20 egregious Rock and Roll Hall of Fame snubs
By Jonathan Eig
MUSICAL INFLUENCERS
This used to be called “Early Influence” and it was originally created to honor musicians who came before the rock era, but who had a major influence on the genre. The Hall made a wise decision to rename it and open it up to later musicians who may not get enough support to be inducted as performers but whose contributions as influencers deserve notice. I have four such suggestions
MC5
Proto punk legends MC5 keep getting nominated for the Hall, and keep falling short. I’m beginning to think that they are never getting in as performers. The newly defined “musical influence” category is a perfect compromise. They are one of the crucial progenitors of the DIY ethos that spawned garage and punk rock, and their song “Kick Out the Jams” remains a pillar of hard rock. Founding guitarist Wayne Kramer’s death two months ago reminds us that we shouldn’t be waiting for next year with some of these acts.
New Yorks Dolls
I don’t really know if David Johansen, Sylvain Sylvain, and Johnny Thunders formed a good band or not. I just know that without the Dolls, glam rock may not have existed. They took early punk impulses and gave it a look and a style, and in so doing, made fashion and presentation a vital part of the rock music experience. There is a direct line from the Dolls to the B-52s, and I’ve got the Athens band going in as Performers. So I need to have some “Personality Crisis” in there as well.
Frank Sinatra
Let’s not overthink this – if you have something that has “Music” and ”Hall of Fame” in its name, and it includes 20th-century popular music, then Frank Sinatra has to be in it. His only rival as a solo recording artist in 20th century America is Elvis. Listen to singers before Frank. They were stiff. Frank improvised. He syncopated. He conversed. He virtually invented modern pop singing.
The Slits
Joan Jett is in the Hall. Pat Benatar is in the Hall. The Wilson sisters are in. They all sprout from The Slits, who proved that girls could rock as hard as boys. Any band – male or female-fronted – who flirts with post-punk, owes a debt to The Slits.