starr and Paul McCartney.{{cite news|url=https://americansongwriter.com/remember-when-eric-clapton-married-pattie-boyd-george-harrisons-ex-45-years-ago/|title=Remember When Eric Clapton Married Pattie Boyd, George Harrison's Ex, 45 Years Ago|newspaper=American Songwriter|author=

Matt Friedlander|date=27 March 2024|access-date=21 November 2024}} During their relationship, Clapton wrote another love ballad for Boyd, "Wonderful Tonight" (1977).{{cite magazine|url=https://www.guitarworld.com/pattie-boyd-woman-behind-eric-claptons-wonderful-tonight|title=Pattie Boyd: The Woman Behind Eric Clapton's 'Wonderful Tonight'|magazine=Guitar World|author=Tony Grassi|date=31 July 2011|access-date=2 February 2013}} Clapton and Boyd divorced in 1989.{{cite magazine|url=http://www.time.com/time/specials/packages/article/0,28804,2021828_2021854_2021947,00.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101001073531/http://www.time.com/time/specials/packages/article/0,28804,2021828_2021854_2021947,00.html|url-status=dead|archive-date=1 October 2010|title=George Harrison, Eric Clapton and Pattie Boyd|magazine=Time|author=Claire Suddath|date=28 September 2010|access-date=2 February 2013}}

After the break-up of Cream, Clapton tried his hand with several groups, including Blind Faith and the husband-and-wife duo Delaney & Bonnie. In the spring of 1970, he was told that some members of Delaney & Bonnie's back-up band, including bassist Carl Radle, drummer Jim Gordon and keyboardist Bobby Whitlock, were leaving the group. Seizing the opportunity, Clapton formed a new group with Whitlock, Radle and Gordon.{{cite web |last=Williamson |first=Nigel |url=http://www.uncut.co.uk/music/eric_clapton/reviews/8542/ |title=Derek and The Dominos – Layla & Other Assorted ... |access-date=14 June 2011}} Naming themselves Derek and the Dominos, the band "made our bones", according to Clapton, while backing Harrison on his first post-Beatles solo album, All Things Must Pass.{{cite magazine|author=White, Timothy|title=Rollin' & Tumblin'|magazine=Spin|date=March 1990|page=36}}

During the recording of the Layla album, Duane Allman joined Clapton's fledgling band as a guest. Clapton and Allman, already mutual fans, were introduced by Tom Dowd at an Allman Brothers concert at the Miami Beach Convention Center on 26 August 1970.{{cite video|people=Moormann, Mark|date=2003|title=Tom Dowd & the Language of Music|publisher=Force Entertainment|location=New York|oclc=225191912}}{{cite web|url=https://www.whereseric.com/eric-clapton-news/303-eric-clapton-jams-allman-brothers-band |title=Eric Clapton Jams with the Allman Brothers Band! |date=20 March 2009 |access-date=17 April 2020}} The two hit it off well and soon became good friends. Dowd said of their guitar-playing chemistry: "There had to be some sort of telepathy going on because I've never seen spontaneous inspiration happen at that rate and level. One of them would play something, and the other reacted instantaneously. Never once did either of them have to say, 'Could you play that again, please?' It was like two hands in a glove. And they got tremendously off on playing with each other."{{cite web |url=https://www.guitarworld.com/article/100_greatest_guitar_solos_14_quotlaylaquot_eric_clapton_duane_allman |title=100 Greatest Guitar Solos: 14.) Layla (Eric Clapton, Duane Allman) |work=Guitar World |date=28 October 2008 |access-date=15 September 2009 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090831061616/http://www.guitarworld.com/article/100_greatest_guitar_solos_14_quotlaylaquot_eric_clapton_duane_allman |archive-date=31 August 2009 }} Dowd was already famous for a variety of work and had worked with Clapton in his Cream days (Clapton once called him "the ideal recording man"); his work on the album would be another achievement. For the making of his biographical film Tom Dowd & the Language of Music, he remixed the original master tapes of "Layla",{{cite web |first=Halsey |last=Derek |url=http://gritz.net/features/tom_dowd.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20050210215136/http://gritz.net/features/tom_dowd.html |archive-date=10 February 2005 |title=Tom Dowd: The Legendary Producer Dies on 27 October 2002 |publisher=Gritz |access-date=14 June 2011}} saying, "There are my principles, in one form or another."{{time needed|date=June 2011}}

