Throughout his career, Clapton favoured artistic progression and fresh creative directions over remaining bound to a single band. He found greater satisfaction in the role of supporting guitarist contributing to others' albums rather than as a frontman demanding the spotlight, viewing this supporting position as more aligned with his artistic temperament.

Clapton's most emphatic stance concerns Cream, which he absolutely will not reunite. He attributed the band's original dissolution to excessive egos and relentless ambition that destroyed the members' working relationships, and pointed to subsequent reunion attempts where lingering animosities between bandmates nearly escalated into physical altercations, convincing him that the underlying wounds could never genuinely heal.