They Call Him Slowhand

Ol’ Slowhand famously wore this ‘no snow, no show’ t-shirt during his show at Oakland Coliseum on February 10, 1978,

Although famously referred to as God by at least one British graffiti artist, Eric Clapton’s more often used nickname is Slowhand. Clapton earned the moniker in the early Sixties while playing with the Yardbirds.

Bandmate and rhythm guitarist Chris Dreja noted when Clapton would break a string, he would remain on stage while he changed it. The tedious process would prompt the audience to begin a slow hand clap, a popular response from English spectators during inactive sporting moments. Clapton has claimed Yardbird’s manager Giorgio Gomelsky christened him with the name as a humorous pun.

It is erroneously believed that Clapton was given the name Slowhand because of his long, intricate blues leads. Gomelsky actually considered Clapton a fast guitar player, and felt that in relation to the guitarist’s garnered slow hand claps from the audience, the name was a facetious play on words… read more >