# In 1991, Eric Clapton wrote a song to say goodbye to his son. Now, it’s been played 300,000,000 times twice

- URL: https://talkfuse.com/story/in-1991-eric-clapton-wrote-a-song-to-say-goodbye-to-his-son-now-its-been-played-300000000-times-twice/
- Published: 2026-11-06T22:15:00+00:00
- Updated: 2026-11-06T23:38:59+00:00
- Original publisher: Far Out
- Original article: https://faroutmagazine.co.uk/1991-eric-clapton-wrote-a-song-to-say-goodbye-to-his-son/

## Key points

- Clapton wrote ‘Tears in Heaven’ after his son died.
- The studio and *MTV Unplugged* versions each reached 300 million streams.
- He said performing the song could misuse his son’s memory.

## Summary

Eric Clapton wrote ‘Tears in Heaven’ after his four-year-old son, Conor, died in 1991, turning his grief into a song for the film *Rush*. The article says the track has since reached 300 million streams in both its studio recording and its performance on *MTV Unplugged*, showing how widely the song has resonated.

Clapton said the song was still at an early stage when he was approached to write music about loss, and he completed it for the film. He later said it would be inappropriate to use the memory of his son or his grief to influence an audience, though both versions of the song have continued to attract listeners.

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