Clapton originally wrote "Layla" as a ballad, with lyrics describing his unrequited love for Boyd, but the song became a "rocker" when, according to Clapton, Allman composed the song's signature riff.{{sfn|Schumacher|2003|p=151}} With the band assembled and Dowd producing, "Layla" was recorded in its rock form. The recording of the first section consisted of sixteen tracks of which six were guitar tracks: a rhythm part by Clapton, three tracks of harmonies played by Clapton (the main power chord riff on both channels and two harmonies against that main riff, one on the left channel and one on the right channel), a track of solos by Allman (fretted solos with bent notes during the verses and a slide solo during the outro), and one track with both Allman and Clapton playing duplicate solos (the 7-note "signature" riff doubled in two octaves and the 12-note "signature" riff doubled in unison). According to Clapton, Allman played the first seven notes of the 12-note "signature" riff fretted and the last five notes on slide in standard tuning.Guitar Player Magazine, July 1985, pp. 71–72 Each player used one input of the same two-input Fender Champ amplifier.ToneQuest Report, January–February 2010, Vol. 11, No. 3.

Shortly afterwards, Clapton returned to the studio, where he heard Jim Gordon playing a piano piece he had composed separately. Impressed by the piece, Clapton convinced Gordon to allow it to be used as part of the song. Though only Gordon has been credited with this part, according to Whitlock, "Jim took that piano melody from his ex-girlfriend Rita Coolidge. I know because in the D&B days I lived in John Garfield's old house in the Hollywood Hills and there was a guest house with an upright piano in it. Rita and Jim were up there in the guest house and invited me to join in on writing this song with them called 'Time' ... Her sister Priscilla wound up recording it with Booker T. Jones ... Jim took the melody from Rita's song and didn't give her credit for writing it. Her boyfriend ripped her off."{{cite web|title=Layla's 40th: The Where's Eric! Interview With Bobby Whitlock|url=http://whereseric.com/eric-clapton-news/303-laylas-40th-wheres-eric-interview-bobby-whitlock}} "Time" ended up on the 1973 album Chronicles by Booker T. and Priscilla Jones. Whitlock's story was echoed by Coolidge herself in her 2016 autobiography. The claim is also repeated in Graham Nash's 2014 autobiography Wild Tales.

"Layla"'s second movement (the "Piano Exit") was recorded roughly a week after the first, with Gordon playing his piano part, Clapton playing acoustic guitar and slide guitar, and Allman playing electric and bottleneck slide guitar.Original Criteria studio Track Identification Chart After Dowd spliced the two movements together, "Layla" was complete.

\relative a' {

\key f \major

\time 4/4

r2 r8 a16 c16 d16 f16 (d16) c16 d1~ d2~ d8

a16 c16 d16 f16 (d16) c16 d1~ d2~ d8

a' 16 c16 d16 f16 d16 c16

}

The opening five bars to the guitar part of "Layla"

Due to the circumstances of its composition, "Layla" is defined by two movements, each marked by a riff. The first movement, which was recorded in the key of D minor for choruses and C-sharp minor for verses,{{sfn|Perrin|Clapton|1996|p={{page needed|date=June 2020}}}} is centred on the "signature riff", a guitar piece using hammer-ons, pull-offs and power chords. The first section contains the overdub-heavy slide guitar solo, played by Allman. By placing his slide at points beyond the end of the fretboard, Allman was able to play notes at a higher pitch than could be played with standard technique. Dowd referred to this as "notes that aren't on the instrument."{{time needed|date=June 2011}}

The second movement is commonly referred to as the "Piano Exit".{{cite web|url=http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio2/soldonsong/songlibrary/layla.shtml | title= Sold on Song Top 100: Layla|publisher=BBC Radio 2 |access-date=14 June 2011}} Originally played in C major, the tape speed of the coda was increased slightly during mixing. The resulting pitch is somewhere between C and C sharp. The piano interlude at the end of the song is augmented by an acoustic guitar, and is also the accompaniment to the outro-solo. The same melody is also played on Allman's slide guitar an octave higher. Gordon does not improvise or deviate from the piano part; Clapton and Allman are the ones who improvise the melody. The song ends with Allman playing his signature high-pitched "bird call" on his slide guitar. This portion is featured prominently in the film Goodfellas.

