# Rock Hall of Fame Class of 2016 **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [October 8, 2015, 12:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rock-hall-of-fame-class-of-2016/733915 "2015-10-08T12:40:45Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![Helena330](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/helena330/32/531_2.png) [@Helena330](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Helena330)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2015, 3:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rock-hall-of-fame-class-of-2016/733915/61 "2015-12-18T03:49:35Z")
I’m glad about Deep Purple, but PISSED about Yes not getting in. ---
**Author:** ![Snowboarder\_Bo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/snowboarder_bo/32/229_2.png) [@Snowboarder\_Bo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snowboarder_Bo)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2015, 5:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rock-hall-of-fame-class-of-2016/733915/62 "2015-12-18T05:23:34Z")
> [@Thing\_Fish](#): > > That’s nice, but Motorhead should have been inducted already. +1 ---
**Author:** ![Maserschmidt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/maserschmidt/32/18829_2.png) [@Maserschmidt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Maserschmidt)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2015, 9:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rock-hall-of-fame-class-of-2016/733915/63 "2015-12-18T09:32:56Z")
> [@Helena330](#): > > I’m glad about Deep Purple, but PISSED about Yes not getting in. This. It would have been weird and sad with Chris Squire having missed it, but it also would have been great. ---
**Author:** ![Crafter\_Man](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/crafter_man/32/458_2.png) [@Crafter\_Man](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crafter_Man)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2015, 12:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rock-hall-of-fame-class-of-2016/733915/64 "2015-12-18T12:17:43Z")
I often wonder what standards they use for induction: 1. **Joan Jett** was inducted this year. _Really?_ :dubious: 2. I know this is way out in left field, but I (seriously) do not understand why **The Residents** haven’t been considered. They’ve been around since the early 1970s and have very dedicated fan base all over the world. Many of their albums - especially their early ones - are pure genius. ---
**Author:** ![WordMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/e8c25b/32.png) [@WordMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WordMan)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2015, 2:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rock-hall-of-fame-class-of-2016/733915/65 "2015-12-18T14:45:53Z")
> [@Crafter\_Man](#): > > I often wonder what standards they use for induction: > > 1. **Joan Jett** was inducted this year. _Really?_ :dubious: > > 2. I know this is way out in left field, but I (seriously) do not understand why **The Residents** haven’t been considered. They’ve been around since the early 1970s and have very dedicated fan base all over the world. Many of their albums - especially their early ones - are pure genius. Sure, _really_ for Joan Jett. You are welcome to not like her, but to deny her influence on women in rock would be incorrect. ---
**Author:** ![Charlie\_Wayne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/4bbf92/32.png) [@Charlie\_Wayne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Charlie_Wayne)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2015, 6:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rock-hall-of-fame-class-of-2016/733915/66 "2015-12-18T18:39:54Z")
> [@Crafter\_Man](#): > > I often wonder what standards they use for induction: > > 1. **Joan Jett** was inducted this year. _Really?_ :dubious: > > 2. I know this is way out in left field, but I (seriously) do not understand why **The Residents** haven’t been considered. They’ve been around since the early 1970s and have very dedicated fan base all over the world. Many of their albums - especially their early ones - are pure genius. Thank you for this tip. I had never before heard of The Residents. But I love discovering new good music and so I will def check it out. Maybe I can return the favor by telling you about my recent discovery. A Swedish man named Avicii produces some of the very best music I have ever heard. It could best be described as Popular Rock but it has a fabulous beat and he mixes the music in a way that just leaves me speechless. I don’t follow new music very much so you may have already heard of this guy. If not, I hope you may enjoy him as much as I have. He is out of this world. ---
