My Father's Eyes (song)
Encyclopedia
"My Father's Eyes" is a song written and performed by Eric Clapton
and produced by Clapton himself and Simon Climie
. It was released as a single in 1998 and was featured on the album Pilgrim. The song reached the top 40 and won a Grammy award for Best Male Pop Vocal Performance. The song is inspired by the fact that Clapton never met his father, who died in 1985. It also refers to the brief life of Clapton's son Conor, who died at age four after falling from an apartment window. "In it I tried to describe the parallel between looking the eyes of my son, and the eyes of the father that I never met, through the chain of our blood", said Clapton in his autobiography. He retired the song in 2004, along with Tears in Heaven
. "My Father's Eyes" describes how Clapton wishes he knew his father.
Clapton performed this track for the first time in 1992 and 1996 in both electric and unplugged versions, which were completely different from the original 1998 release.
"My Father's Eyes" was resurrected for the One More Car, One More Rider
tour in 2001.
), we see a basketball
which dribbles seven times, the seventh dribble causing the basketball to break into pieces. This dribbling footage returns at the end of the video, without the basketball breaking. Between these scenes, there is footage of Eric Clapton playing guitar and a running treadmill.
Eric Clapton
Eric Patrick Clapton, CBE, is an English guitarist and singer-songwriter. Clapton is the only three-time inductee to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame: once as a solo artist, and separately as a member of The Yardbirds and Cream. Clapton has been referred to as one of the most important and...
and produced by Clapton himself and Simon Climie
Simon Climie
Simon Climie is a songwriter/producer and the former lead singer of the UK pop duo Climie Fisher, who had hits with "Love Changes " and "Rise to the Occasion"....
. It was released as a single in 1998 and was featured on the album Pilgrim. The song reached the top 40 and won a Grammy award for Best Male Pop Vocal Performance. The song is inspired by the fact that Clapton never met his father, who died in 1985. It also refers to the brief life of Clapton's son Conor, who died at age four after falling from an apartment window. "In it I tried to describe the parallel between looking the eyes of my son, and the eyes of the father that I never met, through the chain of our blood", said Clapton in his autobiography. He retired the song in 2004, along with Tears in Heaven
Tears in Heaven
"Tears in Heaven" is a ballad written by Eric Clapton and Will Jennings about the pain and loss Clapton felt following the death of his four-year-old son, Conor. Conor fell from a window of the 53rd-floor New York apartment of his mother's friend on March 20, 1991. Clapton, who arrived at the...
. "My Father's Eyes" describes how Clapton wishes he knew his father.
Clapton performed this track for the first time in 1992 and 1996 in both electric and unplugged versions, which were completely different from the original 1998 release.
"My Father's Eyes" was resurrected for the One More Car, One More Rider
One More Car, One More Rider
One More Car, One More Rider is a double live album by Eric Clapton, released on November 5, 2002 on Warner Bros. Records. The album contains songs performed during Clapton's 2001 world tour. The recordings on this album are from two nights at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, August 18 & 19 of 2001...
tour in 2001.
Music video
In the beginning of the music video (directed by Kevin GodleyKevin Godley
Kevin Godley is a British musician and music video director.He was born in a family of Jewish descent, and went to North Cestrian Grammar School in Altrincham....
), we see a basketball
Basketball (ball)
A basketball is a spherical inflated ball used in the game of basketball. Basketballs typically range in size from very small promotional items only a few inches in diameter to extra large balls nearly a foot in diameter used in training exercises to increase the skill of players...
which dribbles seven times, the seventh dribble causing the basketball to break into pieces. This dribbling footage returns at the end of the video, without the basketball breaking. Between these scenes, there is footage of Eric Clapton playing guitar and a running treadmill.
Track listing
- "My Father's Eyes"
- "Change The WorldChange the World"Change the World" is a song written by Tommy Sims, Gordon Kennedy and Wayne Kirkpatrick which was recorded by Eric Clapton with backing by Babyface for the soundtrack of the 1996 film Phenomenon. The song won Grammy Awards for Record of the Year, Song of the Year , as well as Best Male Pop Vocal...
" - "Theme from a Movie That Never Happened" (Orchestral)
- "Inside of Me"