dunno about Clapton joking, but I can remember him playing two concerts a year apart at Lancaster Uni in the late 1970's. I was the bouncer on the stage door at both, and Eric was, shall we say "out of it". He was so out of it on the second date that - according to his roadie - the crew didn't bother to plug his guitar in. Nico Ramsden did all the guitar work (or at least, all you could hear).
Funnily enough, the young groupie who insisted she was going backstage with Eric on the second night (when she refused to leave the hall the roadies grabbed her, threw her in the dressing room and slammed the door) ended up briefly as my girlfriend 20 years later. I had a clear memory of that night - she had none, probably due to substance abuse.
Biting the hand that feeds IT
