# In 1970, Eric Clapton had his greatest achievement. He knew he needed to break it up immediately

- URL: https://talkfuse.com/story/in-1970-eric-clapton-had-his-greatest-achievement-he-knew-he-needed-to-break-it-up-immediately/
- Published: 2026-11-14T21:30:00+00:00
- Updated: 2026-11-14T22:34:33+00:00
- Original publisher: Far Out
- Original article: https://faroutmagazine.co.uk/1970-eric-clapton-made-his-greatest-achievement/
- Topics: Music

## Key points

- Clapton prized Derek and the Dominos’ one album.
- Jim Gordon’s conflict with Clapton helped end the band.
- The group broke up before making a second studio album.

## Summary

Eric Clapton regarded Derek and the Dominos as an exceptional musical partnership, producing the album that included “Layla”. He ended the band after tensions with drummer Jim Gordon escalated, believing the relationship could not be repaired.

The group formed after Clapton had played with its members during work on George Harrison’s *All Things Must Pass*. Gordon contributed the piano riff to “Layla”, but during preparations for a second studio album, a disagreement over a song’s rhythm led Clapton to walk out and stop speaking to him. Clapton later said he remained proud of the album and song, while wondering what the band might have achieved had it lasted longer.

---
Summarised by TalkFuse (https://talkfuse.com/). Quote the original publisher for the reporting and link this page for the summary and discussion.