Every year we get a new Rock And Roll Hall of Fame Induction Class and every year it seems to be ripe with controversies. This year some important artists in rock history are finally getting inducted, artists like Peter Frampton (how was he not in already twice let alone once), Ozzy Osborne and a couple are being inducted under the Musical Excellence Award (what?) like Jimmy Buffett and the MC5 or how about John Mayal under the banner Musical Influence Award instead of being rightly voted in years ago.
We have asked some of our writers to give us a little story about who they think has been overlooked and deserves to be inducted into the Rock Hall so this story is really five smaller stories with five different opinions all on the same topic. Who has been snubbed by the Rock Hall?
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WHO MAKING THESE DECISIONS?
by Bear
Anyone that has read my articles on the Rock And Roll Hall of Fame knows there is a love/hate relationship between us especially in some of the stories I wrote years ago on the first incarnation of this site. Those stories were picked up by some magazines and newspapers and because of my criticism of Rock Hall, those stories made me “persona non grata” in the building to where events and openings that we were always invited to cover dried up not just for me but others at the website. They didn’t like the negative coverage, but I personally didn’t care since it would be hypocritical of me to attend an event they put on when I was regularly trashing them for their policies. One of the biggest things I trashed them about was who they inducted and why. Like I don’t really know what the Musical Excellence Award really is? It used to be the Sideman category but now it seems like a cop out to me instead of these deserving artists being voted in like the rest of the inductees. I’ll get more in depth on that and more in an upcoming story I have on the Rock Hall.
There are so many artists I think should have been in a long time ago like Thin Lizzy, Joe Cocker, Little Feat, Joe Walsh, Jethro Tull, Blue Oyster Cult, The Guess Who, WAR, New York Dolls and of course Warren Zevon but here are my chosen few that I can’t seem to understand why they are snubbed and overlooked.
EMERSON, LAKE AND PALMER – As Greg Lake once said “ELP were playing stadiums. Not clubs, stadiums,” and he was right. Were you there when they filled Cleveland Stadium in 1974. They only had one top 40 hit and it was a big one, “From The Beginning,” but their first eight studio albums from 1970 to 1992 all went gold. If you don’t believe me that they belong in the Rock Hall, put on “Brain Salad Surgery” or “Tarkus” and listen to the musical artistry of the three of them. Bands weren’t even attempting shit like this, and they made it work. They are everything the Rock Hall says it’s looking for, “musical influence on other artists, length and depth of career, the body of work, innovation, and superiority in style and technique.” If that is not ELP I don’t know what is?
THREE DOG NIGHT – How this band is so overlooked by the Rock Hall voting committee amazes me. They have been eligible for 30 years and they have 0 nominations, how the hell did nobody in that room over 30 years think “hey remember that band with the three lead singers that had 21 Top 40 hits, what do you think about them?” There wasn’t a time in the 70’s when you put on a radio that a Three Dog Night song didn’t come on. They had three great vocalists in Chuck Negron, Cory Wells, and Danny Hutton that each gave a distinctive style to the songs they sang and it worked. They were a hit machine.
MOTT THE HOOPLE – If David Bowie thinks this band was great, then guess what, they are. I remember hearing the album “All The Young Dudes” for the first time. It wasn’t what I was listening to at the time but it made me do a 90 degree turn and helped change my listening. Ian Hunter, Overend Watts and the Micks (Ronson and Ralphs) were a force of nature and that album opened me to bands like Slade, New York Dolls, Alex Harvey to name a few. Back to Bowie, Bowie loved the band so much when he heard they were splitting up he offered them the song “Suffragette City” which they turned down so he wrote “All The Young Dudes” for them and produced the album making it a hit. They have influenced a lot of bands since. When Def Leppard was inducted in 2019 to end the jam they didn’t do one of their songs to close the night, they did “All The Young Dudes” because Mott The Hoople is Joe Elliott’s favorite band.
MOTORHEAD – When Lemmy was kicked out of Hawkwind he wanted to start a band that was as he said “the British version of the MC5, simple as that, If I could have joined the MC5, I would have.” They were loud (google Motorhead’s Variety Theatre concert for laughs), obnoxious, hard drinking, with driven heavy riffs and every bit Rock And Roll. No heavy metal band should have ever been inducted in the Rock Hall before Motorhead, they were the blueprint. James Hetfield once said “There’s no more rock ‘n’ roll person on this planet than Lemmy and Motorhead, he was just such an icon, such an inspiration to us as a band. There’s certainly no way we’d be around if there was no Motorhead.” Or how about Kerry King of Slayer who said “I don’t understand the process, but yes, they motherfucking should be in the Hall of Fame.” I think I can relate to Lemmy a little as he was “persona non gratta” with the Rock Hall when he famously was quoted about the hallowed halls, “What a monumental waste of space. The biggest room there is the freaking gift shop. Do you know what I mean? It’s all politics, that place. All a load of fucking politics.” That statement alone should get them in, that’s Rock N Roll.
