Pattie Boyd
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Patricia Anne "Pattie" Boyd (born 17 March 1944) model and photographer, is best known as the wife of two famous rock musicians and the possible inspiration for several rock love songs. After meeting on the set of A Hard Day's Night, Pattie married George Harrison in 1966, during the heyday of his group, The Beatles. Unfortunately, Harrison's pal Eric Clapton, first of The Yardbirds, then of Cream, also fell madly in love with her. Pattie went on to divorce Harrison in 1977 and later marry Clapton in 1979. She eventually divorced Clapton as well in 1988.
Legend has it that Pattie was the inspiration for one of George Harrison's most famous tunes, "Something", one of the few Beatles hits not written by fellow bandmates John Lennon and Paul McCartney. (Frank Sinatra once said that "Something" was the "greatest love song ever written".) However, Harrison himself later said he had pictured Ray Charles singing it and did not really have anyone else in mind. Harrison also wrote "For You Blue", "I Need You", "So Sad", and "Think For Yourself" that are said to be inspired by Pattie, but how many of these actually were is not known.
Eric Clapton's tortured passion for his best friend's wife produced one of his most famous songs, "Layla", a rock ballad that became a pop hit in two different decades with two different versions. Clapton's more sentimental hit "Wonderful Tonight" was also written for Pattie Boyd, as well as his tunes "Never Make You Cry" and "Pretty Girl".
Pattie wasn't the only Boyd family member to inspire such musical fondness. Her younger sister Helen Mary, nicknamed "Jenny" after one of Pattie's childhood dolls, caused her own rock-musician rivalry as the muse for Donovan Leitch's pop hit "Jennifer Juniper", while marrying Mick Fleetwood, founder of Fleetwood Mac. After divorcing Fleetwood (and remarrying and redivorcing him), Jenny eventually married drummer Ian Wallace (formerly of King Crimson), earned a Ph.D. in psychology, and became a clinical consultant and author.
An exhibition of photographs taken by Boyd during her days with Harrison and Clapton opened at the San Francisco Art Exchange on Valentine's Day 2005, fittingly titled "Through the Eyes of a Muse."