December 10, 2021 • 10 mins
ZZ Top is there to honor and recognize Cream - the supergroup who set the blueprint for many rock trios, including that little ole’ band from Texas. As Cream accepts the honor, they highlight the magic and power of the induction ceremony itself as it reignites friendships of the past and brings people together.
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
M Welcome to Induction Vault, a production of I Heart
Radio and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame M
(00:29):
A guitar, bass, drum kit and three virtuosic musicians was
all Cream needed to create a hell of a legacy
worthy of a Hall of Fame induction. Zz Top is
there to honor and recognize the supergroup who set the
blueprint for many rock trios, concluding that Litlod Band from
Texas for Frank Beard, Ginger Baker's African influence percussion altered
(00:53):
the landscape of what it meant to be a rock drummer.
Billy Gibbons highlights the unique, powerful sound of Cream that
everyone in the audience could relate to, and as Cream
accepts the honor, they highlight the magic and power of
the induction ceremony itself. According to Jack Bruce, rock and
roll is what brings people together, even after twenty years
(01:15):
of being apart, and even Eric Clapton, a self proclaimed
skeptic of the Hall, admits how this honor can heal
old wounds and reignite friendships of the past. Well, I'm
(01:37):
really glad to be here tonight, not because it's the
place to be on a Tuesday night. And not because
once a year this is the place to be. Not
because you get to see your old friends once again.
You get to maybe meet somebody you didn't meet that
you'd you'd heard their work. And uh, not because as
(02:00):
we were in the studio and I do anything to
get out of the studio. But because tonight I get
to hear Ginger Baker play drums. Starting out in the sixties,
Uh there were a hundred drummers in Dallas, and when
Ginger Breaker and the Cream came out, we all set
(02:22):
our drums up like Ginger Baker. We all had two
bass drums now, and we all had our time tom
set sideways and we all put two symbols on each
stand and it worked out good. You went from club
to club and the set was just right. I mean,
you could jam here, you could jam there, and it
all worked out good. But what I'm trying to say
(02:43):
is that he was the one drummer that that we
all wanted to be like, and we all studied his
work and listened to the record and how did he
do that? How how did he make that sound? It
sounded Sometimes he would be playing a solo and it
sounded like he was sawing on something. It was, I mean.
(03:04):
And so when we get through introducing Cream and the
the gentleman tries to lead me back to my table
over there, I'm not going. I'm gonna be hiding over
here behind an amplifier and I'm gonna be watching Ginger
Baker play drums. Any better do it like the records,
because I spent two three, four hundred hours learning those songs,
(03:26):
just like those records. And I'm gonna know if he
hadn't do it. Yeah, well, this is gonna be short.
About the same time Frank was listening, I was listening
to Jack Bruce. I was much younger than Frank, and
I thought I could play the bass at the time
(03:47):
until I heard Jack Bruce play and I had to
rethink that. And Uh, the best compliment around then and
now it was to be a musicians band. And every
musician loved Cream and they still do. That's all I
got to say. There's only one name that rounds out
(04:11):
this trio, and Uh. As we all discussed this backstage,
it was a group of talented musicians that made up
three guys that express power. Uh, Eric Clapton being the third,
(04:33):
following the two names that were previously mentioned. UH created
a sound that everybody in this room can relate to,
and UH certainly set the stage for our outfit. And
it's with great pleasure that we UH announced them bad
(04:58):
bad boys of that good thing Cream. After the break,
we'll hear from the members of Cream on the Rock
and Roll Hall of Fame induction. Roll. Well, this is
(05:22):
really fantastic. I can't tell you. Um, I come from
Glasgow in Scotland, and it doesn't seem so far away now.
I think. I think there must be what rock and
rolls about. It brings people together, and if the three
of us can be together again, anybody can be together again.
I'll tell you. I'd like to thank everybody ever, UH,
(05:49):
but I'd mostly like to thank Anna really, first of
all for for leaving in us enough to record this
and so on. I'd like to thank Ginger for showing
me some mad African rhythms that I can't get over.
And Eric for clearing my mind teach me the purity
of the blues and the honesty of it. Thank you,
(06:12):
thank you, thank you very much. I have to be
honest and say that until very recently, I just didn't
believe in this institution at all. I don't believe in institutions,
(06:34):
I suppose, but it seemed to me that rock and
roll should never be respectable, you see, and I was.
