Rock n Roll Hall of Fame 2008 nominees

John Mellencamp will get in. Obviously so will Madonna.

Why do they call it the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame?

Madonna
Beastie Boys
Donna Summer
Afrika Bambaataa
Leonard Cohen

WTF?

Popular Music Hall of Fame doesn't have the same ring to it, I guess.

I'd go with:

Madonna
Beastie Boys
Chic
The Dave Clark Five
The Ventures

The Beastie Boys are eligible already?

That's cool that they're putting Cohen on there. He is definitely the most talented of all the artists on that list.

My five:

Beastie Boys
John Mellencamp (If Seeger gets in, he's getting in)
Leonard Cohen
Donna Summer (She's the motherfucking queen of disco. As GOB would say, "Come on!")
Madonna

Although I would love to see the Ventures get in. I love me some space rock.\

Also, blah blah blah another year without Randy Newman or Warren Zevon even being considered blah blah blah.

My write-in 5:

Wynonie Harris
Dick Dale
The Stooges
Chic
Madonna, I guess

Non-musician: Lester Bangs

Early Influence: Spike Jones

I forget where I read it, but isn't it pretty commonly assumed that Lester will never ever ever get in while Jann Wenner's on the board?

Madonna is fucking metal.




Not.

Just like every year, I say What The Fuck.
Worthless head-up-the-ass organization of critic snobs and old douche sacs.

Where is Metallica (yes, they're eligible this year), Rush, Kiss, Yes, Jethro Tull or the host of other insanely influential, record selling, genre-crafting ROCK giants of years gone by. Oh wait, those bands aren't cool to like.
Beastie Boys and Donna Summer? I don't know if they did as much for rock music as Kiss or Metallica.

I should just pipe down,
I sound like a broken record.

Can we please not have that stupid fucking Kiss debate again this year?

Sure, you fellas can go on about the brilliance of Afrika Bambaataa and The Ventures.
I'll be off in my bedroom listening to Rock Music.

This is a pretty weak bunch. I totally disagreed with Andrew last year, but this year, I think he's right, at least to some extent. It's insane that Yes, Rush, and Metallica haven't made it. They were hugely important, whether you like them or not.

Madonna is impossible to ignore, Bambaata was hugely influential if not exactly something I'd want to listen to a lot, but if the Ventures (before Dick Dale?) and the Dave Clark Five couldn't cut it when they were first inducted, it seems like a weird time to induct them now.

But, then, I think the Replacements, Sonic Youth, and other underground bands who would turn out to be hugely influential later (much like Bambaata, actually) are being tragically overlooked.

You guys make great points, but you realize that if the Rock and Roll Hall Of Fame were to actually make good nominating choices, the bands and artists nominated would seem a lot less cool, not the Hall of Fame itself.

Same with the Grammys. And the Oscars. These things suck for a reason...

Your five are my five as well.

Is The Cure in? No, right? Stupid.

I thought for sure that Metallica and the Chili Peppers would be nominated this year. I can't understand why they're not.

I love the Beastie Boys, but Run DMC should get in before them (and they'd be the first to say it). So many artists who deserve to get in:

Wynonie Harris
Big Jay McNeely
The "5" Royales
The Robins
Johnny "Guitar" Watson
"Screamin'" Jay Hawkins
Link Wray
Dick Dale
Captain Beefheart
The Stooges
Deep Purple
The Runaways
Hey, the Runaways were the first all-girl band to get commercial success writing their own songs and playing their own instruments. That's gotta count for something, right? Let's see, who else? I'd be fine with KISS getting in, but Alice Cooper should really get in first. I think there's a very good argument for Chic. Since they've already got The Ramones, Talking Heads, Patti Smith and Blondie, they should finish it up and let Richard Hell and Television in. OK, that's wishful thinking, but the whole list is wishful thinking, so I might as well ask for X, Dead Kennedys, Bad Brains, Minutemen, Sonic Youth and Butthole Surfers. Or at least Tom Waits.

Chili Peppers aren't eligible until next year.

The fact that Tom Waits hasn't gotten in yet is beyond absurd.

As long as The Ventures get in I don't care who else does.

Secret Agent Man, they've given you a number and taken away your name.