Rock and Roll Hall of Fame 2018

Let me start with an admission: I do actually like the band Bon Jovi. I saw them perform at Mississippi State’s Humphrey Coliseum (a.k.a. “The Hump”) in 1988 on the Slippery When Wet tour, and it was a great show by a band that already knew how to entertain even though it was their first national tour as headliners. I also have to say that was the wildest concert audience I’ve ever witnessed. I remember that it had been a particularly rough semester, but that crowd was ready to party.

However, Bon Jovi’s induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame took up more than forty-nine minutes of the three-hour televised portions of the ceremony that recently aired on HBO. By comparison, the Cars got just thirty minutes, Nina Simone and the Moody Blues each had twenty-nine minutes, Dire Straits only got nine minutes, and the great Sister Rosetta Tharpe got a scant eight minutes. I mean, Bon Jovi is a very popular band and all, but they don’t deserve six times a much air time as Sister Rosetta Tharpe when both are being inducted into the same Hall of Fame.

Part of the problem had to do with the person inducting them, Howard Stern, who took more than nine minutes to induct them. His speech was ridiculous, comparing of the number of people who died from bubonic plague (50 million) and in the Civil War (625,000) to the 130 million albums that Bon Jovi has sold. There was even a reference to “Harry Chapin’s jizz” that was just weird and rather pointless. Also pointless? The digs at Cream, Blondie, and Leonard Cohen, all of whom sold fewer albums than Bon Jovi but who were inducted earlier into the Hall of Fame. Of course, album sales are no measure of true worth of an act’s lasting musical influence or impact, and Leonard Cohen also had to wait quite a long time to be inducted.

Then Jon Bon Jovi took more than ten minutes to recount almost his entire history in the music business and to thank, seemingly, every single person in the audience at the ceremony individually. As intriguing as it is to discover that he sang backing vocals on the Star Wars Christmas album, when Jon’s overarching point was about how important time is, should he have taken up so much of our time recounting every minuscule occurrence for the past 30 years? Apparently, he actually spoke for almost twenty minutes at the ceremony itself, and half of it was cut for the broadcast. It’s tough to imagine what else he could have included. Stern mentioned and Jon seemingly was responded to a prevailing theory that Jann Wenner, founder and publisher of Rolling Stone, had prevented the band from being inducted earlier. Even if that’s true, it doesn’t mean that the induction of Bon Jovi is such a life-altering moment for the rest of us. How indulgent of the hall and the other members of the band to let Jon take the spotlight away for his self-serving speech.

And now on to the rest of the ceremony…

THE CARS

Brandon Flowers inducted the Cars, claiming that they were the first band he fell in love with. It’s good to see some of the New Wave and MTV-era bands starting to join the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. I'm not certain I would have chosen the Cars compared to others from the same era (Duran Duran, for instance). The members paid lovely tribute to their parents and grandparents who instilled a love of music in their lives. Ric Ocasek, a founder and lead singer of the group, was loose and funny, joking that he was “supposed to be the good looking one in the band” until Benjamin Orr joined them. Orr passed away almost two decades ago, but his son was in the audience, and he was even more handsome than his dad. It’s sad that he wasn’t allowed on stage to accept the award on behalf of his father. It’s also sad to learn that Ocasek and his wife, Paulina Porizkova, who was so happy in the audience that night, are now separated after almost three decades of marriage.

Performances: “Just What I Needed,” “My Best Friend’s Girl,” and “You Might Think”

As an aside, it was odd to see a performance of “You Might Think” without the visuals associated with the award-winning video. It’s not quite as impactful, to be honest.

SISTER ROSETTA THARPE

The “Godmother of Rock and Roll” was inducted by Brittany Howard from Alabama Shakes in the category of “Early Influences.” That’s a rather condescending category for someone who taught most of the early rock stars how to play electric guitar. Sister Rosetta was the heart at the intersection of rock and gospel music, and she was, as Little Richard noted, “hot as cayenne pepper.” It’s a shame that the ceremony didn’t mention Tharpe’s bisexuality, given how inspiring that might have been to queer artists and music lovers, but it’s actually rather amazing that she was included in this year’s class of inductees anyway.

