Musical Thoughts: Rock and Roll Hall of Fame

Let’s not pretend that the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame is important or that reputable. It’s lost a lot of it’s luster over the years and is mostly known for trotting out the past for one more big show. In an age of widespread information, people are given the choice to choose their idols and they’re usually not ones that a group of stuffy people in the industry are pimping out for one more go around. The hall has been criticized for focusing on name value/commercial success over influence, generally picking from the magic decades, 60’s and 70’s, and ignoring the more youth oriented areas like punk, dance, and rap. Who gets inducted is seemingly irrelevant, influence will always be influential, it’s just nice for some names to be honored. So here are the nominees for this year and my thoughts on who will go in.

For Sures: Pearl Jam and Tupac are definitely getting in! Pearl Jam is our generation’s “Who.”

Pearl Jam is going to be the headliner, the final act of the night. I may not be a gigantic fan anymore, but, realistically, Pearl Jam is still a big stadium band. They will be this year’s “Red Hot Chili Pepper” pick, a band that is still relevant on a day-to-day basis. As for Tupac, there is no way that the hall isn’t going to pass on that moment when Tupac’s family goes on stage to give their remembrances, followed by rappers, old and new, paying tribute.

Joe Tex- Although it’s detrimental for my ego to admit this, I’m not familiar with Joe Tex. After a quick Wikipedia search, I see he was pretty successful after a period of disappointment. I also listened to some of his songs on Spotify and wasn’t super impressed. It’s hard to judge his chances because I have no reference for his influence or what he meant at his height and he hasn’t been referenced in popular culture in a significant way in a while. Given that he isn’t too well known right now, either he’s a lost gem or being held up by the old timers on the committee.

Bad Brains: I would love it if the Bad Brains were inducted. They were very important for the development of hardcore punk music, melding together different genres and breaking the racial barrier that sometimes inhibited punk. The committee usually don’t induct punk acts (they just started taking rap serious), so I’d say their induction is a long shot. Most diehards would love them to be picked, but probably won’t.

Chic: It is amazing how many times they have been nominated. 10 times they have been passed over and seeing how packed the pool is this time, I don’t see them getting the nod. However, I will say this, I think they absolutely deserve it. Disco is usually looked down on, mostly seen as cheesy flashes to the past, when, in reality, I hear so much of it’s influence in today’s music. A lot of indie music is less rock’n’roll and dance nowadays. Plus, Rapper’s Delight, amiright?

Depeche Mode: While Depeche Mode has had a lot of mainstream success, I don’t believe that they should make it in before some of their peers. Their influence is felt, but I think it’s more secondhand than anything they originated. This is me speaking as a fan, by the way. Black Celebration is one of my most treasured vinyl. I just think they were more popular than influential and more deserving 80’s bands should have gotten the slot, such as, The Smiths, Joy Division, or The Cure. Commercial success and the ability to sell out a show, however, is very important to the presentation of the inductions, so I could see them being picked as crowd pleasers.

Jane’s Addiction: Very influential for alternative music, especially when it came to putting eyes on the emerging genre. Also, still able to put on a good show. Dave Navarro is still recognizable and Perry Farrell has really boosted his profile by starting Lollapalooza. What they have working against them, they only put out two good album and I doubt they have the same influence as, say, The Sex Pistols, where they had one album but the one album was exceptional.

Joan Baez: I love Joan Baez. Her brand of folk is right up my alley. Her version of Farewell Angelina will continue to be one of my favorite covers of all time. I doubt she will be inducted. She would really stick out as a sore thumb with headliners Pearl Jam and Tupac, along with big alternative/dance/rock names. I don’t see her being a big enough name to contend with the personalities that are presented in this group.

Yes: Not a big Prog fan, so throws hands in the air. I could see them going in, from what I’ve read they’ve done a lot.

MC5: I would be shocked to see them go in. Let’s be honest, outside of the people who are in that circle, they aren’t household names. Seeing them “kicking out the jams” onstage, would be cool, just not likely.

Kraftwerk: Personally, outside of the headliners, nobody on the list deserves to go in more than Kraftwerk. Electronica is such a huge component of music today, from hip-hop to alternative to techno, it’s a baseline for it all. Kraftwerk were real innovators and without a doubt should go in. Hell, the whole 80’s were based around them! It would be legitimately bizarre if they weren’t picked.

Buffer picks: A buffer pick is an inductee that was popular back in the day, a few hits, fun, someone deserving of the honor, yet not big enough to take away attention and will allow the audience to breath before a more notable person takes the stage. These picks are more aimed at the older crowd, lacking the cool factor. Kinda crass of me to say, but, hey, not everyone that goes in are A+ artists. If they were, we’d run out of headliners.

            For this year, these picks are: The Cars, Chaka Khan, Electric Light Orchestra, The J. Geils Band, Journey, Steppenwolf, and The Zombies. The Cars were very influential in the new wave genre and produced lots of hits, probably the the leading choice in this group. The hall hasn’t inducted a diva since Donna Summer in 2013, making Chaka Khan a possibility. Journey would be fun in the bar sing-a-long way, same for Steppenwolf, who would appease the dads in the audience. Personally, I would love if The Zombies were inducted. Odessey and Oracle is amazing (at least one half of it is). The only thing I see holding them back is that they stopped at the height of their popularity and never had that many big songs to warrant buzz. If I had to take a guess, I’d say The Cars, Journey, or Steppenwolf.