And then a friend of mine not so long ago,
Robbie Robertson, pointed out to me that minor and major
miracles take place in here, and it deeply moved me.
And I looked at this from a different point of view,
(06:55):
and I saw that a lot could be gained by
coming here tonight. And a lot has been gained. I've
been reunited with two people that I love very dearly.
It's very moving. And yesterday, yesterday we played together for
(07:17):
the first time in twenty five years, and uh, it
was pretty amazing. It was wonderful. It was wonderful. And
we're going to play again a little while and I
don't know how it will be. But as Ginger says,
or as I say to Ginger, apparently whatever you do,
(07:38):
don't worry. Yeah. The last time I actually the three
of us were together, we were on acid down at
my house, yea, and this this drug dealer came around
the corner. We were in the garden, this drug dealer
that owed me money or drugs or something came around
the corner and he stopped about thirty ft way and
(08:00):
he couldn't get any closer. He just was like a wall,
like a force field, And kind of that symbolizes to
me what happens when the three of us to get together,
and it can be good or bad. You never know.
But I'm very, very grateful to be here tonight, and
(08:20):
I want to thank Armitt too, and I want to
thank Tom Down, and I want to thank Roger Forrester,
and I want to thank all of you for making
this possible. God bless you all. Thank you. Yeah, um,
I think everybody said everything, so I'll be very brief.
(08:43):
Just thanks very much. It's nice to be here. Thank you.
(09:09):
Thanks for joining us on this week's episode of Rock
and Roll Hall of Fame Induction Vault. For more on
your favorite inductees, to shop Inductee merch or to plan
your trip to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame,
visit rock Hall dot com plus Rock and Roll Hall
of Fame Induction Special on demand on HBO Max. Our
executive producers are Noel Brown, Shelby Morrison, and Esa Gurkey.
(09:32):
Supervising producer is Taylor Shakin. Research and archival assistants from
Isabelle Keeper and Shannon Herb. Thanks again for joining us
on this week's episode of Rock and Roll Hall of
Fame Induction Vault. Induction Ball is a production of I
Heart Radio in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
(09:54):
For more podcasts from my Heart Radio, visit the I
heart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your
favorite podcasts.
M Welcome to Induction Vault, a production of I Heart
Radio and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame M
(00:29):
A guitar, bass, drum kit and three virtuosic musicians was
all Cream needed to create a hell of a legacy
worthy of a Hall of Fame induction. Zz Top is
there to honor and recognize the supergroup who set the
blueprint for many rock trios, concluding that Litlod Band from
Texas for Frank Beard, Ginger Baker's African influence percussion altered
(00:53):
the landscape of what it meant to be a rock drummer.
Billy Gibbons highlights the unique, powerful sound of Cream that
everyone in the audience could relate to, and as Cream
accepts the honor, they highlight the magic and power of
the induction ceremony itself. According to Jack Bruce, rock and
roll is what brings people together, even after twenty years
(01:15):
of being apart, and even Eric Clapton, a self proclaimed
skeptic of the Hall, admits how this honor can heal
old wounds and reignite friendships of the past. Well, I'm
(01:37):
really glad to be here tonight, not because it's the
place to be on a Tuesday night. And not because
once a year this is the place to be. Not
because you get to see your old friends once again.
You get to maybe meet somebody you didn't meet that
you'd you'd heard their work. And uh, not because as
(02:00):
we were in the studio and I do anything to
get out of the studio. But because tonight I get
to hear Ginger Baker play drums. Starting out in the sixties,
Uh there were a hundred drummers in Dallas, and when
Ginger Breaker and the Cream came out, we all set
(02:22):
our drums up like Ginger Baker. We all had two
bass drums now, and we all had our time tom
set sideways and we all put two symbols on each
stand and it worked out good. You went from club
to club and the set was just right. I mean,
you could jam here, you could jam there, and it
all worked out good. But what I'm trying to say
(02:43):
is that he was the one drummer that that we
all wanted to be like, and we all studied his
work and listened to the record and how did he
do that? How how did he make that sound? It
sounded Sometimes he would be playing a solo and it
sounded like he was sawing on something. It was, I mean.