**Author:** ![RickJay](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/bb73d2/32.png) [@RickJay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RickJay)\ **Post date:** [December 18, 2015, 6:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rock-hall-of-fame-class-of-2016/733915/67 "2015-12-18T18:54:15Z")
> [@silenus](#): > > Based on the way it usually goes, I bowed to peer pressure and voted for Steve Miller. I’d have voted for The Smiths, but no way will they get in. Los Lobos, Yes and Chicago don’t belong on the list at all. Why not? To use just one example, Chicago was around forever and had a lot of huge hits. They sold a bazillion albums, five of which went to #1. Not nominating them would be… well, it’d be really weird to leave out of of the biggest bands in the history of American bands. It would be just as weird as leaving off Nice Inch Nails, Steve Miller, or NWA. Chicago were also a really interesting and original band, I should point out, for years; most people now remember them for their sappy 80’s love ballads but they did cool stuff early on. You might not think they should get in, but they clearly have to be NOMINATED. The point of nominations is to present the candidates, and a nomination process to allow a fair vote has to name pretty much anyone that could reasonably merit even a moment’s consideration. The fact that Chicago’s earned a lot of votes in this poll suggests to me they’re a valid nominee, if not an inductee. The nominations process should be very wide to ensure it isn’t the same as the actual induction voting process. It’s kind of like the baseball Hall of Fame nomination system; basically any player who played for ten years and was a regular for a fair amount of it gets nominated. Many are obviously not Hall of Famers - nobody is going to vote for David Eckstein except as a sympathy/amusement choice - but that’s fine; the nomination process is not meant to be the vote for induction. ---
**Author:** ![Harvey\_The\_Heavy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/c5a1d2/32.png) [@Harvey\_The\_Heavy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Harvey_The_Heavy)\ **Post date:** [December 19, 2015, 8:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rock-hall-of-fame-class-of-2016/733915/68 "2015-12-19T08:47:47Z")
> [@ChockFullOfHeadyGoodness](#): > > (b) which of the dozen or so members they’ve had over the years will be inducted. For sure the _Machine Head_ Mark II line-up, but anyone else? Could this make Rod Evans resurface? I read that it’s going to be Mk.I, II and III, for a total of nine members by my count, including Rod Evans and David Coverdale, not to mention Ritchie Blackmore, among others. It will be very interesting to see who shows up for this one. ---
**Author:** ![astorian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ad7895/32.png) [@astorian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astorian)\ **Post date:** [December 19, 2015, 4:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rock-hall-of-fame-class-of-2016/733915/69 "2015-12-19T16:49:52Z")
> [@Harvey\_The\_Heavy](#): > > I read that it’s going to be Mk.I, II and III, for a total of nine members by my count, including Rod Evans and David Coverdale, not to mention Ritchie Blackmore, among others. It will be very interesting to see who shows up for this one. Let them play “Hush,” “Smoke on the Water,” and “Burn.” That would cover all three phases nicely. ---
**Author:** ![Bijou\_Drains](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bijou_drains/32/2814_2.png) [@Bijou\_Drains](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bijou_Drains)\ **Post date:** [December 19, 2015, 5:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rock-hall-of-fame-class-of-2016/733915/70 "2015-12-19T17:02:13Z")
This is not a secret, but the Rolling Stone founder Jan Wenner has a lot of sway over who gets in or not. If he did not like a group/person the odds of getting in are way lower. I’ve heard he was never of fan of prog rock bands like Yes so that probably explains why they are not in. Not sure how many other bands of that genre are in. ---
**Author:** ![John\_DiFool](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_difool/32/19543_2.png) [@John\_DiFool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_DiFool)\ **Post date:** [December 19, 2015, 6:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rock-hall-of-fame-class-of-2016/733915/71 "2015-12-19T18:55:54Z")
Only Genesis and Pink Floyd-that’s it. Rush was quasi-prog, you could argue. The Moody Blues aren’t in, either-not sure when the last time was that they made the penultimate cut… ---