J. GEILS BAND – They have been eligible since 1993 and have been nominated five times but never got the votes from the committee. Each year I thought, this is the year and sadly it wasn’t. Take away the hits, take away the gold albums and you know what you got? Probably the greatest live band ever, they were the ultimate touring rock and roll band and they perfected their craft on the road with one of the best frontmen ever to grace a stage with Peter Wolf. If you were not lucky enough to see them live and feel the energy they had on stage then go ahead and pop on “Live: Blow Your Face Out” which just screams play me loud, it’s prime time J. Geils Band. What they left behind cannot be denied even by the Rock Hall.
RASPBERRIES – This one is a little personal as I saw them probably a hundred times in the 70’s as they were Cleveland thru and thru. They were the definition of a power pop band and they had a string of hits but their roots was all rock and roll. Their influence on bands is well documented, bands like Kiss, Cheap Trick and the boss himself, Bruce Springsteen have talked about how the Raspberries influenced them. John Lennon and even Kurt Cobain were fans. This is a band that needs some serious consideration from the nominating committee.
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WHERE DO WE BEGIN?
by Mike Olszewski
They’re questions that have plagued Rock Hall fans for decades. Who’s in, who’s not and who should be? Many of the longtime snubs have been corrected, but the farther along we get in rock and roll history the chances of some others being inducted are diminishing. Case in point: The British Invasion. Gerry Marsden of the Pacemakers was a lifelong friend of John Lennon who held great respect for him. His version of “You’ll Never Walk Alone” is still played at Manchester football (i.e soccer) matches, and they were in a fight for chart space with the Beatles and Dave Clark Five. Herman’s Hermits had a dozen top ten hits and were greatly respected by many of rock’s royalty. Roger Daltrey told Peter “Herman” Noone on MTV’s “My Generation” that the Who learned valuable lessons about the business when they toured with the Hermits back in the sixties. When Jimmy Page was called in to do the solo work on the Hermits’ version of “Silhouettes” he asked why he was needed when the band’s Derek Leckenby was a very capable guitarist and more than qualified for the challenge. But it’s not about the number of hits. Otherwise, Tommy James and the Shondells would have been inducted long ago. (The Hall even hosted an event with James when his book Me, the Mob, and the Music: One Helluva Ride detailing organized crime’s influence on the industry was released.) So many others including Fanny, Grand Funk Railroad, the Jam, Mitch Ryder, Screamin’ Jay Hawkins and you can make a case for the Monkees are seeing their chances fade with time.
Some that I hope will eventually get the nod include:
EMERSON, LAKE AND PALMER – I love the progressive rock era and ELP helped lead the charge. Greg Lake has already been honored with King Crimson and Keith Emerson should have been for his work with the Nice. Both died in 2016, but Carl Palmer keeps the torch burning and would likely welcome the recognition for the trio’s work.
DICK DALE – The pioneer in surf music, Dale along with the Deltones helped define the California sound. His twangy guitar with a heavy dose of reverb influenced everyone from Brian May to Eddie Van Halen and he won kudos from Jimi Hendrix, Brian Wilson and scores of others. He was still playing the club circuit until the very end.
JIMMY PAGE – Yes, he was inducted with Led Zeppelin and the Yadbirds but his session work is heard in dozens of seminal recordings. Even the guitarists that influenced him have pointed to Page as a continuing force. His predecessors in the Yardbirds, Jeff Beck and Eric Clapton, are multiple honorees. Time to give Jimmy Page the distinction of a third induction.
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THE ROCK HALL
by Dominic Gionti
I grew up with music. My first memory of music came from speakers my father mounted on the roof of his radio repair shop and played Christmas music through them. That was back in the mid-fifties. What a time to discover music! One genre of music was being replaced by another. We Boomer’s needed our own music and along came Rock and Roll! The radio was how we listened, and the northern Ohio area was blessed with some great radio stations and DJ’s willing to play new things. Alan Freed was one of them. He gave a name to the music a generation was listening to. Considered to be a passing fad, the roots were just taking hold. Many new Bands formed and through those early supergroups Rock prospered. Rock grew, no longer a fad. Concerts and rock festivals spread the word. Rock was here to stay! As Rock spread, a way to honor the music pioneers became a race between San Fransisco and Cleveland. I think Alan Freed pulled some strings and the Hall found Cleveland. It was exciting during the Inaugural Year! Being the Home of Rock and Roll has brought many performers and fans to The Hall to appreciate the relics of the foundation that is Rock. The Fan has a Hall to learn the story. The Fan has a vote for future enshrines. This vote I would like to see change since it only accounts for about 10% of an inductee’s total vote. Industry experts count for the majority. The Fan buys the records, tapes, cd’s, downloads and listens to the music and attends the concerts. Our voice is a loud one when it comes to the popularity of an artist. Our vote should be a larger percentage of the total vote. Cleveland has had many iconic concerts over the years. All the greats come to Cleveland; the Rock Hall should have its induction concerts in Cleveland every year.
The past 30 years have seen The Rock Hall grow and expand the relics displayed. The new expansion should secure the future.
With all the great inductions there are the why nots…Like, America, Emerson Lake & Palmer, Grand Funk Railroad, J. Geils Band, Little Feat, there are many that one could argue for, there should be two (one for Rock and the other for Roll) every year from the list of forgotten that fans could vote in.