Clapton commented on the song:{{cite web|last=Hrano|first=Mike|url=http://www.eric-clapton.co.uk/interviewsandarticles/reptileinterview.htm | title=Eric Clapton – The Mike Hrano Interview|access-date=14 June 2011}}

{{Blockquote|"Layla" is a difficult one, because it's a difficult song to perform live. You have to have a good complement of musicians to get all of the ingredients going, but when you've got that ... It's difficult to do as a quartet, for instance, because there are some parts you have to play and sing completely opposing lines, which is almost impossible to do. If you've got a big band, which I will have on the tour, then it will be easy to do something like "Layla" – and I'm very proud of it. I love to hear it. It's almost like it's not me. It's like I'm listening to someone that I really like. Derek and The Dominos was a band I really liked – and it's almost like I wasn't in that band. It's just a band that I'm a fan of. Sometimes, my own music can be like that. When it's served its purpose to being good music, I don't associate myself with it any more. It's like someone else. It's easy to do those songs then.}}

Pattie Boyd later reflected: "I think that he was amazingly raw at the time ... He's such an incredible musician that he's able to put his emotions into music in such a way that the audience can feel it instinctively. It goes right through you."{{cite news|last=Leopold|first=Todd|url=http://www.cnn.com/2005/SHOWBIZ/Music/02/03/pattie.boyd |title=Harrison, Clapton, and their muse|publisher=CNN|date=3 February 2005|access-date=14 June 2011}}

;Musicianship

• Eric Clapton – lead vocals, rhythm guitar, lead guitar, acoustic guitar
• Duane Allman – slide guitar
• Bobby Whitlock – piano, Hammond organ, harmony vocals
• Jim Gordon – piano, drums, percussion
• Carl Radle – bass guitar

;Production

• Tom Dowd – producer
• Ron Albert, Howard Albert, Mack Emerman, Chuck Kirkpatrick, Karl Richardson – recording engineers

Layla and Other Assorted Love Songs opened to lacklustre sales as the Derek and the Dominos album never actually reached the music charts in the United Kingdom, 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.{{sfn|Gambaccini|1987|p={{page needed|date=June 2020}}}} As a result, a shortened version of the song, consisting of the first 2:43 of Part I, was released as a single in March 1971 by Atco Records in the United States. The version peaked at number 51 on the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart. When "Layla" was re-released on the 1972 compilations The History of Eric Clapton and Duane Allman's An Anthology and then released the full 7:10 version (including the "Piano Exit" that formed Part II) as a single, it charted at number seven in the United Kingdom and reached number 10 in the United States. With good sales figures, the Billboard magazine was able to rank the Rock single as the 60th best-selling song in 1972.

In 1982, "Layla" was re-released as a single in the United Kingdom, and peaked at number four. This time the whole seven-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."{{sfn|Gambaccini|1987|p={{page needed|date=June 2020}}}} Marsh listed "Layla" at number 156 in his The Heart of Rock & Soul: The 1001 Greatest Singles Ever Made.{{sfn|Marsh|1999|pp=109–110}}

In May 1980, "Layla" was covered by the London Symphony Orchestra, but without the lyrics, being recorded at EMI Studio One, Abbey Road, London.{{cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=urWqOOox-Qg | archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211118/urWqOOox-Qg| archive-date=18 November 2021 | url-status=live|title=London symphony orchestra – Layla (1981) |publisher=YouTube |date=9 April 2008 |access-date=18 March 2012}}{{cbignore}} A similar version has been performed by the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra.{{cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KYihP5qQ04A | archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211118/KYihP5qQ04A| archive-date=18 November 2021 | url-status=live|title=The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra – Layla | date=13 October 2008|publisher=YouTube |access-date=18 March 2012}}{{cbignore}} 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".{{cite web|url= https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2O6R-ZOuMjY| archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211118/2O6R-ZOuMjY| archive-date=18 November 2021 | url-status=live|title=Layla – Eric Clapton, The Stones, Jeff Beck, Jimmy Page|date=7 March 2008|publisher=Bram Schouten|access-date=29 June 2020|via=YouTube}}{{cbignore}} Clapton, Beck, and Page were the Yardbirds' successive lead guitarists from 1963 to 1968.{{cite web|url=http://www.theyardbirds.com/bio.html|title=The Yardbirds: Happenings 35 Years Time Later|access-date=14 June 2011}}

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.{{cite magazine|url=https://www.allaboutjazz.com/the-allman-brothers-band-in-concert-beacon-theatre-2003-allman-brothers-band-by-doug-collette.php?page=1|title= The Allman Brothers Band in Concert: Beacon Theatre 2003|author=Collette, Doug|magazine=All About Jazz|date=17 February 2014|access-date=7 January 2017}} Eric Clapton recorded yet a third version. "Layla" appears as track seven on Play the Blues: Live from Jazz at Lincoln Center."Wynton Marsalis & Eric Clapton play the blues" [sic] (LIVE FROM JAZZ AT LINCOLN CENTER). (2011, Rhino Entertainment Company, a Warner Music Group Company). Personnel on this version include Wynton Marsalis (vocals, trumpet), Eric Clapton (vocals, guitar), Victor Goines (clarinet), Marcus Printup (trumpet), Chris Crenshaw (trombone, vocals), Don Vappie (banjo), Chris Stainton (keyboards), Dan Nimmer (piano), Carlos Henriquez (bass), and Ali Jackson (drums).