**Author:** ![astorian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ad7895/32.png) [@astorian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astorian)\ **Post date:** [December 19, 2015, 7:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rock-hall-of-fame-class-of-2016/733915/72 "2015-12-19T19:02:02Z")
> [@John\_DiFool](#): > > Only Genesis and Pink Floyd-that’s it. Rush was quasi-prog, you could argue. The Moody Blues aren’t in, either-not sure when the last time was that they made the penultimate cut… Right. No Procol Harum, no Moodies, no King Crimson, no ELP, no Gentle Giant. Critics tend to hate both prog rock and metal. I suppose Zappa and Bowie and Queen had a foot in the prog-rock world. ---
**Author:** ![Bijou\_Drains](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bijou_drains/32/2814_2.png) [@Bijou\_Drains](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bijou_Drains)\ **Post date:** [December 19, 2015, 7:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rock-hall-of-fame-class-of-2016/733915/73 "2015-12-19T19:56:47Z")
Genesis was really mainstream when they had those hits with Phil Collins . And I think it would have been very hard to keep Pink Floyd out. ---
**Author:** ![Charlie\_Wayne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/4bbf92/32.png) [@Charlie\_Wayne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Charlie_Wayne)\ **Post date:** [December 20, 2015, 5:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rock-hall-of-fame-class-of-2016/733915/74 "2015-12-20T05:04:15Z")
Someone upthread suggested The Residents should have been nominated at some point. They went on to say that some of their albums are “pure genius”. The OP asked several questions including: . Who is missing from this list? . Who should not be on the list? I hesitated to post anything in reply because I thought it could easily be considered “thread shitting”. But I did listen to some of their music - especially their earlier albums and I read what some music critics had to say and I feel very confused because it seems to me that what they have produced is extremely terrible. I waited 24 hours and then listened to some more of their music once again to make certain I wasn’t jumping to any conclusions without a good reason. But my opinions did not change. In fact, they were only solidified. I am very reluctant to voice my true opinions because I fear the person who recommended this band and called some of their early music “pure genius” could easily become offended and I have received some criticism in the past from a moderator for “thread shitting”. So, I’d like to ask for anyone who has listened to their music to please voice your opinions as to the quality of their music. Do you think they deserve to be nominated? Do you like their music? Would you spend your money to buy their albums? I’d sincerely like to know. ---
**Author:** ![WordMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/e8c25b/32.png) [@WordMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WordMan)\ **Post date:** [December 20, 2015, 12:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rock-hall-of-fame-class-of-2016/733915/75 "2015-12-20T12:43:57Z")
> [@Charlie\_Wayne](#): > > Someone upthread suggested The Residents should have been nominated at some point. They went on to say that some of their albums are “pure genius”. > > The OP asked several questions including: > > . Who is missing from this list? > . Who should not be on the list? > > I hesitated to post anything in reply because I thought it could easily be considered “thread shitting”. But I did listen to some of their music - especially their earlier albums and I read what some music critics had to say and I feel very confused because it seems to me that what they have produced is extremely terrible. > > I waited 24 hours and then listened to some more of their music once again to make certain I wasn’t jumping to any conclusions without a good reason. But my opinions did not change. In fact, they were only solidified. > > I am very reluctant to voice my true opinions because I fear the person who recommended this band and called some of their early music “pure genius” could easily become offended and I have received some criticism in the past from a moderator for “thread shitting”. > > So, I’d like to ask for anyone who has listened to their music to please voice your opinions as to the quality of their music. Do you think they deserve to be nominated? Do you like their music? Would you spend your money to buy their albums? > > I’d sincerely like to know. Meh - I wouldn’t worry about it. **Crafter\_Man** is right that The Residents have had a cult following and within that group, their music is loved. Now, should they be in the RRHoF - well, at this point, it is just a discussion. Most music geeks see the _actual_ RRHoF vote to be a load of bollocks - too much bullshit in who has and has not gotten in. But we like the concept just like baseball geeks like discussing which baseball team from which era is the overall best. As for **Aviicii** - he’s an EDM guy, sure. EDM has some overlap with Rock, and Aloe Blacc’s vocal for _Wake Me Up_ is good, but I don’t think of folks like him within this context. ---
