Wonderful Tonight

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"Wonderful Tonight" is a romantic song written by Eric Clapton about his then-love, Pattie Boyd. It was included on Clapton's 1977 album Slowhand and released as a single the following year.

While generally regarded as a romantic song (and, for that matter, one of the most popular slow-dancing songs ever recorded), "Wonderful Tonight"'s genesis was less than starry-eyed lyricism. Clapton's inspiration came as he grew impatient for Boyd to finish dressing for a party. In that regard, the lyric "You look wonderful tonight" could be interpreted less as a heartfelt compliment and more as a prod to be finished getting dressed. Nevertheless, the subsequent lyrics grow more patient and loving.

The instrumentation is also worth mention. Clapton's guitar work is largely free of distortion. While not completely uncharacteristic, the use of "clean" guitar marks Clapton's transition away from the overdriven riffs that he had helped popularize with John Mayall & the Bluesbreakers and Cream.

The song is a narrative, dealing with a party the pair attended. Each of the three verses is a scene from a part of the night: preparing for the party, going to the party, and coming home from the party. In each scene, he mentions how wonderful she is: how beautiful she looks while preparing for the party, how happy he is to be at the party with her, and how grateful he is that she puts up with him after he drinks a bit too much.

Karl Pilkington used this song as part of his 'Song with a Story' feature on the Ricky Gervais show on XFM as he believed that the song was about the story of a 'little crippled fella' in a wheelchair.

In 1988, Clapton appeared in the Nelson Mandela 70th Birthday Tribute concert as a guest guitarist for Dire Straits. The group became his backing musicians for a surprise performance of "Wonderful Tonight" during their set.