AMERICA – They has released 23 albums since the band’s inception in 1970. They have won a Grammy for Best New Artist, have a star on the Hollywood Walk of fame, have been inducted into the Vocal Group Hall of Fame, and multiple platinum records.
EMERSON, LAKE AND PALMER – With roots in such bands as The Nice, Atomic Rooster and King Crimson, ELP amassed 45 albums since 1970. They have 9 certified gold albums and have sold over 45 million albums. With more stadium concerts than most, ELP achieved commercial success. Keith Emerson’s use of the Moog synthesizer on “Lucky Man” was one of the first using the Moog as primary solo instrument.
GRAND FUNK RAILROAD – The group has now accumulated 13 gold and 10 platinum records with record sales of more than 25 million copies sold worldwide. They charted 8 top 40 hits and two number ones. Formed in Flint Michigan in 1969 they opened for many of the top bands of the era like Led Zeppelin and Humble Pie. Grand Funk sold out Shay Stadium faster than the Beatles did (72 hours).
J. GEILS BAND – Formed in 1967 and release their first album in 1970, they have 5 Gold albums and 2 Platinum albums with Freeze Frame going triple Platinum. Originally a blues band they dropped the blues and in 1970 released their first album (The J. Geils Band). Considered “harp freaks” their brand soon took off and they opened concerts for many of the top performers of the era. They played the last concert at the famed Fillmore East. Nominated 5 times to the Rock Hall unfortunately J. Geils passed away in 2017.
LITTLE FEAT – Formed in 1969 by Lowell George and keyboardist Bill Payne after being fired from Frank Zappa’s band The Mothers of Invention for writing a song about drugs (Willin’). Stand in Ry Cooder stood in and played the slide guitar on the songs release because of a hand injury to Lowell George. George recorded the song and played the slide on the Feats second album (Sailin’ Shoes) which also featured surrealist album cover artist Neon Park who did all of the Feats covers until his death in’93. Little Feat has released 22 albums (8 with Lowell George) with 5 going gold and Waiting for Columbus going platinum and consider by many as the greatest live recording ever released. Bonnie Raitt, Emmylou Harris, Linda Ronstadt all sang on Little Feat Albums at one point or other. Little Feat songs have been performed by too many artists to mention. The band The Dixie Chicks chose their name from a Little Feat album (Dixie Chicken).
This one bothers me the most!
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SOME GLARING OMISSIONS, LET’S LISTEN TO WHAT LETTERMAN THINKS
by Cornel Bogdan
I’m not real big on saying, who should not belong in the Hall of Fame. Every artist inducted has their own distinctive talent; every artist has a loyal and loving fan base; every artist has that special something. Just because I don’t necessarily appreciate their style—doesn’t mean they’re not “HOF worthy”.
I focus more on the glaring omissions. I’ve been in the “biz” for many, many years. I’ve yet to hear a voice as unique as
JOE COCKER – When Joe covered a song, he made it his own. Just listen to his versions of MY BIG 3:
“With a Little Help From My Friends” (The Beatles); “You Are So Beautiful” (Billy Preston); “Feeling Alright” (Dave Mason/Traffic). I don’t want to hear the argument, Joe didn’t write his own music! [Please reference the recorded works of current HOF inductees Elvis Presley, Diana Ross, Whitney Houston.]
Joe’s been HOF eligible since 1994. I think over 30 years waiting in the wings is long enough.
THE J. GEILS BAND – Blues, Jazz, Country, Soul, Pop, and Rock—this band was America’s version of the Stones. Loads of hit records, sold-out tours, and an incredible frontman… The J. Geils Band had one mission, which was to “Blow Your Face Out!” Can you imagine a late-night HOF induction jam session featuring the original “Bad Boys From Boston”?!?
WARREN ZEVON – Warren’s omission is best summed up by the legendary David Lettermen who said, “The Rock & Roll Hall of Fame is only of interest if Warren Zevon gets in”. Truer words were never spoken.
Warren Zevon made music interesting. He was a songwriter’s songwriter. Ask Jackson Browne, Bob Dylan, Bruce Springsteen, Don Henley, and Bonnie Raitt, who inspires them. Zevon songs overflow with ironic humor, alcohol, lowlife characters, death, and a true exuberance for pissing on authority. Now that I think about it maybe Warren Zevon is ‘too Rock and Roll’ for the current corporate-minded board of directors at the HOF?
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IT’S ONLY ROCK AND ROLL TO ME
by Steve “Pritch” Pritchard
I am not a fan of country music or rap/hip hop artists in the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame. They have their own respective HOFs. So go ahead and whack those artists out, if my opinion matters.
Here are some who I think should be in and not necessarily in this order:
WARREN ZEVON – boy he could write songs and put out some great albums. Many musicians see him as a vital influence.
JETHRO TULL – Quite a musical style with an eclectic flute playing frontman.
THIN LIZZY -The band has been around since 1969 with a mix of styles worthy of induction.
GUESS WHO – So many great songs and artists that went on to form another band that warrants consideration in this discussion.
