December 30, 2016

Open Arms: The Rock Hall Embraces Populism

The people have spoken—they want Journey in the Rock Hall. And so it shall be. Once again, the winner of the official Rock Hall fan vote will be inducted. This fact indicates various things, but perhaps most significantly, it reveals that the Hall has now completely embraced Journey's particular brand of populist, FM radio-friendly arena rock. Whether that's agony or ecstasy for you, it's time to accept that, going forward, the Hall will absolutely induct acts that get a thumbs-down from critics, yet are adored by a vocal majority of rock fans.

In short, the Rock Hall is on a Journey, steering this boat toward the Styx.
Journey
Surprised? You shouldn't be. The signs have been there for awhile now. For the Class of 2016, longtime Rock Hall snub/fan vote victor Chicago got in, and right alongside of such other AOR acts as Cheap Trick, Deep Purple, and Steve Miller. The year before, rock radio staples Joan Jett and the Blackhearts got in. Not to equate or disparage any of these exceptional artists at all, it's just that their inclusion collectively demonstrates a strong undercurrent of "crowd-pleasing" going on here. You could even argue that Guns N' Roses' first-ballot induction is another example of the Hall navigating toward the mainstream; they are increasingly canonizing artists that have dominated radio airwaves/soundtracked proms and backwoods keggers. Journey is just the latest of these.

Another example of the Rock Hall's pivot toward pop-rock's often syrupy center was Rock Hall CEO Joel Peresman's 2015 interview where he expressed surprise that Journey and Bon Jovi weren't inducted yet. Steve Perry and company's current welcome into the Hall feels less like prescience on Peresman's part than the Rock Hall's apparent institutional mission to enshrine acts that will drive viewership of the HBO induction ceremony broadcast, as well as visitors to the museum.

"Who cares?" many will say. Why examine or care so much about all this? That's more than fair—ultimately, this isn't life or death stuff. No one will die. (They will be inducted after they do, however.) The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremony may just be another music awards show to the casual observer, but it's still one of the most intensively discussed music events of the year. It's partly notable because it legitimizes musical taste, and ascribes the elite "Rock and Roll Hall of Famer" distinction (which, sadly, has been slapped onto far too many popular musicians' obituaries this year). Still, the debate over who is qualified to enter those hallowed halls rages on, and will continue to in the coming years.

Speaking of the future, and now that Journey has been voted into the Hall, it's time to consider what other acts they are blazing the trail for in Cleveland. Groan or exult if you must, but there are many bands that fit the specific Journey AOR/arena rock template that could potentially start seeing nominations. Here are just a few:

Boston
Boston Just another band of Boston? Not quite. A staggering 75 million records sold, with their 1976 debut, Boston (a veritable greatest hits, track by track) shifting 17 million units. Guitarist Tom Scholz, a guitar, songwriting and production wizard, laid down a powerful musical foundation for late singer Brad Delp's warm, unmistakable vocals. Songs include "More Than a Feeling," "Peace of Mind," and "Foreplay/Long Time," where their prog-rock ambitions were especially on display. They're a "Rock and Roll Band" with Rock Hall written all over them. You can't turn on a classic rock FM station and not hear Boston (for better and for worse).


Foreigner
Foreigner - "Feels Like the First Time," "Double Vision," "Hot Blooded" and the mega-ballad "I Want to Know What Love Is" distinguish Foreigner, another band that has saturated FM airwaves for decades, and, impressively, has sold 80 million records globally. "Cold as Ice"? Hardly. Foreigner's chances of nomination are actually starting to heat up, with a possible reunion of a classic lineup and their 40th anniversary, according to band founder Mick Jones. Radio and TV personality/Rock Hall voter Eddie Trunk recently said he thinks Foreigner should be next after Journey, in terms of priority. He might have a point there.


Styx
Styx - "Oh, this truly IS Hell!" - Homer Simpson, literally floating down the river Styx as "Lady" plays. Hey, satire was going to happen to these guys. They might laugh last, as a Rock Hall nomination is very possible. There is some reunion potential/drama with their estranged singer Dennis DeYoung, and the unique yin/yang of their hard rock/musical theater pastiche, which has yielded multi-platinum records on the strength of such songs as "Renegade," "Too Much Time on My Hands," "Come Sail Away" and Kilroy Was Here's dystopian cyber-pop hit "Mr. Roboto."


