Eric Clapton Decries Rock Hall of Fame as a ‘Frat Boys Club’

Eric Clapton is the only person inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame three times, but that didn’t stop the famed musician from sharing some choice words about the institution.

“I think of it as a frat boys club that happened to lure [me] in,” the guitar god declared during a recent interview with The Real Music Observer.

Clapton — who was inducted with the Yardbirds, Cream and for his solo career — went on to reveal what initially drew him to the Hall, and why his opinion eventually shifted.

“I think the fact that they had [former Atlantic Records president and Hall of Fame chairman] Ahmet Ertegun was the ticket for me,” he explained. “He was doing it for people like Ruth Brown and the Drifters, all those early Atlantic artists that were being forgotten. And then, it just kind of started to snowball.”

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Clapton further noted that the involvement of Rolling Stone magazine – whose founder, Jann Wenner, also helped establish the Hall – made him “very suspicious.” Yet the endorsement of friend Robbie Robertson convinced Clapton to give the institution a chance.

Eric Clapton Says the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Is ‘Not a Place for Rebels’

Though he admitted to enjoying his reunion with Cream at the 1993 induction ceremony, Clapton ultimately determined that the Hall’s omissions of influential musicians, such as late guitarist J.J. Cale, carried the most weight.

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“The fact that someone like J.J. has never even been suggested is proof of what that thing is, or proof of what it isn’t,” he declared. “It’s not likely he’ll ever come up. It’s not their thing. I don’t know what their thing is. But he’s too anonymous for those guys.”

Asked about another notable Hall omission, former Free and Bad Company singer Paul Rodgers, Clapton was forthright.

“He’s a rebel,” the guitarist insisted. “It’s not a place for rebels. It’s establishment stuff.”