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A handwritten letter from John Lennon to Eric Clapton dated September 29, 1971, is going up for auction next month. In the eight-page draft letter, Lennon proposes that the two music legends form a new band together.
The letter, which is expected to sell for €100,000 – €150,000 (approximately $104,000 – $157,000), is being auctioned by International Autograph Auctions Europe SL on December 5. This isn’t the first time the letter has been up for sale – a 2012 auction had expected it to fetch $30,000.
In the letter, Lennon expresses his and Yoko Ono’s high regard for Clapton’s music. He acknowledges Clapton was going through a “dark period” at the time, marred by heroin addiction and a retreat from the public eye.
“Eric, I know I can bring out something great, in fact greater in you that had been so far evident in your music,” Lennon writes. He pitches the idea of Clapton joining a new band that would include previous members of Lennon’s Plastic Ono Band, such as Klaus Voormann, Jim Keltner, Nicky Hopkins, and Phil Spector.
“And of course we had YOU!!! in mind as soon as we decided,” Lennon tells Clapton, trying to reassure him. “Please don’t be frightened, I understand paranoia, only too well. I think it could only do good for you to work with people who love and respect you, and that’s from all of us.”
Ultimately, Clapton declined Lennon’s offer to join the proposed supergroup. The draft letter shows Lennon’s edits and revisions as he crafted his proposal to the guitar legend.
