David Coverdale said Deep Purple prevented former guitarist Ritchie Blackmore from attending their Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction in 2016.

Blackmore had released a statement back then saying “he was discussing the possibility of attending, until we received correspondence from the President of the Rock Hall of Fame, who said that Bruce Payne, management for the current Deep Purple Touring Band, had said, ‘No ……… .!!!!!’ Therefore, Ritchie will not be attending the ceremony. He sincerely thanks all the fans that voted for him for their support.”

Coverdale was at the ceremony with fellow ex-member Glenn Hughes. “It was a complete and utter honor,” Coverdale recently told Z93. “But I was only concerned about Glenn Hughes. The rest of ‘em I haven’t got time for. They prevented Ritchie Blackmore from coming in to be honored as a Rock and Roll Hall of Famer.”

Read the full story on Ultimate Classic Rock.