Despite his desire not to be a hitmaker or a famous musician, Eric Clapton became a household guitarist. Although he began with the intention of making outstanding albums, he gradually gained prominence and became a mentor to young aspiring guitarists. In a 1998 interview with CNN’s ‘Larry King Live,’ Clapton discussed his reasons for entering the music business, how he wanted to avoid the spotlight, and the early days when he feared he had reached the end of his career. Larry chatted with the guitarist about his early days in the industry and how he thought his days as a musician were over. He remembered: “I thought I was going to retire.” I mean, I thought it was over when I was 18 years old. It’s all over. Because they are all looking for the same thing. Every band I looked at had the same goal in mind: “Let’s get a hit record and a recording contract.” Eric stated that in his mind, hit after hit will eventually bring his career to an end. The guitarist went on to say: “And then what? “, I wondered.
That was the end of it. That appeared to be the end of the road. And the drive was about something very else for me.” Instead of doing what everyone else did, Clapton did something out of the ordinary. He stated: “So I went off on my own and was approached by a guy named John Mayall who wanted me to play in the clubs, in his blues band, with no mention of TV, records, or anything else.” When Larry asked Eric if he was a musician who had an instant hit, the guitarist replied: “No, it was like a fully formed thing.” Even back then, I believe it was album sales. I was far more interested with producing good albums. I believe I may have — in fact, I quit one band, The Yardbirds, because they were anxious to have a hit, and I was determined not to be a part of that.
” Clapton claimed that he was more concerned with making outstanding albums than with generating money. He expressed his concern about the emotional dangers of focusing too much on sales rather than the art, adding: “I don’t know, intuitively I knew it was dangerous to play around with that stuff or be lured into the spotlight on that level.” However, King pointed out that celebrity may come in either direction. Eric did not dispute his celebrity, but he did express caution. He stated: “Eventually. Yes, yes. I’m not sure how I knew, but I knew it was harmful.” Eric’s connection with the industry was up and down. Despite his worries about what it meant to be famous, he chose to perform in front of large audiences. However, he has always delivered when the circumstances matched his ideals. For example, after the epidemic, he chose not to perform in venues that required concertgoers to produce a Covid Pass in order to enter.
