1991 Hit Ranked the 'Saddest Song' of All Time Was Inspired by Family Tragedy

March 20, 1991, was a horrific day for one of rock music's most famous artists, Eric Clapton.

His son, Conor, was 4-years old and staying at a New York condominium with his mother, the Italian actress Lory Del Santo. Then, tragedy struck, and Clapton poured the resulting emotional pain into a ballad that is now ranked the "saddest song" in history.

That song is called "Tears in Heaven," and it landed at the top of a recent top 10 list of the saddest songs of all time. The lyrics start with the heartbreaking lines, "Would you know my name, if I saw you in Heaven? Would it be the same, if I saw you in Heaven?"

What happened to Conor Clapton? Over the years, Clapton has opened up about his grief and the song's creation.

Conor Clapton Fell From the 49th Floor, Through an Open Window

According to Ultimate Classic Rock, Conor "fell out of an open window in the high-rise." Clapton's son fell 49 stories to his death, The New York Times reported. "The housekeeper had just finished cleaning the window and left it open to air the room when Conor ran past him and fell out the 4-by-6 opening," according to Snopes.

New York law required window guards on residential windows but exempted condominiums, leaving that decision up to the units' owners, Snopes reported, and this window lacked a guard.

Snopes confirmed that "Tears in Heaven" was written about Clapton's son. According to Snopes, when the tragedy occurred, Conor and his mom were visiting New York from Italy, and Clapton, who was also in the city, was staying at a hotel.

"When he was born, it was truly the most beautiful day of my life. Unforgettable," Del Santo said.According to Il Messagero, Clapton and Del Santo had already broken up, but he embraced fatherhood, even though he was married to Pattie Boyd when Conor was born, according to Snopes.

"When the child was born, he took him in his arms and said: 'I am a father,'" Del Santo said. Del Santo suffered another devastating tragedy, losing another son by another man, age 19, to suicide, Il Messagero reported.

Eric Clapton Has Opened Up About His Love for Son Conor

Over the years, Clapton has periodically shared details of his son's death and the emotional pain that followed.

Clapton said in a 60 Minutes interview, "I really did love this boy," and revealed that he stopped drinking alcohol because of Conor. "When he was born, I was drinking, and he was really the chief reason why I went back to treatment," Clapton said, adding that he decided he was "tired" of drinking.

Conor's mother called Clapton, hysterically, at his hotel room and told her that Conor was dead. "I remember putting the phone down and calmly walking from my hotel to that place," Clapton said.

Readers Explained That 'Tears in Heaven' Strikes an Emotional Chord Because 'It's Real'

Readers of the Top 10 site, which ranked "Tears in Heaven" the number one saddest song, explained that Clapton's real-life tragedy resonates through it. "Eric Clapton wrote about his son. It's real. There is nothing more devastating than losing your child. Relationships mean nothing compared to looking at yourself in a tiny form and having to watch it die," wrote one.

"What could possibly be more sad than the words of this song when you know the story of his son dying. He wonders if his son will know who he (Clapton) is when they meet in heaven. It's hard enough to wait for that, but on top of that not knowing whether he will even remember you," another person wrote.

Tears in Heaven was composed by Eric Clapton and Will Jennings. It "was Clapton's way of pouring his grief and growing acceptance of Conor's loss into his music," Snopes reported.

Eric Clapton Said Writing 'Tears in Heaven' Helped Him 'Channel' His Pain

Both composers described the song's creation over the years. It was written for the soundtrack of the movie, Rush.

"Eric had the first verse of the song written, which, to me, is all the song, but he wanted me to write the rest of the verse lines even though I told him that it was so personal he should write everything himself," Jennings said, according to Smooth Radio.

He added, "I'm passionate about all the songs I write, but it was just in another place entirely, another category."

The television special Eric Clapton Unplugged... Over 30 Years Later discussed the song, which Clapton played on MTV Unplugged. According to People, Clapton "famously performed an acoustic version" on that special.

“It was really needed to illustrate loss because of what happens in the movie, and it was a good opportunity for me to write about my son, about the loss of my son, and also have somewhere to put it, to channel it,” Clapton said, People reports.

“And I really wanted to say something about what had happened to me and the opportunity the movie gave me was excellent, because it meant I could write this song for the film and express my own feelings," he added.

According to People, Clapton also said, “I do intend to make these things known and I will play them in concert and put them on record,” he says. “And it is, for me, a healing process and I think it’s important that you share that with people that love your music.”

Clapton also based "My Father's Eyes" on Conor and his own dad, who wasn't involved in his life.

"It’s a very personal matter, but I never met my father, and I’d realized it when I was with my son — the closest I ever came to looking in my father’s eyes was when I looked in my son’s eyes,” he said, according to People. “So I wrote a song about that. It was kind of a strange, like a strange cycle thing that occurred to me and another thing that I felt I would like to share.”

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