In the mid-1960s Clapton left the Yardbirds to play with John Mayall & the Bluesbreakers. Immediately after leaving Mayall, Clapton formed the power trio Cream with drummer Ginger Baker and bassist Jack Bruce, in which Clapton played sustained blues improvisations and "arty, blues-based psychedelic pop". After Cream broke up, he formed blues rock band Blind Faith with Baker, Steve Winwood, and Ric Grech. Clapton's solo career began in the 1970s, where his work bore the influence of the mellow style of J. J. Cale and the reggae of Bob Marley. His version of Marley's "I Shot the Sheriff" helped reggae reach a mass market. Two of his most popular recordings were "Layla", recorded with Derek and the Dominos; and Robert Johnson's "Crossroads", recorded with Cream. Following the death of his son Conor in 1991, Clapton's grief was expressed in the song "Tears in Heaven", which was featured on his Unplugged album.
Clapton has been the recipient of 18 Grammy Awards, and the Brit Award for Outstanding Contribution to Music. In 2004 he was awarded a CBE at Buckingham Palace for services to music. He has received four Ivor Novello Awards from the British Academy of Songwriters, Composers and Authors, including the Lifetime Achievement Award. In his solo career, Clapton has sold more than 100 million records worldwide, making him one of the best-selling musicians of all time. In 1998, Clapton, a recovering alcoholic and drug addict, founded the Crossroads Centre on Antigua, a medical facility for recovering substance abusers.
Have You Ever Loved a Woman
Eric Clapton Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
So much it hurts to be alone.
Have you ever loved a woman
So much it hurts to be alone.
And all the time you know that little girl will do you wrong.
But you just love that woman
So much that you tremble in pain.
So much you tremble in pain.
And the part that hurts so bad
Is you know ya never gonna see her again.
Have you ever loved a woman
So much that it hurts to be alone.
Have you ever loved a woman
So much that it hurts to be alone.
While all the time you know
You don't wanna break up your happy home.
Eric Clapton's song Have You Ever Loved a Woman speaks about the pain and intensity of loving someone deeply, even when you know they may not be good for you. The song repeats the same lyrics three times, emphasizing the message of the lyrics.
The first stanza talks about the loneliness and pain that one may feel when they love a woman deeply, but can't be with her. This love is so strong that it hurts to be alone. The second stanza emphasizes the physical pain that this love causes, so much so that it makes you tremble. The pain of this kind of love is compounded by the knowledge that you will never see her again, adding a sense of finality to the emotions being expressed in the song. The last stanza talks about the dilemma of loving someone who may not be good for you, despite the love you feel. It is a bittersweet feeling, as you don't want to break up your happy home but still feel drawn to the object of your affection.
Overall, this song captures the complex emotions of love - the joy, pain, longing and heartache that can accompany it. Eric Clapton's emotive rocker style helps in delivering the passion in the lyrics to the hearts of the listeners.
Line by Line Meaning
Have you ever loved a woman
Have you experienced loving a woman?
So much it hurts to be alone.
Have you ever felt so much love that being apart from her causes you pain?
Have you ever loved a woman
Do you recall the feeling of loving a woman?
So much it hurts to be alone.
The love being so strong that her absence causes physical pain?
And all the time you know that little girl will do you wrong.
Despite knowing that the woman you love might betray you; you are unable to stop loving her.
But you just love that woman
You accept the pain and continue to love her.
So much that you tremble in pain.
The love being so intense that it causes physical sensations such as trembling.
When you just love that woman
When loving that woman is all you know.
So much you tremble in pain.
The pain of being unable to have her being so strong that it causes physical sensations.
And the part that hurts so bad
The most painful part of the situation is
Is you know ya never gonna see her again.
Knowing that you will never be able to see her again.
Have you ever loved a woman
Have you experienced loving a woman?
So much that it hurts to be alone.
Have you ever felt so much love that being apart from her causes you pain?
Have you ever loved a woman
Do you recall the feeling of loving a woman?
So much that it hurts to be alone.
The love being so strong that her absence causes physical pain?
While all the time you know
Even though you know
You don't wanna break up your happy home.
