Tomorrow's RnR Hall of Fame

[jodi, queen of the underground]

The Onion's AV Club puts odds on acts that'll get into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame

The give the 'mats 6-1:
The Replacements

Why they might make the Hall: Of all the '80s post-hardcore bands that made rock 'n' roll safe for DIY-ers—and thereby birthed the modern-rock revolution of the '90s—The Replacements were the most accessible to old-guard rockers. Bandleader Paul Westerberg wrote tight, hooky, rootsy songs with heartbreaking, literate lyrics, and his mates played them raw and righteous, recording albums that regularly get cited as among the best of their decade.

Why they might not: Westerberg's post-Replacements career has been spotty, and the band's influence hasn't been as enduring as true believers might've expected. Remember: Westerberg sang the praises of Alex Chilton, and even Chilton isn't in the Hall.

Odds: 6-1. If The Replacements' back catalog ever gets the long-overdue spiffing-up that's been promised for a decade, the band should become relevant again.


And the du huskers:

Hüsker Dü

Why it might make the Hall: There's no doubt that Hüsker Dü deserves it, for having helped define American post-punk while making songs that stick in the heads of anyone for an ear for pop.

Why it might not: While other bands have benefited from shorter careers, Hüsker Dü's split came too soon. For all it accomplished, it could have gone on to do a lot more. Also, Replacements songs are a lot easier to sing when you're drunk.

Odds: 25-1. The bandmembers may have to watch Green Day get in and hear Billie Joe complain about their absence in his acceptance speech.

(interesting that they have Billie Joe bitching about the lack of husker's in the HoF)

[MikeR]

They lost me when they started inducting non-rock & roll acts into regular membership in the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. The only useful purpose it serves now as far as I'm concerned is to alert newcomers to early greats like Clyde McPhatter. The truth is that rock & roll has become an extremely marginal part of the music industry. But the R&R HoF is never going to accept that fact, so we have a future of Grandmaster Flash-type inductions to look forward to, as they desperately search for mainstream crap to recognize.

[thetwilitekid]

jodiwilldare said:

Why it might not: While other bands have benefited from shorter careers, Hüsker Dü's split came too soon. For all it accomplished, it could have gone on to do a lot more. Also, Replacements songs are a lot easier to sing when you're drunk.

What more could Husker Du do!! The last 20 yrs of rock are owed to them. How many other bands can say that.

And yet Bob Mould has even said it.

I can't fathom it.

Odds: 25-1. The bandmembers may have to watch Green Day get in and hear Billie Joe complain about their absence in his acceptance speech.

(interesting that they have Billie Joe bitching about the lack of husker's in the HoF)

Green Day covered Don't Want To Know If You're Lonely

[gage]

miker said:

They lost me when they started inducting non-rock & roll acts into regular membership in the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame.

Exactly. I know Eric Clapton loves him(cough,cough) but in what world does Buddy Guy deserve to be in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and someone who actually plays Rock and Roll, like Iggy Pop, has to wait so long?

[scoOter]

mparker said:

miker said:

They lost me when they started inducting non-rock & roll acts into regular membership in the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame.

Exactly. I know Eric Clapton loves him(cough,cough) but in what world does Buddy Guy deserve to be in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and someone who actually plays Rock and Roll, like Iggy Pop, has to wait so long?

to take nothing away from iggy, i have to say, WOW, i disagree with your general statement.

rock & roll is chuck berry
rock & roll is the rolling stones
rock & roll is the clash
rock & roll is buddy guy
rock & roll is everything

ergo, anyone/band who contributed to the development of r & r belongs.

all that said, i never want to visit that building.

[A Regular]

scooterboy said:

rock & roll is everything

ergo, anyone/band who contributed to the development of r & r belongs.

I think that's the problem, it is turning into the proverbial kitchen sink to include any music that isn't classical. All the genres bleed into each other but there is still predominance of jazz, blues, RnB, and RnR for most acts, and Miles & Louis would fall into jazz, Guy into Blues. I mean, some of the Stooges stuff had a jazz current in it, but they certainly wouldn't be in a jazz hall of fame.

