Season 2 Episode 4 - Bobby Whitlock

Bobby Whitlock was born in Arkansas but spent his teen years living in Millington and hanging out at some Memphis recording studios. In fact, he found himself in the Stax studio where Sam and Dave were recording “I Thank You.” You can hear Bobby supplying some of the handclaps on that record. Bobby went on to be the first white artist to be signed by Stax’s Hip imprint label. 

Bobby is a keyboard player, that is his instrument, but he was persuaded to play piano for the first time on a studio recording during the sessions for George Harrison’s “Beware of Darkness.” Early in the All Things Must Pass sessions, Clapton, and Whitlock, along with bassist Carl Radle and drummer Jim Gordon, formed the blues-rock band Derek and the Dominos. 

Whitlock wrote or co-wrote seven of the album’s fourteen songs, including “Tell the Truth”, “Bell Bottom Blues,” and “Why Does Love Got to Be So Sad.” Two of the songs co-written by Clapton and Whitlock also feature Bobby on lead vocals, “Keep on Growing” and “Thorn Tree in the Garden.” On the other tracks, he and Clapton shared the singing.

Now, Bobby has taken up painting, and he’s good at it. If you would like to view/purchase his paintings, go to https://www.bobbywhitlockart.com/