Pilgrim cover art

  Studio Album · No. 19

Pilgrim Songwriting Credits by Eric Clapton

1998 Duck / Reprise 14 tracks 76 min

Produced by Eric Clapton, Simon Climie  ·  Engineered by Alan Douglas

Duck / Reprise RockPopAdult contemporary
86%
Authorship
Artist

Holds writing credit on 12 of 14 tracks

Authorship Breakdown 12 / 14 documented

Who wrote the songs?

Scored across the 14 tracks with documented writers, by whether Eric Clapton carries a lyricist or composer credit.

86%
12 trackswritten by Eric Clapton 2 tracksoutside writers
Eric Clapton's roles on this album

Share of the 14 tracks where a band member is credited, by role.

Lyricist86%
Composer86%
Producer100%
Performer100%

By the Numbers

14
Tracks
5
Lyricists
2
Producers
1998
Released

Awards & Recognition 1

Grammy Award for Best Male Pop Vocal Performance (1999) for My Father's Eyes
Data Insight

Eric Clapton wrote or co-wrote twelve of the fourteen tracks on Pilgrim, mostly with producer Simon Climie. My Father's Eyes and Circus had first been written around his 1992 Unplugged period and were reworked here. The two covers are Bob Dylan's Born in Time and the blues standard Going Down Slow by St. Louis Jimmy Oden.

Pilgrim is Eric Clapton's 1998 studio album, his first album of original material since Journeyman and his first fully self-produced record alongside co-producer Simon Climie. The album was written in the aftermath of the death of his son Conor (who fell from a window in 1991) and carries an unmistakable weight of grief that separates it from most of Clapton's commercial output. 'My Father's Eyes,' a meditation on fatherhood that Clapton had been writing for years, became the album's best-known track and earned him a Grammy for Best Male Pop Vocal Performance. 'River of Tears' and 'Pilgrim' (the title track) are among the album's most deeply personal original compositions, while 'Change the World,' a song written by Gordon Kennedy, Tommy Sims, and Wayne Kirkpatrick that had appeared as a 1996 film tie-in, became a major hit before the album's release. Pilgrim is Clapton's most emotionally exposed solo album, even if the sleek production occasionally mutes its rawness.