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{{Certification Table Entry|region=Italy|type=single|artist=Derek & the Dominos|title=Layla|award=Gold|relyear=1971|certyear=2024|id=12168|access-date=12 March 2024}}

{{Certification Table Entry|region=New Zealand|type=single|artist=Derek And the Dominoes|title=Layla|award=Platinum|number=2|relyear=1971|certyear=2023|source=radioscope|access-date=4 January 2025}}

{{Certification Table Entry|region=Spain|type=single|artist=Derek & the Dominoes|title=Layla|award=Gold|relyear=1971|certyear=2024|access-date=9 September 2024}}

{{Certification Table Entry|region=United Kingdom|type=single|artist=Derek & the Dominos|title=Layla|award=Platinum|relyear=2004|certyear=2021|id=13015-2595-1|access-date=7 May 2021}}

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{{Infobox song

| name = Layla (Acoustic)

| cover = Layla (Acoustic) Cover.jpg

| alt =

| type = single

| artist = Eric Clapton

| album = Unplugged

| B-side = Tears in Heaven (Acoustic)

| released = {{Start date|df=yes|1992|09|21}}{{cite magazine|title=New Releases: Singles|magazine=Music Week|page=19|date=19 September 1992}}

| recorded = 16 January 1992

| studio =

| venue =

| genre = Acoustic rock{{cite web|url=https://www.guitarworld.com/news/best-acoustic-rock-song-all-time-poll-more-words-vs-layla-unplugged|title=Best Acoustic Rock Song of All Time Poll: "More Than Words" Vs. "Layla (Unplugged)"|date=18 August 2015|website=Guitar World|access-date=3 October 2019}}

| length = {{Duration|4:46}}

| label = Reprise

| writer =

• Eric Clapton
• Jim Gordon

| producer = Russ Titelman

| prev_title = Tears in Heaven

| prev_year = 1992

| next_title = Down & Out

| next_year = 1992

| misc = {{External music video|header=Audio|{{YouTube|EOs0qeiJyIg|"Layla" (1992 unplugged live) by Eric Clapton}}}}

{{Audio sample

| type = single

| file = Layla (Acoustic) Sample.ogg

| description =

}}

}}

In 1992, Clapton was invited to play for the MTV Unplugged series. On 16 January 1992, he recorded an acoustic album, accompanied by a concert film, at the Bray Studios in Bray, Berkshire.{{cite web|url=http://www.whereseric.com/eric-clapton-discography/eric-clapton-solo-audio-recordings-live-all-recordings-ordered-release-da-0|title=Eric Clapton – Solo Audio Recordings (Live) / Unplugged|work=Where's Eric! The Eric Clapton Fan Club Magazine|publisher=Whereseric.com|access-date=30 December 2015}} Although the production team and Clapton's staff liked the recordings, Clapton did not want to release either the album or the concert film. Finally, Clapton agreed to release the album in a limited edition. When Unplugged sold out, Clapton gave Warner Bros. and Reprise Records the permission to delete the limited album production. For the album, Clapton decided to record both new material like "Lonely Stranger" and old songs he grew up with such as "Nobody Knows You When You're Down and Out" or enjoyed listening to or had written as an adult, like "San Francisco Bay Blues" and "Layla".{{sfn|Clapton|2007|p=266}} Clapton, who plays acoustic guitar and sings on the live track, was backed by Andy Fairweather Low who played acoustic rhythm guitar, Nathan East on acoustic bass guitar and background vocals, Ray Cooper on percussion, Steve Ferrone on drums, Katie Kissoon and Tessa Niles on background vocals as well as Chuck Leavell on piano.{{cite web|last=Erlewine|first=Stephen Thomas|url=https://www.allmusic.com/album/mw0000081583/credits|title=MTV Unplugged – Eric Clapton | Credits|publisher=AllMusic|access-date=30 December 2015}} Pianist Chuck Leavell recalled that recording the acoustic version of "Layla" felt natural to him and liked that the band was given some space to play during the body of the song and not just during the reprise like it is on the original recording. "It gave us a chance to interpret the song in our way and it did work out well and it gave it a rebirth I think", Leavell said. The acoustic version of "Layla" was produced by Russ Titelman.{{cite web|url=http://www.discogs.com/Eric-Clapton-Layla-Acoustic/release/2224951|title=Eric Clapton – Layla (Acoustic) (Vinyl) at Discogs|work=Discogs|year=1992 |access-date=30 December 2015}}