Performance: “That’s All,” performed by Howard, a most appropriate choice given that she is a successor to Tharpe’s legacy of soulful guitar-accompanied singing.

DIRE STRAITS

I’m not certain that Dire Straits truly deserves to be in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, but despite my (and other people’s) personal feelings about their worthiness, they were ill-treated by the organizers of the event. No one was there to induct them, and because Mark and David Knopfler were both absent, there was no performance by the band. It’s sad that they can’t get along with each other and the rest of the band for even one night. Several bands that have been inducted have had bad blood among the members, but for a couple of hours, you’d think they might take the honor of being inducted as reason enough to acknowledge the prestige of being one of the few musical acts selected for inclusion. (I mean, Richie Sambora joined Bon Jovi for their performance five years after splitting from them.) Even the televised portions of the ceremony gave the members of Dire Straits who were in attendance just a few minutes of air time.

NINA SIMONE

The amazing and long-overdue Nina Simone, the “High Priestess of Soul,” was inducted by the amazing Mary J. Blige, and Simone’s award was accepted by her brother, Dr. Samuel Waymon, who almost stole the show by telling the audience that Simone’s spirit was in the area: “She’s sitting next to you!” He also gave some advice that his sister would have given: “If you want to be a queen, you are a queen. If you think you’re a king, you are a king.” Simone was a huge influence on music and one of the most politically engaged performers of her time. She was, along with the Moody Blues and Sister Rosetta Tharpe, arguably the most deserving of this year’s inductees.

Performances: “”I Wish I Knew How It Would Feel to Be Free” and “I Put a Spell on You” by Andra Day and the Roots. “Black Is the Color of My True Love’s Hair,” “Ain’t Got No – I Got Life,” and “Feelin’ Good” by Ms. Lauren Hill.

Day is one of the most exciting performers today, and she took everyone to church, as the younger generation says. Hill had a true diva moment (with the dress to match) as she rapped and scatted her way through Simone’s songs, proving that they are just as relevant today as they were when first performed.

THE MOODY BLUES

The Moody Blues, inducted by Ann Wilson of Heart, had to wait almost three decades after becoming eligible before becoming a part of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. The prog rock pioneers released their seminal album Days of Future Passed the same year as Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band by the Beatles. They’ve had a long successful career due to the unwavering support of their fans, whom they thanked more profusely than the other inductees in attendance. Drummer Graeme Edge also thanked all of the people who had helped the band over the years, but he also (rightfully) said, “To all the people who haven’t helped me, screw you.” Loved it.

Performances: “I’m Just a Singer (in a Rock and Roll Band),” “Nights in White Satin,” and “Ride My See-Saw.”

That last song was an unusual choice. Why not something from the band’s 1980s-era comeback? Maybe "Your Wildest Dreams," one of the band's three Top 10 singles from throughout their career?

BON JOVI

I have already mentioned that Bon Jovi was inducted by Howard Stern in a speech designed to suggest that the delay in including the band in the Hall of Fame was one of the greatest slights ever to occur in the history of music. However, having the bandmates introduce each other was a nice touch, and keyboardist David Bryan talking about bringing his bowling ball along on their first tour “because I AM from Jersey” was quite funny. 

Performances: “You Give Love a Bad Name,” “When We Were Us,” and “Livin’ on a Prayer”

SINGLES

Steven Van Zandt (a.k.a. Little Steven) introduced a new category at this year’s ceremony: Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Singles. The selected records can’t be performed by an artist who’s already in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Other than that, it seems like this is an attempt by the hall to include work by artists who, honestly, seem unlikely ever to make it into the Hall of Fame on their own.

“Rocket 88” by Jackie Brenston and His Delta Cats (1951)

“Rumble” by Link Wray and His Wray Men (1958)

“The Twist” by Chubby Checker (1960)

“Louie, Louie” by The Kingsmen (1963)

“Whiter Shade of Pale” by Procol Harum (1967)

“Born to Be Wild” by Steppenwolf (1968)

TRIBUTES

The opening of the broadcast featured Brandon Flowers and the Killers performing Tom Petty’s “American Girl” (and a little bit of “Free Fallin’” at the end but done at the same tempo as “American Girl”).  By the way, Flowers looks so much like Matt Damon from the School Ties era. Well, maybe the Good Will Hunting era. Either way, it was disconcerting to see him with his crooked smile.  

