[go ahead, finish singing the Joan Jett song in your head. I'll wait.]
OK, so the day: March 15, 2010. The place: New York City.
The event: 25th Annual Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony
And this year's inductees? Including but not limited to:
ABBA (yeah, that ABBA)
Genesis (for the record, Genesis 1.0 with Peter Gabriel was way cooler and more progressive/art rock than the lite-FM Genesis 2.0 with Phil Collins as the lead vocal. Although I admit to having Phil in my collection. But I digress...)
The Hollies
Jimmy Cliff
The Stooges
So, love 'em or hate 'em, they're now a part of one of the most sacred institutions (in my book).
An old classmate of mine was outraged when the inductees were first announced. "ABBA?!? Are you kidding?" I admit to indulging in a bit of Swedish cheese from time to time, although - yeah, it's pretty campy but I don't know if it's ever been considered rock. Genesis - well, just see my note above. The Hollies are ok. Jimmy Cliff is more reggae, and I'm sorry, but not the best that I've heard. The Stooges rock and are way out there, but that's why they're here.
It's not surprising that there are many, many artists who are overlooked when it comes to induction time. Depeche Mode and the Cure? Yeah, the likelihood of them getting nominated are pretty slim. I'm a big, big fan and think they continue to influence...but it's been over the required 25 years, so where's the nomination? I think it's time to start including some of these alternative bands who really broke new ground in rock. We'll see who is nominated next year, but I hope we don't have any more watered-down pity votes for bands that were great in some capacity except in rock and roll.
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