Eric Clapton is one of the greatest guitarists in music history — we can all agree on that. Last year, Rolling Stone ranked him as No. 2 on its Top 100 Guitarists list, second only to Jimi Hendrix.

“By rights I should have kicked the bucket a long time ago,” said Clapton.

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So it’s particularly shocking and sad to hear that the 71-year-old rocker has revealed he’s fighting a condition that will eventually make it impossible for him to play anymore. He has just revealed he was diagnosed with peripheral neuropathy in 2013. As he told Classic Rock magazine, playing guitar, which once came so easy to him, is now “hard work.”

He added, “I’ve had quite a lot of pain over the last year. It started with lower back pain and turned into what they call peripheral neuropathy, which is where you feel like you have electric shocks going down your leg,” he said.

“And I’ve had to figure out how to deal with some other things from getting old.”

Clapton, who has just released “I Still Do,” his 23rd solo album, may have dropped some hints two years ago in an interview when he said he was “looking at retirement.” But it didn’t really register.

“Rock ‘n’ roll” and “retirement” just don’t seem to belong in the same sentence, especially when you think of Mick Jagger still prancing around at age 72.

[lz_table title=”Classic Rock Guitar Heroes?”]Rocker,Age

Chuck Berry,89

Bob Dylan,75

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Keith Richards,72

Neil Young, 70

Joe Walsh,68

Carlos Santana,68

Bruce Springsteen,66

Eddie Van Halen,61

[/lz_table]

But for Clapton, touring had become “unbearable,” he told Uncut magazine in 2014.

In that same interview, he said his condition could force him to stop playing guitar. “Maybe. It might be that I can’t, if it hurts too much. I have odd ailments.”

He also said he was planning to stop touring when he turned 70, but that he might continue to do the “one-off” shows here and there.

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Peripheral neuropathy, a result of damage to the peripheral nerves, often causes weakness, numbness, and pain, usually in the hands and feet. It can also affect other areas of the body, according to the Mayo Clinic. Peripheral neuropathy can result from traumatic injuries, infections, metabolic problems, inherited causes, and exposure to toxins.

It is a painful problem — people with peripheral neuropathy generally describe the feeling as stabbing, burning, or tingling. Treatments mostly focus on pain management.

Clapton didn’t discuss his health issues in any greater detail. It sounds like he’s trying to stay as positive as possible.

“Because I’m in recovery from alcoholism and addiction to substances, I consider it a great thing to be alive at all,” he declared. “By rights I should have kicked the bucket a long time ago. For some reason I was plucked from the jaws of hell and given another chance.”