Stainton, Chris

Stainton, Chris

Chris Stainton was born in Sheffield, England in 1944. He embarked on his musical career playing a bass guitar made out of a plank of wood. In addition to bass, he is an accomplished keyboard player playing organ and piano.

Chris joined his first band in 1961. He was an integral part of Joe Cocker’s Grease Band between 1966 and 1972. In 1968 he switched to keyboards at the request of Joe Cocker. In 1972, he launched his own band which lasted for four years. He then played in a number of others before signing on with Eric Clapton in 1979. He remained with Eric until 1988. In 1989, Chris again teamed up with Joe Cocker and worked with him through the year 2000.

Over the years, Chris has also worked with Pete Townshend, Ringo Starr, Bryan Ferry, Peter Frampton, David Gilmour and Bill Wyman’s Rhythm Kings.

From 1993 to 1997, Chris again became part of Eric’s touring and studio band. He took part in “The Concert For George” on 29 November 2002, of which Eric was musical director. Chris rejoined Eric’s band for the 2003 Japan tour and has been an integral part of the lineup on all post-2003 dates. He was on the road with Eric for the 2004 World Tour, the massive 2006 / 2007 World Tour, the North American 2008 tour as well as all 2009 / 2010 / 2011 dates, including the tours with Steve Winwood and Jeff Beck. Chris has also been on stage with EC at all three Crossroads Guitar Festivals. 

Chris can be heard on the following Eric Clapton recordings: Just One Night, Another Ticket, Money & Cigarettes, Behind The Sun, From The Cradle, Pilgrim and Back Home. He can be seen in Eric’s DVDs for all three Crossroads Guitar Festivals (2004 / 2007 / 2010), Sessions for Robert J. and Eric Clapton and Steve Winwood Live From Madison Square Garden.