When I first heard the nominees for next year’s Rock and Roll Hall of Fame I got my kneejerk opinions sucked in to the circus by both a sense of obvious support for some and then dismay at others, before I remembered being aroused when I bothered, I think last year, to find out who had and hadn’t already been inducted over the years when today’s poles of reaction where rocket-launched to gratified satisfaction and incredulous outrage.
This time round the new nominees are Rush, Deep Purple,
N.W.A., Public Enemy, Albert King, The Marvelettes, Procol Harum, and these
join the previously nominated acts Chic, Heart, Kraftwerk, Joan Jett and the Blackhearts, Randy
Newman, Donna Summers, Paul Butterfield Blues Band, The Meters.
In tackling the above list and considering offering an
opinion one has to first decide whether to accept any or all of the nominations.
That of course is impossible without recall to who is already in, and I can’t
in all honesty be assed, so in accepting the premise that these are logical
nominations, one can at least engage in offering views on who should and
shouldn’t be considered from this list.
Not one to ever shy from expressing musical opinions – which
would make writing this blog a non-starter – I did suddenly realise how
subjective these would necessarily be, but not just because of the simple if
critical factor of liking or disliking a nominee. It is more complex than that,
obviously. The most evident aspect is whether I actually know the music well
enough of any one nominee, and for quite a few I don’t! This being the case I couldn’t
really comment that expansively on Rush, N.W.A., Public Enemy, The Marvelettes,
Chic, Heart, Joan Jett and the Blackhearts, and The Meters.
Removing those from the list makes the job of choosing
easier if you don’t mind cheating. Some speculation would concede that Rush
has a significant fan base, Heart equally so and an importance for their role
as female exponents of Rock [is that sexist, really?], and The Meters are
perhaps the most distinctive in their contribution to and influence upon a
genre in music.
Of the rest, it seems to me that Albert King gets a free
pass because he’s Albert King. After that, as it’s Rock, Deep Purple should
have been inducted long ago, Kraftwerk are ripe candidates because of their
innovations, Randy Newman should be there if other singer/songwriters are
because he is one of the greatest though I am not a huge fan in terms of how much I actually listen to him, and Paul Butterfield Blues Band should also
have been inducted long ago. Donna Summers? As performer/purveyor of a new
sound? You tell me.
My biggest personal surprise is in querying if I’d put
Procol Harum in. I’m sure if I did revisit who already is a famer I’d definitely
push them in. If it was for one enduring brilliant song, I’d push them in. But
when I think about their albums as a whole and the impact they have made, I don’t
readily recall that impact.
If you want to have your wider say, you can do so here: http://rockhall.com/get-involved/interact/poll/
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