Clapton recorded the acoustic version of "Layla" on a C. F. Martin & Company steel-string acoustic guitar in OOO-42 style from 1939 which was hand built in Nazareth, Pennsylvania (No. OOO-42/73234). Clapton called this guitar one of the finest instruments he has ever used and called its sound "incredible". The auction house Christie's noted, "the guitar became one of the most enduring images of recent music history" being a part of the Unplugged album cover.{{sfn|Keane|2004|p=52}} Christie's expert for the musical department Kerry Keane called the instrument "in the hands of Eric Clapton singly responsible for the repolarization of playing acoustic guitar today". When Keane played the guitar, he also remarked an "amazing" sound as the acoustic guitar seems to have a "wonderfully balanced tone [which is] loud and sweet at the same time with an incredible bass note."{{cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O9u8GKQWY4k|title=Eric Clapton – Christie's Guitar Auction Part 2 of 3|work=Auction Adventures|date=7 September 2007 |publisher=YouTube.com|access-date=30 December 2015}} The vintage instrument was estimated to sell for between $60,000 and $80,000 but was in the end sold for $791,500.{{cite web|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/entertainment/3837649.stm|title=Clapton's guitar smashes record|work=BBC News|publisher=BBC MMIX|date=25 June 2004|location=United Kingdom|access-date=30 December 2015}}

Rhythm acoustic guitar player Andy Fairweather Low was invited by Clapton to his flat in Chelsea, London, to work out the songs to be recorded for the Unplugged album in January 1992. During the process, Clapton suggested that it would be a good idea to do another version of "Layla". Fairweather Low agreed because he had wanted to release one himself as a big Derek and the Dominos fan. Clapton thought that the perfect arrangement for the rock anthem would be a shuffle because he always liked changing the tempo of a song and looking at something from a different angle.{{cite web|first=Paul|last=Gambaccini|url=http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b01n5z2x|title=For One Night Only – Series 7, Episode 1|work=BBC Radio 4|publisher=British Broadcasting Company|date=22 January 2013|access-date=30 December 2015}}

When Clapton was asked about the acoustic version of the song by the MTV Network, he replied: {{"'}}Layla' sort of mystified me. I have done it the same all these years and never ever considered trying to revamp it. And a lot of artists do that, you know? Bob Dylan for instance changes everything everytime he plays it and I thought this was another great opportunity to just take it off on a different path, to put it to a shuffle and for a start, making it acoustic denied all the riffs, really. They would have sounded a bit weak, I think, on the acoustic guitar, so it just seemed to become Jazzier somehow. And of course, I'm singing it a whole octave down. So it gives it a nice kind of atmosphere."{{cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ueT6h6qMtFo| archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211118/ueT6h6qMtFo| archive-date=18 November 2021 | url-status=live|title=Eric Clapton Unplugged EPK|work=Eric Clapton|publisher=YouTube.com|date=26 September 2013|access-date=30 December 2015}}{{cbignore}}

The song was written in the key of D minor which Clapton recalled pushed him to the top of his singing range. When Clapton slowed it down, Fairweather Low suggested Clapton should sing the track a whole octave down. Clapton was pleased with the result as it sounded "nice" and "sort of Jazzy" to him. The new arrangement slowed down and reworked the original riff and dispensed with the piano coda. Because Clapton changed the arrangement so much, he decided to introduce this version to the unsuspecting live audience by stating: "See if you can spot this one."{{cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iZV7akaSo0s| archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211118/iZV7akaSo0s| archive-date=18 November 2021 | url-status=live|title=Eric Clapton – Layla (Unplugged)|work=Warner Bros. Records| date=9 December 2009|publisher=YouTube|access-date=30 December 2015}}{{cbignore}}

