The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Foundation announced its Class of 2017 nominees Tuesday. Let the grumbling begin!
As always, the first question is: Who are the shoo-ins? The obvious answer is grunge heroes Pearl Jam and hip-hop icon Tupac Shakur, both first-time nominees.
Beyond that, the voters’ biases and back-room chicanery make things a bit more murky, especially since there are a couple of artists on the list who should’ve been inducted years ago.
For example, it’s shocking and embarrassing to all involved that the MC5, eligible since 1994, is just now getting nominated, behind many of its proud musical descendants including Green Day, Metallica, Guns N’ Roses and Nirvana. The seminal 1960s activist/proto-punk group inspired countless heavy metal, punk and hard rock (and everything in between) bands and gave the world classics including Kick Out the Jams.
Perhaps when last year’s disgruntled inductee Steve Miller finishes the investigation he promised to conduct, he can answer why the MC5 was ignored for so long. I’ll hold my breath for that report.
Likewise — and this will be tough to admit for some — Journey, eligible since 2000, whose late 1970s and mid-1980s run of hits (you’re probably hearing Steve Perry’s wail in your head now, aren’t you?) should have gotten them at least a nomination by now.
Though the band was generally reviled and dismissed by critics, and I could happily live the rest of my life without ever hearing Don’t Stop Believin’ again, the band earned its spot long ago.
The very English Depeche Mode filled arenas and stadiums with its erudite, emotional, new wave, synth dance-pop. The band won five Grammys and is still name-checked by artists such as Arcade Fire, Nine Inch Nails, Lady Gaga and many other electronic, dance, goth and even some metal bands. It was one of the most popular bands in the world and is likely to get inducted.
It’s great to see Bad Brains on the list, another seminal act whose mere presence on the scene was a bit shocking. Four black, dreadlocked dudes with guitars playing fast, loud, angry punk/hardcore mixed with some straight-ahead righteous reggae-dub also inspired countless ’80s and ’90s rock and metal bands with albums like Rock For Light and I Against I.
But as the band never had anything resembling a hit, and the rock hall seems to be moving backward through time when it comes to punk and metal (see Green Day before MC5), I won’t be shocked if Bad Brains doesn’t get in on its first try. I hope that it will so guitarist Dr. Know, who has had some serious health issues, will be able to stand onstage and be appreciated.
ELO and J. Geils
Other first-timers include Jeff Lynne’s Electric Light Orchestra, purveyors of a signature wall of vocal harmony and orchestral pop-rock sound with a host of radio staples including Evil Woman, Sweet Talkin’ Woman and Livin’ Thing. Lynne has been a longtime industry stud as a songwriter and producer, working with Tom Petty, three Beatles, Joe Walsh and Regina Spektor among others, which I think helps the band’s chances.
The J. Geils Band? Sorry, guys. But, hey, don’t stop believin’.
(Dang it, Steve Perry, get out of my head!)
The voters don’t appear fond of prog-rock, and during the punk years, bands such as Yes were held up as examples of everything pretentious, self-absorbed and boring about big-time rock ’n’ roll. So Yes may have to accept a “no” for a few more go-rounds unless the fan vote is very strong.
Last year, some fans apparently were stacking ballots, so the hall is taking measures to ensure the vote is better controlled. (Otherwise, it will be stuck inducting bands that fans actually want, rather than the ones the voters feel are worthy.) Cast a ballot for your favorite at www.rockhall.com/vote.
Women finalists
This year’s list of ladies has two first-timers — folk legend Joan Baez and Janet Jackson — along with return nominee Chaka Khan. Baez, eligible since 1985(!), seems the most likely, as she’s been carrying the folk torch for decades and came of age in the canonized, romanticized boomer haven of the 1960s.
Ms. Jackson (yes, I am a bit “nas-tay!”) has a better chance than Khan, as her dance-heavy videos and hit-filled albums like Rhythm Nation provided a blueprint for stars such as Britney Spears, Christina Aguilera, Beyoncé and Nicki Minaj.
As with the MC5, German electronic band Kraftwerk, eligible since 1985, is another massive influence whose innovative mechanized, robotic yet still-funky grooves are at the root of nearly every strain of electronic-based music and a seminal sound of early hip-hop.
Sure, the group had to wait for the rock hall to expand its reach beyond capital-R “Rock and Roll,” but now that the voters are avoiding dealing with the arena/hair metal/hard rock ’80s (Bon Jovi, Poison and Motley Crue? Noooo!) it’s certainly time.
Cosmopolitan R&B/disco stalwarts Chic, whose nominations are creeping toward double digits, is likely to once again be bridesmaids, as is the late Southern soul man Joe Tex of gritty tunes such as I Gotcha and Skinny Legs and All.
Steppenwolf arguably could be inducted for giving the world the phrase “Heavy Metal Thunder” from its era-defining hit Born To Be Wild, but Magic Carpet Ride is a great song, too. Nevertheless, it won’t be too surprising if both Steppenwolf and the Zombies (She’s Not There, Time of the Season) are edged out by more contemporary acts with longer track records.
As for the Cars, the band fronted by Ric Ocasek made some darn fine pop-rock records and it will eventually get in, but probably not now. First-timer Jane’s Addiction is also likely to have to wait for another year.
My guess for the Class of 2017: Depeche Mode, Journey, Pearl Jam, Tupac Shakur, Joan Baez and MC5. The inductees will be announced in December.
Malcolm X Abram can be reached at mabram@thebeaconjournal.com or 330-996-3758. Read his blog, Sound Check Online, at www.ohio.com/blogs/sound-check, like him on Facebook at http://on.fb.me/1lNgxml and/or follow him on Twitter @malcolmabramABJ .