**Author:** ![Maserschmidt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/maserschmidt/32/18829_2.png) [@Maserschmidt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Maserschmidt)\ **Post date:** [December 20, 2015, 1:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rock-hall-of-fame-class-of-2016/733915/76 "2015-12-20T13:06:28Z")
I have about a dozen **Residents** albums and love them, but I don’t consider them candidates for the HoF. ---
**Author:** ![astorian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ad7895/32.png) [@astorian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astorian)\ **Post date:** [December 20, 2015, 2:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rock-hall-of-fame-class-of-2016/733915/77 "2015-12-20T14:18:20Z")
Within sports, we have numbers that help us determine who’s worthy of the Carolina’s of Fame. Even if I never saw Slugger O’Malley play, if I read that he had 567 homers, a .345 batting average, and 498 career stolen bases, I can safely say, “Yeah, he’s definitely a Hall of Famer.” But with pop/rock music? How do we judge? By what we think of as the quality of an act’s music? By their commercial success? By how influential they were? By their impact on politics or fashion? Some combination? By any standard, Chicago was and is a far, far more successful band than the Velvet Underground. So, why did the Velvets get in immediately while Chicago had to wait 20 years to be elected? Well, mainly because the typical voter is someone more inclined to love Lou Reed than Peter Cetera. But then… if I were a voter, would I select all my favorite acts? I don’t think so. I mean, I love Blue Oyster Cult, but I don’t think I could justify voting for them. By contrast, I HATE Madonna, but think her popularity, staying power, and ability to shape fashions make her a no-brainer. If a band sells 50 million albums over a decade, that doesn’t automatically make them Hall of farmers. But that success DOES mean they deserve serious consideration, even if I don’t much like them. Chicago wasn’t influential or popular with critics, but they were hugely successful for a long time, and still have numerous songs getting heavy radio airplay. In my book, that makes them Hall of Famers. ---
**Author:** ![Crafter\_Man](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/crafter_man/32/458_2.png) [@Crafter\_Man](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crafter_Man)\ **Post date:** [December 20, 2015, 2:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rock-hall-of-fame-class-of-2016/733915/78 "2015-12-20T14:42:55Z")
As mentioned, I often wonder what the criteria is. In other words, what are the weighted percentages for being - Influential? - Creative? - Popular? - Ground-breaking? Based on the first inductees, it’s pretty obvious “influential” is a top criteria. It also explains how artists with very limited musical abilities (e.g. **The Ramones** ) were inducted. It’s also obvious that, if an artist is simply popular - but not influential, creative, ground-breaking, etc. - the judges look down on them. Not that this is bad. All-in-all I am actually quite impressed on whom they have inducted. ---
**Author:** ![Meurglys](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/258eb7/32.png) [@Meurglys](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Meurglys)\ **Post date:** [December 20, 2015, 2:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rock-hall-of-fame-class-of-2016/733915/79 "2015-12-20T14:48:03Z")
> [@Maserschmidt](#): > > I have about a dozen **Residents** albums and love them, but I don’t consider them candidates for the HoF. I probably have more, and I wouldn’t consider them candidates either. Those of us who like them, like them a lot and the rest of the world scratches it’s collective head! ---
**Author:** ![Enter\_the\_Flagon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/b9bd4f/32.png) [@Enter\_the\_Flagon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Enter_the_Flagon)\ **Post date:** [December 20, 2015, 4:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rock-hall-of-fame-class-of-2016/733915/80 "2015-12-20T16:06:25Z")
Speaking as a Residents fan, I don’t like them because they make great music - I like them because they make great Anti-music. For the same reason, I imagine putting them in the RRHoF would be insulting to them. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rock-hall-of-fame-class-of-2016/733915.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rock-hall-of-fame-class-of-2016/733915.md?page=5)