(03:04):
And so when we get through introducing Cream and the
the gentleman tries to lead me back to my table
over there, I'm not going. I'm gonna be hiding over
here behind an amplifier and I'm gonna be watching Ginger
Baker play drums. Any better do it like the records,
because I spent two three, four hundred hours learning those songs,
(03:26):
just like those records. And I'm gonna know if he
hadn't do it. Yeah, well, this is gonna be short.
About the same time Frank was listening, I was listening
to Jack Bruce. I was much younger than Frank, and
I thought I could play the bass at the time
(03:47):
until I heard Jack Bruce play and I had to
rethink that. And Uh, the best compliment around then and
now it was to be a musicians band. And every
musician loved Cream and they still do. That's all I
got to say. There's only one name that rounds out
(04:11):
this trio, and Uh. As we all discussed this backstage,
it was a group of talented musicians that made up
three guys that express power. Uh, Eric Clapton being the third,
(04:33):
following the two names that were previously mentioned. UH created
a sound that everybody in this room can relate to,
and UH certainly set the stage for our outfit. And
it's with great pleasure that we UH announced them bad
(04:58):
bad boys of that good thing Cream. After the break,
we'll hear from the members of Cream on the Rock
and Roll Hall of Fame induction. Roll. Well, this is
(05:22):
really fantastic. I can't tell you. Um, I come from
Glasgow in Scotland, and it doesn't seem so far away now.
I think. I think there must be what rock and
rolls about. It brings people together, and if the three
of us can be together again, anybody can be together again.
I'll tell you. I'd like to thank everybody ever, UH,
(05:49):
but I'd mostly like to thank Anna really, first of
all for for leaving in us enough to record this
and so on. I'd like to thank Ginger for showing
me some mad African rhythms that I can't get over.
And Eric for clearing my mind teach me the purity
of the blues and the honesty of it. Thank you,
(06:12):
thank you, thank you very much. I have to be
honest and say that until very recently, I just didn't
believe in this institution at all. I don't believe in institutions,
(06:34):
I suppose, but it seemed to me that rock and
roll should never be respectable, you see, and I was.
And then a friend of mine not so long ago,
Robbie Robertson, pointed out to me that minor and major
miracles take place in here, and it deeply moved me.
And I looked at this from a different point of view,
(06:55):
and I saw that a lot could be gained by
coming here tonight. And a lot has been gained. I've
been reunited with two people that I love very dearly.
It's very moving. And yesterday, yesterday we played together for
(07:17):
the first time in twenty five years, and uh, it
was pretty amazing. It was wonderful. It was wonderful. And
we're going to play again a little while and I
don't know how it will be. But as Ginger says,
or as I say to Ginger, apparently whatever you do,
(07:38):
don't worry. Yeah. The last time I actually the three
of us were together, we were on acid down at
my house, yea, and this this drug dealer came around
the corner. We were in the garden, this drug dealer
that owed me money or drugs or something came around
the corner and he stopped about thirty ft way and
(08:00):
he couldn't get any closer. He just was like a wall,
like a force field, And kind of that symbolizes to
me what happens when the three of us to get together,
and it can be good or bad. You never know.
But I'm very, very grateful to be here tonight, and
(08:20):
I want to thank Armitt too, and I want to
thank Tom Down, and I want to thank Roger Forrester,
and I want to thank all of you for making
this possible. God bless you all. Thank you. Yeah, um,
I think everybody said everything, so I'll be very brief.
(08:43):
Just thanks very much. It's nice to be here. Thank you.
(09:09):
Thanks for joining us on this week's episode of Rock
and Roll Hall of Fame Induction Vault. For more on
your favorite inductees, to shop Inductee merch or to plan
your trip to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame,
visit rock Hall dot com plus Rock and Roll Hall
of Fame Induction Special on demand on HBO Max. Our
executive producers are Noel Brown, Shelby Morrison, and Esa Gurkey.
(09:32):
Supervising producer is Taylor Shakin. Research and archival assistants from
Isabelle Keeper and Shannon Herb. Thanks again for joining us
on this week's episode of Rock and Roll Hall of
Fame Induction Vault. Induction Ball is a production of I
Heart Radio in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
(09:54):
For more podcasts from my Heart Radio, visit the I
heart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your
favorite podcasts.
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