Wonderful Tonight: George Harrison, Eric Clapton, and Me

I’ve got a soft spot for rock and roll biographies. I must have consumed 50+ over the years, including those of bands. It’s not so much understanding the musicianship that attracts me as getting to know the real people behind the songs that had the power to transport me to another world.

Patti Boyd’s autobiography took me back into the 1960s and 1970s, the decades in which I was a child and teen. Though not a musician herself, she moved in their circles thanks to her relationships with George Harrison and Eric Clapton, circles that included hobnobbing with trendy boutique owners, fashion designers, photographers, and other denizens of Swinging London. Her anecdotes about them are enlightening. Who knew wild man Ron Wood of the show more Rolling Stones was also an accomplished artist? No bio of the Stones I’ve read have ever mentioned that tidbit. And that dentist who inspired the Beatles song “Dr. Robert?” He put them, and their wives, under anesthesia before he worked on them, and Patti hints that he could have been doing anything to them while they were lying unconscious in the chair.

Yet Patti is also surprisingly humble, and I kind of wish, even, that she’d gone more into detail about her own family. Born of upper class roots, she spent time in colonial Africa with her grandparents and later suffered under the English boarding school system that separates children from the parents and forces them to live in sparse, even hellish conditions. Yet, many of those children grew into independent and restless beings, becoming the artistic shakers and movers of the 1960s. (Of course, family money may have played a part in their rejection of the 9-to-5.) Patti moved into modeling at a young age thanks to her fresh good looks, and with hard work was given a ticket into that golden world, and I can’t help feel, as with many rock star wives, girlfriends, and groupies, her fractured family played a part in her remaining there and putting up with a lot of BS. Also like many of those women she never received credit for the inspiration and even the co-creation she gave her men. In the bio she states her own spiritual yearnings predated George’s, and in fact were what inspired him to join her in exploring Indian religion. If not for Patti, there might never have been the George we know now (or did; he passed in 2001.)

Eric Clapton, sorry to say, comes off as a dick in the book, even as Patti puts a good spin on her experiences with him. He was a raging alcoholic, didn’t know how to handle his finances and live in the real world, and cheated on her, even siring two children out of wedlock, one of which she discovered only as she was divorcing him.

A good addition to your rock star bio collection. show less

If there was one woman who encapsulated the 1960s Rock N’Roll culture, it was Pattie Boyd. She had the look we all strived for, she was a top model with George Harrison of the Beatles as her first husband and Eric Clapton as her second. The songs “Something”, “Layla” and “Wonderful Tonight” were written about and for her. Her memoir, entitled Wonderful Tonight fills in the details of her extraordinary life which as wonderful as it was, did have some sharp ups and downs.

The book details her unconventional childhood, her early days of modelling in London and how she and George met and fell in love. It also tells us about the end of this marriage and how Eric Clapton was there waiting in the wings for her. Unfortunately, Eric show more suffered from an addictive personality and drugs and alcohol played a large part in destroying their marriage. After her marriages, Pattie spent time regaining her self and has become a well known photographer. She remained good friends with both George and Eric.

While reading Wonderful Tonight I felt that Pattie was being very careful not to insult or point fingers at anyone which resulted in a fairly mild and amiable story, but she is pretty honest when turning the pen upon herself which resulted in a story that was well worth reading. Assisted by author Penny Junior, this book is a fascinating look at the life of an influential “dollybird” of the 1960s. show less

My expectations were modest for this read. I didn't expect great literature. I realized there would be some name-dropping and lots of drugs and sex. All true.

But what I didn't expect was the total lack of believable emotion as Pattie shares what should have been compelling details about her parent's divorce, her own two failed marriages, and her infertility. Her story is told episodically, randomly, with instantaneous jumps in time. I would have thought her co-writer would have done a better job crafting a less haphazard narrative.

As for Pattie herself, what I came away with is that she is someone, despite great beauty, who has lived life with very low self-esteem. Though I realize she married George Harrison as a very young woman, she show more allowed both husbands to control, isolate, and humiliate her -- which sounds a lot like the definition of psychological abuse. Perhaps now that she has discovered photography, she lives more true to herself.

As for George Harrison and Eric Clapton - don't expect to learn much that's new. Harrison is portrayed as a talented but moody musician with a tendency to be a loner. Clapton comes across as a talented musician with deep narcissistic and addiction issues. Surprised, anyone?

If you're deeply into the 1960s and 1970s rock and roll scene, you might enjoy hearing about who attended who's party and who hung out with whom. Just don't expect much more than that. show less

My expectations were modest for this read. I didn't expect great literature. I realized there would be some name-dropping and lots of drugs and sex. All true.

But what I didn't expect was the total lack of believable emotion as Pattie shares what should have been compelling details about her parent's divorce, her own two failed marriages, and her infertility. Her story is told episodically, randomly, with instantaneous jumps in time. I would have thought her co-writer would have done a better job crafting a less haphazard narrative.

As for Pattie herself, what I came away with is that she is someone, despite great beauty, who has lived life with very low self-esteem. Though I realize she married George Harrison as a very young woman, she show more allowed both husbands to control, isolate, and humiliate her -- which sounds a lot like the definition of psychological abuse. Perhaps now that she has discovered photography, she lives more true to herself.

As for George Harrison and Eric Clapton - don't expect to learn much that's new. Harrison is portrayed as a talented but moody musician with a tendency to be a loner. Clapton comes across as a talented musician with deep narcissistic and addiction issues. Surprised, anyone?

If you're deeply into the 1960s and 1970s rock and roll scene, you might enjoy hearing about who attended who's party and who hung out with whom. Just don't expect much more than that. show less

This book is so boring! How is that possible? You would think that the woman that inspired songs like the Beatles' "Something" and Derrick and the Dominos' "Layla" would be dynamic. Truth is she is dull as dishwater and conceited in the manner of the 8th grade queen bee. Also, every time she starts to discuss something interesting she quickly moves to a new topic without finishing the story. Less egregious is her silly exploration of her spiritual enlightenment when it turns out she is about as introspective as a marmot. No one who ever thinks about anything could consistently make the worst life decisions of anyone to ever walk the earth. She must be really good in bed.

This is the autobiography of Pattie Boyd, ex-model, current photographer and former wife of both George Harrison and Eric Clapton. It's her take on her difficult life with two giants of the 20th century music industry. The rarefied world of musical superstars leaves them, their spouses and hangers-on somewhat helpless in dealing with the world and vulnerable to exploitation. Her version seems totally honest as she moves through the swinging sixties and beyond, surrendering her own life and ambitions to her husbands' careers until she comes out as a survivor on the other side. This had a co-author, but could have used a little more editing because the same stories get repeated several times. Her perpetual travel and name dropping of show more people who aren't on anybody's radar anymore gets a bit tedious. You come away feeling sorry for Boyd, who as a young woman stumbled into this life without the maturity to handle it and then couldn't get out. show less

This book was just okay, not bad, just okay. I wish Ms. Boyd had been more conscientious with dates, the year at the very least, so I could figure out when stuff was actually happening. Some reviewers have made some rather nasty comments about Ms. Boyd, saying she wasn't all that interesting, etc. I don't know, both George Harrison and Eric Clapton found her interesting enough to write some of the most famous rock songs about her, so I guess she wasn't a complete bore.

One thing that this book did make abundantly clear was that being married to a famous, creative man is an enormous pain in the ass. Having to deal with affairs, fits of jealousy, moodiness, alcohol/drug addiction and the like don't sound like much fun to me. You are show more expected to just be there whenever you are needed and not to whine about it or want to have a life of your own. show less