I really wouldn't care either way but can see the indignation of all acts that were ever played on jann wenner's turntable as being called RnR.


And Scooter, thought you would be going to Cleveland to see the Clash display.

[scoOter]

unsatisfied2 said:

scooterboy said:

rock & roll is everything

ergo, anyone/band who contributed to the development of r & r belongs.

I think that's the problem, it is turning into the proverbial kitchen sink to include any music that isn't classical. All the genres bleed into each other but there is still predominance of jazz, blues, RnB, and RnR for most acts, and Miles & Louis would fall into jazz, Guy into Blues. I mean, some of the Stooges stuff had a jazz current in it, but they certainly wouldn't be in a jazz hall of fame.

i agree that this presents something of a "problem", but only if you need strict boundaries in your music (not you, in particular, areg). to me, it just seems easy money to include public enemy, madonna, buddy guy, etc. into the one, the only, the retarded... rock & roll hall of fame. you can tell, i don't like the hall, but i think for it to be legit it should pay tribute to all the musicians who drove popular rock & roll culture forward.

And Scooter, thought you would be going to Cleveland to see the Clash display.

i have said before, i wish that display would tour away from the rock hall. i have literally no desire to go to the r & r hall of fame, and i doubt that will ever change. i'd like to see the clash stuff, but not enough to go to cleveland.

[MikeR]

"for it to be legit it should pay tribute to all the musicians who drove popular rock & roll culture forward. "

That's how you get into an absurd situation where Wanda Jackson isn't in the HoF and Michael Friggin' Jackson is. I don't mind the idea of having an "Influences" section where jazz and pop and anything else semi-plausible could go. It's giving these people regular membership that makes it such a joke. Grandmaster Flash is more important to the history of rock & roll than The Replacements? Maybe there's an argument to be made in terms of popular music in general, but no, I do not believe that rock & roll is such a fuzzy category that anyone and everyone should qualify for inclusion on the basis that someone, somewhere who actually did play rock & roll listened to them at some point.

[scoOter]

maybe all of this discussion about what is, and what it isn't is a perfect illustration why the rock hall is stupid. maybe not. i don't know.

i stand by my statements, but can see the other argument, too. to me, i know rock & roll when i see it. they ought to just let me decide who gets in & who doesn't.

[A Regular]

scooterboy said:

maybe all of this discussion about what is, and what it isn't is a perfect illustration why the rock hall is stupid. maybe not. i don't know.

i stand by my statements, but can see the other argument, too. to me, i know rock & roll when i see it. they ought to just let me decide who gets in & who doesn't.

Well, that would be ONE way for Rush to get in.

[gage]

I've no problem with Muddy, BB, The Wolf, Robert Johnson and some other's induction's to the RNRHOF. It could be said, arguably, that there would be no Rockn'Roll without them. But Buddy Guy wasn't even an orginator of the blues much less Rock and Roll. If there was no Buddy Guy I can't see what difference it would make, to either Rock and Roll or the blues. That said, he is a fine guitar player, just kind of second string to be getting all this praise. Yeah, Buddy Guy in the RnRHOF really bugs me.

[scoOter]

unsatisfied2 said:

scooterboy said:

maybe all of this discussion about what is, and what it isn't is a perfect illustration why the rock hall is stupid. maybe not. i don't know.

i stand by my statements, but can see the other argument, too. to me, i know rock & roll when i see it. they ought to just let me decide who gets in & who doesn't.

Well, that would be ONE way for Rush to get in.

is a battlestar galactica comment on the way?

(oh, and i totally agree with gage)

[smoothdoggy]

When the Mats get in, do we have to watch the now seemingly obligatory jam session/duet with Kid Rock?

[A Regular]

smoothdoggy said:

When the Mats get in, do we have to watch the now seemingly obligatory jam session/duet with Kid Rock?

Why use kid rock when axl can step in and belt out I Will Dare. I know I'd pay good dough to see that!