This year’s “In Memoriam” honored several artists who are members of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame: Fats Domino, Pete Moore of the Miracles, Walter Becker of Steely Dan, Dennis Edwards of the Temptations, Nokie Edwards of the Ventures, Tom Petty (again), Malcolm Young of AC/DC, Yvonne Staples of the Staples Singers, Greg Allman, and, tragically, Ray Thomas of the Moody Blues (who died in January and was mentioned several times by his bandmates during their induction).

The highlight among the tributes was a performance of Soundgarden’s “Black Hole Sun” by Ann Wilson and Jerry Cantrell of Alice in Chains. Cornell, who was the lead vocalist for Soundgarden and Audioslave, committed suicide in 2017, and Wilson’s rendition plumbed the the emotional depths of the song. It was a touching moment.

Nutty Neighbors: Sunday Morning Burlesque

I've held on to this post for some time. In fact, I'd written it almost a year ago but forgotten it over time as other posts and other duties have taken precedence. I share it with you now just so I no longer have any posts in draft form. Do with it what you will.

I've written before about how annoying the next door neighbors can be, particularly when The Princess, the guy who has the master bedroom in the back of the apartment (parallel to my own, with just a thin wall separating us), plays his music so loudly that you can hear it over the shower (mine, his, both at the same time, doesn't matter). I suppose I might not mind hearing the music from next door if he didn't have such crappy taste.

He goes through different moods, of course, and the music often reflects whatever he's feeling at the time. When he's broken up with some guy he's dating, I get to hear very sad, depressing stuff. Unfortunately--for both him and me--that happens quite often. When he's getting ready to go out, presumably to snag another boyfriend (at least for the night), it's all about the dance music, much of which sounds like every other song on the radio these days.

Yesterday [almost a year ago now] was a strange day, though. What mood must someone be in to listen to the soundtrack to Burlesque? How can you get yourself ready for the day ahead by forcing yourself to hear all Christina, all the time? Couldn't you have at least included one of the songs by Cher just as a shout-out to the older gays?

Here's why I'm not a fan of Christina Aguilera's most recent work ("recent" meaning the past ten years or so). She has an amazing voice with a spectacular range and is obviously quite talented. However, her performances are what's wrong with most of today's music. Listen to the radio or watch a singing competition show like the one for which she occasionally judges, The Voice, and all you'll hear are people who are enamored with their ability to do runs and hit very high notes and dazzle people with the flexibility of their voice. There's only one problem: That's not really singing. It sounds more like you're doing a warm-up before you sing.

Besides, Burlesque is just a really bad movie. Not bad as in campy fun like Showgirls, which it hoped it would be. Just bad as in boring and kind of pointless. I suppose it must have fans out there, and apparently, The Princess is one of them, but isn't it just a forgettable piece of dross? Why blow the dust off that soundtrack and play it to get yourself primed for the day ahead? Especially so long after the movie has disappeared from theaters?

In honor of The Princess' Sunday morning rise-and-shine music, here's a song to get stuck in your head. Better yours than mine.

Shame on the Hall of Fame

For the past three weeks or so, I've been posting videos on my Facebook page of women who have not been inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame but who deserve to be (in my opinion, at least). It's a astonishing list: Joan Baez, Pat Benatar, Cher, Petula Clark, Lesley Gore, Janet Jackson, Joan Jett, Carole King, Cyndi Lauper, Stevie Nicks, Laura Nyro, Linda Ronstadt, Buffy Sainte Marie, Carly Simon, Tina Turner, Mary Wells, the Chiffons, the Crystals, the Go-Gos, the Indigo Girls, the Marvelettes, and the Shangri-Las. All of these women have made significant and lasting contributions to rock and roll and to music in general, yet they have yet to be included among the august company of inductees. And I stopped before I could include other luminaries such as Judy Collins, Marianne Faithful, Lita Ford, Janis Ian, Rickie Lee Jones, Nico, Helen Reddy, Carla Thomas, the Dixie Cups, the Runaways, and the Slits (whose lead singer recently passed away).

