The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame announced its induction class for 2010, and it’s pretty much as we expected.
Leading the list is Genesis, reformed prog-rockers who turned into a smarmy pop-music machine in the ’80s, and the Stooges, Iggy Pop’s proto-punk band, before he became boring and started believing his own myth.
Swedish pop monsters ABBA also made the list. We’d give them a place just for “Dancing Queen,” one of the all-time greats.
Rounding out the list is reggae star Jimmy Cliff (presumably for his great work on The Harder They Come soundtrack and not the Cool Runnings soundtrack) and the Hollies, the mostly blah Britpop group from the ’60s. This marks the second appearance in the Rock Hall for Crosby, Stills & Nash’s Graham Nash, who somewhat shockingly isn’t the most annoying member of CSN.
The induction ceremony will be held on March 10 in New York’s Waldorf Astoria.
Don’t expect too many fireworks with this group. Genesis and the Stooges have played reunion shows over the past couple years, so they should sound tight. But ABBA haven’t performed together since the early ’80s and have made it clear they don’t plan to ever reunite. The four Swedes onstage may provide the ceremony’s only spark.
At least the Red Hot Chili Peppers didn’t make the list. Now that Flea is part of the elite group (he inducted Metallica into the Rock Hall earlier this year), it’s only a matter of time before these douchebags get in. I’m just happy they didn’t make it the first time.
What do you think of the list? —Michael Gallucci
This article appears in Dec 9-15, 2009.
Genesis and Stooges are way overdue. The ot hers could pretty much go either way. Considering that this Hall of Fame is ultra-unselective, they probably deserve to be in as much as half the people that already are. I could still fill about 10 classes with more deserving inductees.
Jimmy Cliff’s induction is a long overdue addition to the one Third , superstar in the Hall, Bob Marley. Toots Hibbert, honored two years ago at the Hall in Cleveland, should also be inducted as soon as possible. Like Jimmy, he has had a successful nearly-50 year career, spreading a message of love and tolerance and spirituality, as has the enormously talented Cliff. Congratulations to the Hall’s voters for their fine taste in honoring one of Jamaica’s greatest sons, an architect of reggae’s revolution worldwide.
Roger Steffens
Co-Chairman, Reggae Grammy Committee
The Stooges are the only true rockers to get inducted this year. Genesis is very deserving of induction as well. Abba goes in the Madonna wing along with everyone else that only serves to sell admission tickets. There are numerous musicians that defined rock still not enshrined. Dale Hawkins, Johnny Burnette, Dick Dale, Link Wray, The Sonics, Davie Allan, Rush, Yes, SRV and the list could go on. Let us not forget how totally ignored surf rock is by the hall. If they are going to delve into prog, ska, punk, metal, rap etc. surf should not be ignored. This finds us considering The Surfaris, Dick Dale, Eddie and The Showmen, The Mar-Keys, The Astronauts, The Bel-Airs, The Lively Ones etc. A totally overlooked genre. Induct Link Wray!
The Hollies, like many of the British Invasion acts, are not only deserving of induction because of their influence alone (lest us not forget British Invasion is one of the movements that saved Rock & Roll after teen idols and music labels nearly killed it at the end of the 50s), but the Hollies had more hits (with harmonies straight from the Everly Brothers) than most acts already inducted. And let me point out, that while you may find members of CSN “annoying”, this isn’t the Popularity Hall of Fame (though if it WAS, Graham Nash would have been one of the first inducted. Find me anyone who has ever met that man and not loved him!). With The Hollies now being inducted, all THREE members of CSN are double inducted due to their extraordinary contrbution to the format of rock and roll. Find me another group that can claim that!