AllMusic critic Stephen Thomas Erlewine said that "Layla" seemed to be the Unplugged album's hit; he describes it as a "slow crawl through Derek & the Dominos' version, turning that anguished howl of pain into a cozy shuffle and the whole album proceeds at a similar amiable gait, taking its time and enjoying detours into old blues standards."{{cite web|last=Erlewine|first=Stephen Thomas|url=https://www.allmusic.com/album/mw0000081583|title=MTV Unplugged – Eric Clapton | Review|publisher=AllMusic|access-date=30 December 2015}} Journalist Steve Hochman called the acoustic version a "low-key but seductive recasting".{{cite web|first=Steve|last=Hochman|url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1992-09-27-ca-127-story.html|title=In Brief|work=Los Angeles Times|date=27 September 1992|access-date=30 December 2015}} Music broadcaster VH1 thinks the Unplugged version revealed Clapton's guitar skills in the acoustic setting, which was particularly obvious on the reworking of "Layla" that "stressed Clapton's tender side without forfeitting intensity".{{cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0gi-BB-swvA|title=The Eric Clapton Story Legend Part 4 The Best Documentary Interview|work=VH1 Legends|publisher=YouTube.com|access-date=30 December 2015}} Entertainment Weekly journalists picked the tune as the mega hit off the Unplugged album. The critics especially liked Leavell's piano work on the song, saying that it "adds a smoky-jazz-joint torch-song ambience that's both expectation shattering and emotionally compelling to the tune".{{cite magazine|url=https://www.ew.com/article/1992/08/28/eric-clapton-unplugged|title=Eric Clapton: Unplugged|magazine=Entertainment Weekly|last=Simels|first=Steve|date=28 August 1992|access-date=30 December 2015}}

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{{Certification Table Entry|type=single|relyear=1992|region=Australia|award=Gold|certref={{cite web|url=https://www.aria.com.au/charts/1993/singles-chart|title=ARIA End Of Year Singles 1993|work=Top 50 Australian Singles Chart|publisher=Australian Recording Industry Association|access-date=14 September 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180914115211/https://www.ariacharts.com.au/annual-charts/1993/singles-chart|archive-date=14 September 2018|url-status=live}}()}}

{{Certification Table Entry|type=single|relyear=1992|region=Japan|award=Gold|certref={{sfn|Tatsaku|2011|p=45}}|nosales=true}}

{{Certification Table Entry|region=New Zealand|type=single|artist=Eric Clapton|title=Layla (Unplugged)|award=Platinum|relyear=1992|certyear=2021|source=radioscope|access-date=4 January 2025}}

{{Certification Table Entry|region=United Kingdom|type=single|artist=Eric Clapton|title=Layla|award=Silver|relyear=2012|certyear=2023|id=13015-546-1|access-date=21 April 2023}}

{{Certification Table Entry|region=United States (RIAA)|nocert=yes|salesamount=230,000|salesref={{cite magazine|first=Chris|last=Morris|url=http://www.americanradiohistory.com/Archive-Billboard/00s/2003/BB-2003-08-02.pdf|title=Online Music|magazine=Billboard|volume=115|number=31|page=36|issn=0006-2510|date=2 August 2003|access-date=14 September 2018}}}}

{{Certification Table Bottom|nosales=true|streaming=true}}

In 1972, "Layla" was one of the most performed songs of the year,{{cite magazine|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=GgkEAAAAMBAJ|title=Applause to the Writers|magazine=Billboard|volume=85|number=24|issn=0006-2510|page=11|date=16 June 1973|access-date=3 January 2016}} and was already considered a "rock standard".{{cite magazine|url=http://www.americanradiohistory.com/Archive-Billboard/70s/1972/Billboard%201972-11-04.pdf|archive-url=https://wayback.archive-it.org/all/20150227233010/http://www.americanradiohistory.com/Archive-Billboard/70s/1972/Billboard%201972-11-04.pdf|url-status=dead|archive-date=27 February 2015|title=Rock Standards|magazine=Billboard|volume=84|number=45|issn=0006-2510|page=44|date=4 November 1972|access-date=3 January 2016}} With its re-release in 1982, the song was again praised.{{cite magazine|url=http://www.americanradiohistory.com/Archive-Billboard/80s/1982/BB-1982-07-31.pdf|title=Yesterhits|magazine=Billboard|volume=94|number=30|issn=0006-2510|page=23|date=31 July 1982|access-date=3 January 2016}}{{cite magazine|url=http://www.americanradiohistory.com/Archive-Billboard/80s/1982/BB-1982-08-07.pdf|title=Yesterhits|magazine=Billboard|volume=94|number=31|issn=0006-2510|page=29|date=7 August 1982|access-date=3 January 2016}} It is featured on a number of "greatest ever" lists. The song was chosen by the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as one of its "500 Songs that Shaped Rock and Roll",{{cite web|first=Steve|last=Parker|url=http://www.rocklistmusic.co.uk/steveparker/halloffame.htm|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100219104535/http://www.rocklistmusic.co.uk/steveparker/halloffame.htm|url-status=usurped|archive-date=19 February 2010|title=Rock and Roll Hall of Fame – 500 Songs That Shaped Rock|work=Rock and Roll Hall of Fame|publisher=Rocklistmusic.co.uk|date=2004|access-date=3 January 2016}} and Rolling Stone ranked the song at number 27 on their list of "The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time".{{cite magazine|url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/lists/the-500-greatest-songs-of-all-time-20110407/derek-and-the-dominos-layla-19691231|title= The Rolling Stone 500 Greatest Songs of All Time: #27: Derek and the Dominos, 'Layla'|magazine=Rolling Stone magazine|access-date=14 June 2011}} The Recording Industry Association of America ranked "Layla" at number 118 on their Songs of the Century on 7 March 2001.{{cite web|url=http://davesmusicdatabase.blogspot.de/2012/03/riaaneas-top-365-songs-of-20th-century.html|title=The RIAA/NEA's Top 365 Songs of the 20th Century|work=Recording Industry Association of America|publisher=Dave's Music Database|date=7 March 2001|access-date=3 January 2016}} Music critic Dave Marsh placed the tune at number two in his "Best Singles of the Year 1972" compilation.{{sfn|Marsh|1982|p=173}}

