Derek and the Dominos Co-Founder Bobby Whitlock Dead at 77

Bobby Whitlock, who co-founded Derek and the Dominos alongside Eric Clapton, died Sunday at the age of 77.

The organ and piano player’s death early Sunday morning was confirmed by manager Carol Kaye, who issued the following statement statement to ABC Audio: “With profound sadness, the family of Bobby Whitlock announces his passing at 1:20am on Aug. 10 after a brief illness. He passed in his home in Texas, surrounded by family.”

Whitlock’s career began in the mid-60s, when he was signed to Stax records and recorded with acts such as Booker T. and the M.G.’s and Sam & Dave. He joined Clapton in Delaney and Bonnie and Friends in 1968.

Meeting the guitar legend would lead Whitlock to making major contributions to two of the most important rock albums released in 1970. He co-wrote half of the 14 songs on Derek and the Dominos’ Layla and Other Assorted Love Songs with Clapton.

Read More: How Eric Clapton Opened His Heart and Created a Masterpiece

Within weeks of that album’s release, George Harrison released his triple-album masterpiece All Things Must Pass, which prominently featured Whitlock, Clapton and their Dominos bandmates, bassist Carl Radle and drummer Jim Gordon.

The albums were connected by more than these core musicians. Clapton had fallen deeply in love with Harrison’s then-wife, Pattie Boyd, whom he would eventually marry. Many of the songs on the Layla album are about her. To put it more simply: She’s “Layla” and the inspiration for Harrison’s Beatles classic “Something.”

In his autobiography, Whitlock talks about what it was like to be in the middle of this messy situation: “I have always know that the better part of those [All Things Must Pass] songs were directed to Eric, just like Eric’s were to George on the Layla record.”

After the 1971 breakup of the Dominos, Whitlock released a handful of solo albums before taking an extended hiatus from the music industry, citing his hatred of disco among the reasons for his decision. He resumed his recording career in 1999, releasing nine more albums that frequently featured his wife, musician CoCo Carmel.

Clapton is now the last surviving member of Derek and the Dominos. Bassist Carl Radle died in 1980 at age 37, and drummer Jim Gordon died in 2023 at age 77.

Duane Allman, who contributed lead and slide guitar to all but three songs on Layla and Other Assorted Love Songs but was not an official member of the band, died in 1971.