Eric Clapton is the only three-time inductee into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame as a member of The Yardbirds, Cream and solo. But, as he points out in an interview with The Real Music Observer, that doesn't mean he's a fan of the Hall.
"I think of it as a frat boys club. The fact that they had Ahmet, Ahmet Ertegun, was the ticket for me. He was doing it for people like Ruth Brown and The Drifters, all those early Atlantic [Records] artists that were being forgotten. And then, you know, it just kind of started to snowball and and I was very suspicious because obviously the magazine [Rolling Stone] was involved. The fact that someone like J.J. [Cale] has never even been suggested is proof of what that thing is, or proof of what it isn't. He's too anonymous for those guys. You know, it's not a place for rebels. It's establishment stuff. It's a get together. It's a schmooze."
While we wait to see if the late J.J. Cale will ever be recognized, one of Clapton's earliest mentors, the late John Mayall, whose Bluesbreakers he was a member of, will be honored with the Musical Excellence award at this year's induction ceremony on October 19th in Cleveland.