When you see that list of names and then you look at some of the inductees into the Hall of Fame, you begin to wonder just how fairly women are treated in rock music. I'm not trying to quibble over some of the people who have already been honored, but I do think that if you could find room to include the Dave Clark Five and Gene Vincent and the Lovin' Spoonful and Frankie Lymon and the Teenagers, surely there must be room for Pat Benatar and Linda Ronstadt and the Go-Gos and Lesley Gore. If you can induct Bob Dylan and then later induct his band, The Band, then you can induct Joan Baez. If you can include James Taylor, then you can include his ex-wife Carly Simon and his current touring partner Carole King. If you can induct the Jackson Five and then later induct Michael Jackson, certainly you can make room for younger sister Janet Jackson.

It's true that Tina Turner is in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame already, but as a part of a duo with her ex-husband, not for her solo career. Given the bad blood between them, Tina decided that she would skip the ceremony when they were inducted, leaving Ike Turner to enjoy an evening to revel in his success. Tina Turner has never had a chance to feel that same sense of pride. Yes, Stevie Nicks is also in the hall, but as a part of Fleetwood Mac, not for her solo career. Her time as a solo artist is almost equal to the time she's spent with the rest of Fleetwood Mac. Lest you think that it would be inappropriate to induct someone twice, just remember that Eric Clapton has been inducted three times already, for his solo work and as a part of the Yardbirds and as a member of Cream. And fifteen other men have been inducted twice, including three of the Beatles (no, not Ringo Starr--yet) and all of the members of Crosby, Stills, & Nash.  Tina Turner and Stevie Nicks and other female performers should get the same consideration.

Likewise, Carole King is included in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, but in the "non-performer" category that is now named after famed record producer Ahmet Ertegun. She's there with her songwriting partner, Gerry Goffin, but to consider King a non-performer is to miss the contributions of her overall career. Maybe none of the nominating committee has ever listened to Tapestry, at one time the biggest-selling album by a female artist.

By this point, you may be wondering just which women are already in the Hall of Fame. It is an impressive list of performers. The solo female artists in the hall are Aretha Franklin (inducted in 1987), LaVern Baker (1991), Ruth Brown (1993), Etta James (1993), Janis Jopin (1995), Joni Mitchell (1997), Dusty Springfield (1999), Bonnie Raitt (2000), Brenda Lee (2002), Patti Smith (2007), and Madonna (2008). That's eleven women out of the 82 solo artists who have been inducted, about 13 percent of the total. You may notice that not all of them are truly "rock and roll" singers, but they all have certainly influenced rock music throughout the years.

When it comes to duos and groups, the counting gets a bit trickier. Sixteen duos and groups with at least one female member have been inducted, among them the Supremes (inducted in 1988), Ike and Tina Turner (1991), Sly and the Family Stone (1993), Martha and the Vandellas (1995), Gladys Knight and the Pips (1996), Jefferson Airplane (1996), the Shirelles (1996), the Velvet Underground (1996), Fleetwood Mac (1998), the Mamas and the Papas (1998), the Staple Singers (1999), Talking Heads (2002), the Pretenders (2005), Blondie (2006), the Ronettes (2007), and ABBA (2010). A few of those, like the Pretenders and Blondie, are fronted by women, and others, like the Supremes and Martha and the Vandellas, are exclusively female groups, but no one would consider Sly and the Family Stone or the Talking Heads to be "female-centered." Still, if you're feeling generous, duos or groups with female members constitute 18 percent of the 87 duos and groups in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

(A quick note about the Velvet Underground: You may have noticed that I included Nico, who performed with the Underground quite often, as one of the women yet to be inducted. That's because she was omitted from the list of members when the group was honored in 1996. Maureen Tucker, the band's drummer, was included among the honorees, so that's why the Velvet Underground is included above.)

