Eric Clapton performing ‘Layla’ live at the Royal Albert Hall in London on 18 February 1991. As he rips through that iconic intro riff, a lone cigarette rests on his guitar’s headstock—until the heat of those strings proves too much. Cigarette couldn’t handle the heat! Trivia: Eric Clapton wrote the song about his infatuation with Pattie Boyd, the wife of his best friend George Harrison. Clapton was deeply in love with her, and the lyrics reflect this inner turmoil. Clapton was inspired by “The