Eric Clapton formed Derek and the Dominos in 1970, after all of the band members worked together on George Harrison’s first album after the Beatles split, All Things Must Pass.

Layla was one of the tracks on their first and widely acclaimed album, Layla and Other Assorted Songs.

The song is about the woman he loves: Beatles guitarist George Harrison’s wife, Pattie Boyd. Indeed, it’s one of the notorious ten songs written by three different singer-songwriters who were smitten with Pattie Boyd.
Harrison & Boyd later divorced and she and Clapton were married in 1979.

The song’s name is inspired by a 12th century Persian poem about a desperate, unreciprocated love: The Story of Layla.

In 1992 Eric Clapton released an acoustic slowed down version which became a huge success and won him a Grammy Award.