The most popular blues guitarist that ever deigned to play rock-n- roll, Eric Clapton (b. March 30, 1945, Ripley, England): 1) Was part of the Yardbirds and Cream , two of the most popular rock groups of the 60s, 2) Made rock history with Derek & The Domino classic album Layla in the 70s, 3) Was the subject of one of pop music's most popular boxed-set retrospectives (the 4-CD Crossroads) in the80s, and 4) Met the greatest commercial success of his life with his live Unplugged set of the 90s.