With its reworking in 1992 for the Unplugged album, "Layla" became an all-time hit song, as it won the Grammy Award for Best Rock Song in 1993,{{cite web|url=http://www.rockonthenet.com/grammy/rocksong.htm|title=Grammy Awards: Best Rock Song|work=National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences|publisher=Rock on the Net|access-date=3 January 2016}} and was broadcast nonstop in 1992 and 1993 on the radio, in stores, and on television around the globe.{{cite web|first=Sadie|last=Stein|url=http://www.theparisreview.org/blog/2015/05/15/the-layla-iq-test/|title=Listening to Layla|work=The Paris Review|publisher=Theparisreview.org|date=15 May 2015|access-date=3 January 2016}} In 1992, "Layla" was the most performed song of the year,{{cite magazine|url=http://www.americanradiohistory.com/Archive-Billboard/90s/1993/BB-1993-11-20.pdf|title=BMI Salutes Lennon/McCartney's 'Yesterday'|magazine=Billboard|volume=105|number=47|issn=0006-2510|page=50|date=20 November 1993|access-date=3 January 2016}} and won a BMI Broadcasting Award for radio and television appearances of the 1992 "Layla" for more than two million times in summer of 1994.{{cite magazine|url=http://www.americanradiohistory.com/Archive-Billboard/90s/1994/BB-1994-06-04.pdf|title=Complete List of BMI Song Winners|magazine=Billboard|volume=106|number=23|issn=0006-2510|page=24|date=4 June 1994|access-date=3 January 2016}} As of 2011, "Layla" had attained more than six million broadcasts on television and the radio or performances on other records and during live concerts.{{cite web|url=https://www.bonhams.com/auctions/19226/lot/76/ |title=Bonhams: A Special Citation of Achievement certificate presented by the BMI to Eric Clapton |publisher=Bonhams.com |date=9 March 2011 |access-date=3 January 2016 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160103100231/https://www.bonhams.com/auctions/19226/lot/76/ |archive-date=3 January 2016 }}

"Layla" was used in Goodfellas during the scene portraying the aftermath of the 1978 Lufthansa heist. Director Martin Scorsese planned out the sequence with the song specifically in mind, playing it on set to synchronise with the staging and camera movement.{{Cite web|url=https://www.vulture.com/2015/04/11-things-we-learned-about-goodfellas.html|title=11 Things We Learned About Goodfellas From Saturday's Tribeca Q&A|last=Ebiri |first=Bilge |date=16 April 2015|website=Vulture}} The song also plays during the film's ending credits, after a cover of "My Way" by Sid Vicious.

