A new documentary, Eric Clapton: Life In 12 Bars, opens in cinemas this Friday, January 12.

Directed by Lil Fini Zanuck, the film explores the arc of Clapton’s rise through a mix archival footage and new interviews.

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In an exclusive clip – below – Clapton talks about his time with The Yardbirds and his emergence on the burgeoning British blues scene.

Cut against footage of the band performing “I Wish You Would” on Granada Television’s From The North, Clapton recalls early shows with The Yardbirds at venues like the Crawdaddy in Richmond.

“I developed a little following among these people,” he explains, “and I knew that there were certain ways that I could get them going.”

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Drummer Jim McCarty refers to this crowd – who’d dutifully gather at the foot of the stage in front of the guitarist – as “The Clapton Clique”.

You can see more, of course, in cinemas when the film opens tomorrow.

Presumably, this will help whet your whistle for Clapton’s headline show at Barclaycard presents British Summer Time Hyde Park on Sunday, July 8, 2018…

The February 2018 issue of Uncut is now on sale in the UK – with The Great Lost Venues Of Britain on the cover. Elsewhere in the issue, there a giant preview of 2018’s key albums plus new interviews with Keith Richards, Buffalo Springfield, Michael McDonald, The Sweet and many more. Our free 15 track-CD features 15 tracks of the month’s best music.