The nominations are in

[ericcoleman]

The Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame nominations that is.

Madonna
John Mellencamp
The Ventures
Leonard Cohen
Dave Clark Five
Little Walter
Gamble And Huff

So, what do you think? And none of the "so and so belongs in there before so and so". Yeah, that's a given. What do you think of the current bunch. Do any of them NOT belong there? I think one doesn't, and I will talk about that in comments later.

Comments

[mle292.livejournal.com]

I think the only one who doesn't really belong is probably John Mellencamp, only because his music is mostly derivative, but I think the case could be argued that he made a (small) contribution to what Rock And Roll is today.

I don't care for Madonna, but I'm sure that she's had influence on what Rock And Roll is. Today, her music sucks hardcore, copious ass, but a long time ago, it was influential and different enough to matter. I've never really been a Madonna fan, so this is a definite outsider perspective.

[selenesue.livejournal.com]

Madonna? She didn't invent publicity whoring, just perfected it. Snort.

I'm down with the Ventures, but I love love love good guitar picking.

[ericcoleman]

First, I love the icon.

I think that Mellencamp is borderline. His work from Scarecrow on certainly deserves some kind of recognition though.

Madonna had a major influence, and some of her music is amongst the greatest of the rock era.

As for her music today, well ... I think you may be too kind.

[mplsfish.livejournal.com]

How many get in? Cause I vote for Leonard. Not that he is really Rock n Roll. I always vote for him. For everything. Always.

(I am not normally this obsessive)

[ericcoleman]

I disagree totally with your assessment of Madonna, sure she was good at the publicity, but she did have the music to back it up. And she changed a lot of things, the major change being how we looked at the woman as an artist. That a woman could be smart, sexual and in charge. There was a time when her music was the most cutting edge of it's time.

The Ventures belong, but definitely are part of that category that I said to not talk about.

[catalana.livejournal.com]

Huh - none of the Leonard Cohen stuff I've heard was remotely rock and roll. I guess he must have done a lot of things I haven't heard.

[ericcoleman]

They all get in. And Leonard absolutely does NOT belong. He's brilliant, but has nothing to do with rock music in any way whatsoever.

[mplsfish.livejournal.com]

I agree, but my religion requires me to support him.

[ericcoleman]

My thought exactly.

I think he is brilliant, one of the greatest lyricists ever, but ... rock ... rock and roll ???

Naw.

[filkertom.livejournal.com]

That's pretty much what I was thinking. He's a balladeer... and a fairly soporific one at that.

[ann-totusek.livejournal.com]

That was my first thought. I really love his stuff- first heard of him in association with "First We Take Manhattan" and k.d. lang did a brilliant cover of "Hallelujah" but rock and roll it ain't.

[bammba-m.livejournal.com]

Am i thinking of a different Leonard Cohen?

[ericcoleman]

I can't say which Leonard Cohen you may be thinking of, but I only know one who is a songwriter ...

[hardly-angelic.livejournal.com]

I wish I had an icon of a golden rat's hindquarters, which would be symbolic of what I do not give about anything to do with the shameful entity known as the R&R HoF.

Fuck Jann Wenner - preferably with something sharp and poisonous.

By the way - the inductees were announced today.

Cohen, Madonna, The DC5, The Ventures, and Jack Puma Melonball all made it.

[ericcoleman]

mostly derivative,

Which describes rock and roll ...

[mle292.livejournal.com]

See, that's what the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame has always been about, though. The justification seems to be that it's not just Rock and Roll musicians, it's everyone who's ever had any sort of influence on Rock and Roll.

Fuck it. If Woody Guthrie and Hank Williams are in, then so is Leonard Cohen.

[ericcoleman]

Woody and Hank influenced rock and roll in a deep and fundemental way ... Leonard ... not a bit. Sure some folks do covers of his songs (and always wildly superior to his versions) but other than that, he has nothing to do with it whatsover.

[ericcoleman]

By the way - the inductees were announced today.

Cohen, Madonna, The DC5, The Ventures, and Jack Puma Melonball all made it.

Yeah, I know, it's right there in this post ...

have you been staying out late again?

[hardly-angelic.livejournal.com]

Yeah, I know, it's right there in this post ...

You said nominees, not inductees, so I ran with it.

have you been staying out late again?

Nah, but I'm popping Tylenol 3 tablets like Skittles for back pain today.

I thought of an example!

[mle292.livejournal.com]

Haven't you ever had to sit in an English class where you read music lyrics that were presented as if they were poetry?

Though it's complete bullshit, I'm sure that Leonard Cohen did have influence in the genre's sometimes arrogant notions about lyrics.

[mle292.livejournal.com]

Okay, very good point on that one. I'll concede John Mellencamp, because I think you're right.

Re: I thought of an example!

[ericcoleman]

Maybe, but in such a peripheral way as to be completely unimportant. He certainly had a big influence on other songwriters such as himself ... but that means you have to put in folks like Rufus Wainwright in 20 some years ... and that's just silly.

Re: I thought of an example!

[ericcoleman]

There is a listing of folks who have covered his songs in his entry in Wikipedia ... as you can see if you go look, there are just a TON of rock and rollers who have done his songs ...

Makes sense in an ironic sort of way.

[mle292.livejournal.com]

And influence counts a lot in that Cleveland building, probably more than it should, but the association that makes the decisions needs to suck up to contemporary artists.

Rock and Roll is just Folk and Country and Blues and Jazz all smooshed together. Some of it's just plain stolen sounds.

It's probably fitting within the genre that some of the inductees are stolen from other areas, too.

Re: Makes sense in an ironic sort of way.

[ericcoleman]

The comment that there was a TON of rock and rollers who have done his songs was sarcasm ...