American record producer DJ Khaled sampled the Derek and the Dominos' arrangement of "Layla" in his 2021 song "I Did It" featuring American rappers Post Malone, Megan Thee Stallion, Lil Baby and DaBaby.{{cite web|url=https://variety.com/2021/music/album-reviews/dj-khaled-album-review-superstar-guests-1234963954/|title=DJ Khaled Scores as Summer Party Host With Superstar-Studded 'Khaled Khaled': Album Review|work=Variety|last=Amorosi|first=A.D|date=30 April 2021|accessdate=20 January 2022}}

{{Reflist}}

• {{cite book|first=Luciano|last=Armani|title=Premi della FIMI italiana|trans-title=FIMI certifications|language=it|date=December 2008|location=Milan, Italy}}
• {{cite book|last1=Boyd|first1=Pattie|last2=Junor|first2=Penny|title=Wonderful Tonight|publisher=Crown|year=2008|isbn=978-0-307-45022-7|url=https://archive.org/details/wonderfultonight00boyd_0|url-access=registration}}
• {{cite book|first=Eric|last=Clapton|author-link=Eric Clapton|title=Clapton: The Autobiography|publisher=Broadway Books|location=New York|year=2007|isbn=978-0-385-51851-2|url= https://archive.org/details/claptonautobiogr00clap|url-access=registration}}
• {{cite book|first=William J.|last=Fuld|title=The New Zealand Charts – A Red Chart?|edition=2nd|year=1998|publisher=Fuld Pressings}}
• {{cite book|last=Gambaccini|first=Paul|year=1987|title=The Top 100 Rock "n" Roll Albums of All Time|publisher=Harmony Books|isbn=978-0-517-56561-2}}
• {{cite book|first=Kerry|last=Keane|title=Crossroads Guitar Auction – Eric Clapton and Friends for the Crossroads Centre – Thursday 24 June 2004|publisher=Christie's New York|date=2004|asin=B000UVFW6G}}
• {{cite book|last=Kent|first=David|author-link=David Kent (historian)|title=Australian Chart Book 1970–1992|publisher=Australian Chart Book|location=St Ives, New South Wales, Australia|year=1993|isbn=978-0-646-11917-5}}
• {{cite book|first=Dave|last=Marsh|author-link=Dave Marsh|title=The Book of Rock Lists|url=https://archive.org/details/bookofrocklists00mars|publisher=Dell Books|date=November 1982|isbn=978-0-440-57580-1|url-access=registration}}
• {{Cite book|last=Marsh|first=Dave|title=The Heart of Rock & Soul: The 1001 Greatest Singles Ever Made|publisher=DaCapo Press|year=1999|location=New York|isbn=978-0-306-80901-9}}
• {{Cite book|first=William|last=McKeen|title=Rock and roll is here to stay: an anthology|url=https://archive.org/details/rockrollishereto00mcke|url-access=registration|publisher=W. W. Norton & Company|year=2000|isbn=978-0-393-04700-4}}
• {{cite book|last1=Perrin|first1=Jeff|last2=Clapton|first2=Eric|title=The Best of Eric Clapton: A Step-by-Step Breakdown of His Playing Technique|publisher=Hal Leonard|location=Milwaukee|year=1996|isbn=978-0-7935-5801-8}}
• {{Cite book|first=Gene|last=Santoro|title=Dancing in Your Head: Jazz, Blues, Rock, and Beyond|url=https://archive.org/details/dancinginyourhea0000sant|url-access=registration|publisher=Oxford University Press US|year=1995|isbn=978-0-195-10123-2}}
• {{cite book|last=Schumacher|first=Michael|title=Crossroads: The Life and Music of Eric Clapton|year=2003|publisher=Citadel Press|location=New York|isbn=978-0-8065-2466-5}}
• {{cite book|first=Ren|last=Tatsaku|title=The Oricon Sales Report|date=December 2011|location=Tokyo, Japan|publisher=Oricon Style – Recording Industry Association of Japan|language=ja}}

• {{cite book|first=Ray|last=Coleman|author-link=Ray Coleman|title=Clapton!|publisher=Warner Books|year=1985|pages=179–192|ref=none}}

• {{YouTube|pKwQlm-wldA|"Layla" (2014 live) by Eric Clapton}}

{{Eric Clapton}}

{{Derek and the Dominos}}

{{Layla and Majnun}}

{{Grammy Award for Best Rock Song}}

{{authority control}}

Category:1970 songs

Category:1971 singles

Category:1972 singles

Category:1982 singles

Category:1992 singles

Category:Derek and the Dominos songs

Category:Eric Clapton songs

Category:Grammy Award for Best Rock Song

Category:Grammy Hall of Fame Award recipients

Category:Live singles

Category:Number-one singles in France

Category:Oricon International Singles Chart number-one singles

Category:RPM Top Singles number-one singles

Category:Song recordings produced by Russ Titelman

Category:Song recordings produced by Tom Dowd

Category:Songs written by Eric Clapton

Category:Atco Records singles

Category:RSO Records singles

Category:Polydor Records singles

Category:Reprise Records singles