Stephen Dale Petit Reflects on Collaboration with Eric Clapton
The blues guitarist Stephen Dale Petit has candidly shared his experiences regarding his collaboration with the legendary Eric Clapton, characterizing him as “grumpy” yet undeniably brilliant in the recording studio.
This meeting took place during the recording of Petit’s new album, Be the Love, which coincided with a personal milestone as he was battling stage 4 cancer while developing the project.
A Solo Created “in Record Time”
In an interview with Guitar World, Petit disclosed that he had Eric Clapton in mind from the very beginning of the recording process. “I recorded the track and said: there will be a guest solo. Nobody questioned me,” Petit recalled. When he sent the first demo to Clapton, he received a curt response. “He said: ‘The lockdown is over, and I’m being flooded with work.’ I thought that was his way of saying no,” Petit reminisced.
However, to his surprise, Clapton responded again the following day, indicating he would accept the invitation, although he wouldn’t be able to complete the work quickly. Despite undergoing intensive chemotherapy sessions, Petit maintained hope. “I wasn’t in a hurry,” he stated. Months later, the long-awaited meeting took place at Hoxa Studios in London.
“He was just half a meter away from me, facing the monitors,” Petit recalls. “When he finished the solo, he asked: ‘What do you think?’ and I replied: ‘I want to cry.’ I was moved by what I heard.”
“His Brain is Literally a Conductor”
Petit described Clapton’s solo as “insanely powerful,” emphasizing the almost spiritual process Clapton underwent while playing. “He mapped out certain parts but turned off his thinking brain and turned on the channel. His brain is literally a maestro, channeling energy from Pluto, Uranus, and Jimi Hendrix.”
The recording session spanned two days. Clapton brought two guitars with him — a 1960s brown sunburst Gibson ES-335 and a Fender Stratocaster — and left them at the studio. Before departing, Petit asked for permission to play them. “I asked: ‘Can I play your guitars?’ and he said: ‘Of course.’ I had complete freedom. If that’s not a guitarist’s love, I don’t know what is,” he joked.
Filled with emotion and admiration, Petit emphasizes that Clapton’s solo became one of the most powerful moments on the album. “He managed to translate everything I was feeling at that moment. It was something magical,” he concluded.
While the exact release date for Be the Love has yet to be announced, it signifies a triumphant return for Stephen Dale Petit after overcoming cancer — and poignantly celebrates the connection between two icons of British blues.
The information is sourced from the website Guitar World.