You do not want to destroy a happy relationship to pursue your love.
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management
Written by: Billy Myles
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Mr Blue
How anybody could give a thumbs down to this is mind blowing. This group of musicians is by far one of the greatest bands Clapton has assembled. The rich and diverse history of each player is astonishing.
Starting with David Sancious: a native of Asbury Park, NJ was an original E Street Band member and recorded with Bruce Springsteen on the first 3 albums. David also recorded and toured with Peter Gabriel, Sting, Stanley Clarke and many others
Steve Gadd: what can one say but Steve Gadd is the man. You have all heard his drumming magic on songs like Paul Simon's "50 ways to leave your lover" and Steely Dan's "Aja". Steve has toured with Clapton, Joe Cocker, Simon & Garfunkel, Steely Dan, James Taylor, Chick Corea and many more
Billy Preston: Bless your Soul Mr. Preston. With a long history of solo top 40 hits, toured with so many bands and recorded and performed with Sam Cooke, Ray Charles, "The Beatles", "The Rolling Stones" as well as Eric Clapton and George Harrison. A master organist.
Nathan East: Nathan is an amazing bassist and has over 2,000 recordings. He has also recorded and co-written songs with Eric Clapton, Michael Jackson, Joe Satriani, George Harrison, Phil Collins, Stevie Wonder, Toto and Herbie Hancock.
Andy Fairweather Low: A teenage idol in the 60's while in the band "Amen Corner". They had several top 20 hits. Going solo in the 70's Andy wrote and recorded many more great songs and had several more top 40 hits. Andy has recorded and toured with Roger Waters, Eric Clapton, Leo Sayer, Gerry Rafferty, Dave Edmunds, Linda Ronstadt and Emmylou Harris, Joe Satriani and was a fill-in guitar player for The Who. Pete Townsend was in rehab so Andy filled in recording and rehearsing on their 1982 album "It's Hard". Andy had previously sang backups on their 1978 album "Who are you".
Eric Clapton: Not much explanation of defining needed.
The Roosters, Casey Jones & The Engineers, The Yardbirds, The Bluesbreakers, The Immediate All-Stars, Eric Clapton and the Powerhouse, Cream, (Eric recorded with "The Beatles" and George Harrison solo), Blind Faith, Delaney and Bonnie, Derek and the Dominos with slide master Duane Allman, Yvonne Elliman and Marcy Levy, Tina Turner, Roger Waters, Stevie Winwood and the list goes on and on ...... Guitarist, singer & songwriter extraordinaire ......
alan murr
Have you ever loved a woman's words:Have you ever loved a woman
So much you tremble in pain?
Have you ever loved a woman
So much you tremble in pain?
And all the time you know
She bears another man's name.
But you just love that woman
So much it's a shame and a sin.
You just love that woman
So much it's a shame and a sin.
But all the time you know
She belongs to your very best friend.
Have you ever loved a woman
And you know you can't leave her alone?
Have you ever loved a woman
And you know you can't leave her alone?
Something deep inside of you
Won't let you wreck your best friend's home.
Karen Reardon
Clapton's on fire! Love his voice. Billy is totally jamming on those keys, man. Stellar!! And the piano player is 😎👍
CBus Mike
David Sancious....years ago, he worked with Springsteen on his 1st two albums.
John Lucio
The chemistry here is on another level, everyone completely in tune and doing their thing, legendary
EC IS Here
hells yeah! this is one of the best peformances ever alll time any genre imo.Everybody is on fire! awwwwe, preston, i got sad there also.But i love how clapton stood back a lot on his playing and let the keys do thier thing.Just another reason clapton was so good, hes a conductor, a genius
K T
Billy Preston totally killed it on his solo... love the joy and teamwork between him and Clapton on this... true greatness
Ewan McFadyen
You can tell from everything Eric does during Billy Preston's solo that he's Billy's biggest fan
Gerald Johnson
Well said. Thanks
swissbrit1954
Billy Preston's solo was brilliant, what a show, could watch it a million times 😁
David Catalano
Agreed Brother, Eric enjoys Billy's playing.
Limited Edition
When you can play for the Beatles and Eric Clapton....you must be good.