This is all about the category for "performers," by the way, but there are four other categories in which one could be inducted. There's one for "early influences, which includes thirty people, six of them women (Bessie Smith, Ma Rainey, Dinah Washington, Mahalia Jackson, Billie Holiday, and Wanda Jackson). Jackson, of course, was a contemporary of performers like Elvis Presley and Jerry Lee Lewis, both of whom are inducted as performers. Early influences, according to the hall's website, are performers "whose music predated rock and roll but had an impact on the evolution of rock and roll and inspired rock's leading artists." Perhaps there's some logic at work here that would explain why Jackson (who was inducted in this category in 2009) wasn't just included among the performers, given that she was one of the few women playing rockabilly music in the 1950s, but it escapes me. The lifetime achievement category has seven inductees, all of them men, none of them performers. I've already mentioned the "non-performers" category above with respect to Carole King. Two other women, both songwriters, are included in this category: Ellie Greenwich and Cynthia Weil, both of them inducted with their male songwriting partners too. That category contains 41 individuals. Finally, there's the "sidemen" category, which includes fifteen men best known for performing as backup musicians.

The rules for how an artist is inducted, to be fair, are a bit bewildering. There's a committee that picks finalists each year from a list of artists who have had at least twenty-five years since the release of their first record. Who's on the committee is never quite clear. Neither is it clear who the 500 "rock experts" are who are given ballots of the finalists to select. An artist must be chosen by more than 50 percent of those "experts" in order to be inducted.

This year's nominees are Alice Cooper (the whole band, not just the individual), the Beastie Boys, Bon Jovi, Chic (which has female members), Neil Diamond, Donovan, Dr. John, the J. Geils Band, LL Cool J, Darlene Love, Laura Nyro, Donna Summer, Joe Tex, Tom Waits, and Chuck Willis. Love, Nyro, and Summer have all been finalists in the past; none of them are given good odds for induction this year, but who can tell what the "experts" might decide.

I'd like to make a case for one female artist, in particular. Pat Benatar released her first major studio album in 1979 although she had, technically, released a single ("Day Gig") five years earlier. That would mean that she has been eligible for induction at least since 2004. To my knowledge, she's never even been one of the finalists. Yet she has amassed nineteen Top 40 singles, numerous gold, platinum, and multi-platinum albums, and four consecutive Grammy Awards for the Best Female Rock Vocal Performance. That last honor is rather unprecedented (well, outside of the polka category). Benatar received her first Grammy for 1980's Crimes of Passion album, her second for "Fire and Ice," the third for "Shadows of the Night," and her final award for "Love Is a Battlefield." She was nominated an additional three times in the same category and once more in the Female Pop Vocal Performance.

She was a star from the release of the single "Heartbreaker" in 1979, and she was well established enough by the time that MTV arrived in 1981 that her video for "You Better Run" was the second video ever shown on the channel (after "Video Killed the Radio Star" by the Buggles--someone at MTV had a sense of humor). She was known for her live performances and her groundbreaking videos, and she's still performing today with her husband of twenty-eight years, guitarist Neil Giraldo, and the rest of her band. I myself saw her perform at Mississippi State University in the mid 1980s, and I can still recall how powerful a singer she was (and is) despite being so tiny. I regretted not going to her show this past summer at the Greek Theatre, but she was touring with REO Speedwagon, and I didn't think I could manage to sit through their segment in order to enjoy Benatar and her music.


Benatar took up causes in her music, including domestic violence, child abuse, and sexism. If you read her autobiography published earlier this year, Between a Heart and a Rock Place, you'll understand just how much of a pioneer she truly was. She was one of the few women to challenge the men who controlled the music business. While she didn't always succeed, she managed to get the last laugh sometimes. I think her video for "Sex as a Weapon" was clearly aimed at everyone who told her that she needed to look pretty for the stage.


I cannot imagine a Rock and Roll Hall of Fame that doesn't include someone like Pat Benatar. She defined what being a rock star was during the 1980s and beyond. There's a scene in Fast Times at Ridgemont High where some girls are talking about how much everyone is influenced by Benatar, and the camera then pans the school to show girls with that famous haircut and those outfits. I can even recall when the band Quarterflash was popular (briefly), and everyone was talking about how much the lead singer was copying Benatar's vocal style. Lots of other women in music did too, but it's too bad that the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame hasn't seen fit yet to honor her contributions.