Track Listing & Credits 14 tracks

Written by the artist Written by outside writers
#TitleLyricist(s)Composer(s)Producer(s)Performers
1
My Father's Eyes
Eric Clapton Eric Clapton Eric ClaptonSimon Climie Eric Clapton (Guitar, Lead Vocals)Nathan East (Bass, Backing Vocals)Andy Fairweather Low (Guitar, Backing Vocals)Chris Stainton (Keyboards)
2
River of Tears
Eric ClaptonSimon Climie Eric ClaptonSimon Climie Eric ClaptonSimon Climie Eric Clapton (Guitar, Lead Vocals)Nathan East (Bass, Backing Vocals)Andy Fairweather Low (Guitar, Backing Vocals)Chris Stainton (Keyboards)
3
Pilgrim
Eric ClaptonSimon Climie Eric ClaptonSimon Climie Eric ClaptonSimon Climie Eric Clapton (Guitar, Lead Vocals)Nathan East (Bass, Backing Vocals)Andy Fairweather Low (Guitar, Backing Vocals)Chris Stainton (Keyboards)
4
Broken Hearted
Eric ClaptonGreg Phillinganes Eric ClaptonGreg Phillinganes Eric ClaptonSimon Climie Eric Clapton (Guitar, Lead Vocals)Nathan East (Bass, Backing Vocals)Andy Fairweather Low (Guitar, Backing Vocals)Chris Stainton (Keyboards)
5
One Chance
Eric ClaptonSimon Climie Eric ClaptonSimon Climie Eric ClaptonSimon Climie Eric Clapton (Guitar, Lead Vocals)Nathan East (Bass, Backing Vocals)Andy Fairweather Low (Guitar, Backing Vocals)Chris Stainton (Keyboards)
6
Circus
Eric Clapton Eric Clapton Eric ClaptonSimon Climie Eric Clapton (Guitar, Lead Vocals)Nathan East (Bass, Backing Vocals)Andy Fairweather Low (Guitar, Backing Vocals)Chris Stainton (Keyboards)
7
Going Down Slow
St. Louis Jimmy Oden St. Louis Jimmy Oden Eric ClaptonSimon Climie Eric Clapton (Guitar, Lead Vocals)Nathan East (Bass, Backing Vocals)Andy Fairweather Low (Guitar, Backing Vocals)Chris Stainton (Keyboards)
8
Fall Like Rain
Eric Clapton Eric Clapton Eric ClaptonSimon Climie Eric Clapton (Guitar, Lead Vocals)Nathan East (Bass, Backing Vocals)Andy Fairweather Low (Guitar, Backing Vocals)Chris Stainton (Keyboards)
9
Born in Time
Bob Dylan Bob Dylan Eric ClaptonSimon Climie Eric Clapton (Guitar, Lead Vocals)Nathan East (Bass, Backing Vocals)Andy Fairweather Low (Guitar, Backing Vocals)Chris Stainton (Keyboards)
10
Sick and Tired
Eric ClaptonSimon Climie Eric ClaptonSimon Climie Eric ClaptonSimon Climie Eric Clapton (Guitar, Lead Vocals)Nathan East (Bass, Backing Vocals)Andy Fairweather Low (Guitar, Backing Vocals)Chris Stainton (Keyboards)
11
Needs His Woman
Eric ClaptonSimon Climie Eric ClaptonSimon Climie Eric ClaptonSimon Climie Eric Clapton (Guitar, Lead Vocals)Nathan East (Bass, Backing Vocals)Andy Fairweather Low (Guitar, Backing Vocals)Chris Stainton (Keyboards)
12
She's Gone
Eric ClaptonSimon Climie Eric ClaptonSimon Climie Eric ClaptonSimon Climie Eric Clapton (Guitar, Lead Vocals)Nathan East (Bass, Backing Vocals)Andy Fairweather Low (Guitar, Backing Vocals)Chris Stainton (Keyboards)
13
You Were There
Eric Clapton Eric Clapton Eric ClaptonSimon Climie Eric Clapton (Guitar, Lead Vocals)Nathan East (Bass, Backing Vocals)Andy Fairweather Low (Guitar, Backing Vocals)Chris Stainton (Keyboards)
14
Inside of Me
Eric ClaptonSimon Climie Eric ClaptonSimon Climie Eric ClaptonSimon Climie Eric Clapton (Guitar, Lead Vocals)Nathan East (Bass, Backing Vocals)Andy Fairweather Low (Guitar, Backing Vocals)Chris Stainton (Keyboards)

Songwriter & Credit Spotlight 8 contributors

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Frequently Asked Questions Pilgrim

Did Eric Clapton write the songs on Pilgrim?
Mostly yes. Clapton wrote or co-wrote twelve of the fourteen tracks, largely with Simon Climie. The exceptions are Bob Dylan's Born in Time and the blues standard Going Down Slow.
Who wrote My Father's Eyes by Eric Clapton?
Eric Clapton wrote My Father's Eyes. It won the 1999 Grammy Award for Best Male Pop Vocal Performance and was the lead single from Pilgrim.
Who produced Eric Clapton's Pilgrim?
Pilgrim was produced by Eric Clapton and Simon Climie, with Alan Douglas engineering. It was released in March 1998 on Reprise Records.
Is Born in Time on Pilgrim a Bob Dylan song?
Yes. Born in Time was written by Bob Dylan, and Clapton recorded it as a cover for Pilgrim. It is one of only two non-original tracks on the album.
What is the song Circus on Eric Clapton's Pilgrim about?
Circus is a reflective Clapton song reworked from the period around his 1992 Unplugged sessions. Like much of the album, it deals with loss and was written by Clapton.
How did Pilgrim perform on the charts?
Pilgrim reached number 4 on both the US Billboard 200 and the UK Albums Chart and topped the chart in Japan and Norway. It was certified Platinum in the US.

Sources