Maybe we should just wrap it up, as we’ve just inducted The Only Band That Matters. Yes, The Clash, Earth, Wind, and Fire, and The Police have been honored this week! Water could not be reached for comment.
This week we welcome the numerous class of 2004 nominees, plus five holdovers. Jefferson Airplane return for their ninth bite at the apple, with previous vote percentages of 15, 16, 18, 25, 34, 32, 37, and 33. Let’s party like it’s 2004!
I voted when the latest poll was posted but never got around to explaining my choices, specifically one questionable choice.
First, the easy one: if I had to pick the top three from all years, not just one year, Prince would be in the list. The number of artists who got their start because of him, the number who had hit songs written by him, all the artists who are compared to him…it’s mindboggling. Rolling Stone ranks him the 14th greatest guitarist of all time, the 16th greatest singer, and the 18th greatest songwriter – all in one person. Let’s acknowledge both that these lists are arbitrary, but also that you don’t end up in the top 20 of every category if you aren’t amazing.
And then there’s Bob Seger. I don’t actually think he’s deserving, but there were no other must-choose artists for me so I threw him a vote just to raise awareness. Live Bullet was one of my growing-up albums so I have a soft spot for him. He’s unfortunately maligned for “Like a Rock” (rightly so) which is all most people know about him (along with Tom Cruise dancing), but his other work was really good. And he’s a genuinely good guy, supporting progressive causes and putting a lot of money into supporting music and his Michigan community. Check out his stuff if you haven’t listened to him for a long time.
U2 is the only legitimate pick for me. It’s too bad they seem to have become more of a punchline in recent years, but their first three albums (Boy, October, and especially War) were all seminal works, and The Unforgettable Fire was huge even if it was a little bit of a sell-out. They could create equally good blistering rock, catchy pop, and wave-your-lighter anthems, often with a political bent.
One the fence: Elvis Costello, although each round I’m less excited about him. The Pretenders? I might vote for them on the strength of their first album alone, which was a huge influence on New Wave and alternative music in the 80s. I can see the case for Traffic, but it’s another I’m not excited about.
Percy Sledge was elected based on a single song, which isn’t enough for this poll. I’m tempted by The O’Jays and their “Philadelphia Soul”, but I’m not enough of a connoisseur to understand what makes that different from other R&B.
I was trying to figure out who’s been elected to date, and couldn’t find any recent summary, so here is one I came up with (and it took long enough because I started out relying on the links in the OP )
To balance the extra effort I had to expend, I’m going to add a snarky comment:
This a true R&R HoF, you can tell because the Hall carries on the great tradition in R&R of ripping off great Blues players without acknowledging them: Robert Johnson, Muddy Waters, Howlin’ Wolf, T-Bone Walker, Sister Rosetta Tharp, John Lee Hooker, and the King Family (Freddie, B.B., and Albert) among others.
1
Chuck Berry
Elvis Presley
Buddy Holly
2
Aretha Franklin
Little Richard
James Brown
3
The Beatles
Bob Dylan
The Beach Boys
4
The Rolling Stones
Stevie Wonder
The Supremes
5
The Who
The Kinks
Marvin Gaye
6
The Byrds
Ike & Tina Turner
Simon & Garfunkel
7
The Jimi Hendrix Experience
Johnny Cash
Otis Redding
8
Creedence Clearwater Revival
Cream
The Doors
9
Bob Marley
The Grateful Dead
Elton John
10
Led Zeppelin
Frank Zappa
Neil Young
11
Pink Floyd
David Bowie
Sly and the Family Stone
12
The Velvet Underground
Crosby, Stills & Nash
The Allman Brothers
13
Fleetwood Mac
Santana
The Eagles
14
Bruce Springsteen
Janis Joplin
Joni Mitchell
15
Parliament/Funkadelic
The Band
Eric Clapton
16
Queen
The Yardbirds
Michael Jackson
17
Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers
The Ramones
The Talking Heads
18
The Clash
Earth, Wind, and Fire
The Police
19
Prince
AC/DC
Jefferson Airplane
Thanks Peccavi! And speaking of blues guys, Buddy Guy is on the ballot this week. If I didn’t vote for him I might as well start putting ketchup on hot dogs.
Probably. Although I’m trying to be objective I just…don’t much like U2. So I’m reserving a vote.
I’m still enthusiastic to vote for Elvis Costello and I’ll circle back to Steely Dan. I’m mulling Traffic - voted then retracted, but I might give them some love. I think they are sort of niche important, in much the same way I think Steely Dan are. I do like The Pretenders a fair bit, but I just don’t think they’re all that important.
Yeah…maybeeee. Thing is I think Robert Johnson should be in. I think Muddy Waters should probably be in. I’m inclined to think John Lee Hooker should be in. I absolutely think Willie Dixon should be in. Buddy Guy is a close maybe for me, because talented as he is and sorta iconic as he is, I think he is just a hair less seminal and iconic than the other aforementioned artists.
Absolutely all three should be in. We’ve got tons of acts in here that blatantly ripped them off, often without acknowledgement (coughLed Zeppelincough).
Is there an Eric Clapton without Muddy Waters or Buddy Guy? Hell no.
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