REO Speedwagon
REO Speedwagon - With their 1980 album Hi Infidelity in RIAA's "diamond status" with 10 million records sold, plus 40 million albums sold overall, REO Speedwagon might have the right combination of industry and chart success to achieve a Rock Hall nod eventually. Overall, they have a boatload of hits, and their heavy MTV presence in the '80s can't hurt either. Sadly, REO guitarist Gary Richrath, co-writer of "Take It on the Run," died in 2015, but the group still hits the road, often with some of the other bands mentioned here.


Kansas
Kansas - Hailing from Topeka, this legendary troupe is best known for their ubiquitous hits "Dust in the Wind" and "Carry on Wayward Son"—both classics that have become heartfelt verses in purist rock fans' collective song. Mainstream acceptance has far outweighed Kansas' critical respect, but the recent documentary Kansas: Miracles out of Nowhere nicely detailed the origin story of how a scrappy band with art-rock/prog ambitions (check out the remarkable "Icarus (Born on Wings of Steel)" from their Masque album) ascended to headliner status. They're easily a long shot, but with the current Rock Hall shift toward big, unabashed classic rock, they cannot be left out of the conversation entirely.

December 15, 2016

Rock Hall 2017 Predictions: The Pundits Weigh In

Who's going in? Plenty of intrepid Rock Hall pundits are letting their predictions fly for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Class of 2017. And wow, is there some consensus out there, or what?

The Rock Hall's official inductee announcement hits at 8 a.m. next Tuesday, December 20 on SiriusXM's Volume (channel 106). Until then, here are some of the undeniably similar predictions:

Troy Smith (Cleveland Plain-Dealer / Cleveland.com): 

Pearl Jam
Journey
Joan Baez
Tupac Shakur
Electric Light Orchestra (ELO)
...and if there's a sixth inductee: J. Geils Band

Future Rock Legends (futurerocklegends.com):

Pearl Jam
Journey
Joan Baez
Chic
ELO
...and if there's a sixth inductee: J. Geils Band

Tom Lane (http://tomlanesblog.blogspot.com):

Pearl Jam
Journey
Joan Baez
Chic
ELO
...and if there's a sixth inductee: Tupac Shakur

Alex Voltaire (https://northumbriancountdown.wordpress.com):

Pearl Jam
Tupac Shakur
Joan Baez
ELO
Journey
...if 6 inductees: Chic
...if 7 inductees: Janet Jackson

E-Rockracy:

Pearl Jam
Journey
Joan Baez
Chic
ELO
...and if there are sixth and seventh inductees: The Zombies, The Cars
Ahmet Ertegun Award: Don Cornelius

Rock Hall Monitors (http://rockhallmonitors.blogspot.com):

Pearl Jam
Journey
ELO
Joan Baez
J. Geils Band
Sixth and seventh picks: Tupac Shakur, Chic

Iconic Rock Talk Show (https://iconicrocktalkshow.wordpress.com):

Pearl Jam
Journey
ELO
Joan Baez
Tupac Shakur
...and if there's a sixth inductee: Yes

Donnie's Blog (https://donniesblogwordpresscom.wordpress.com):

Pearl Jam
ELO
Journey
Joan Baez
Tupac Shakur
...and if there's a sixth inductee: Janet Jackson
...and if there's a seventh inductee: Chic
...and if there's a eighth inductee: The Cars

One thought on the near-uniformity of the predictions thus far: The Rock Hall's sure to shock and surprise us next week in some way. Expect some wild deviations from what you see above. Dark horses could emerge.

December 14, 2016

Candidates for the Rock Hall's Ahmet Ertegun Award, Part 2: Bob Geldof and Casey Kasem

The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Class of 2017 announcement is due Tuesday, December 20 (see our inductee predictions here). However, there's another significant honor the Hall frequently bestows: the Ahmet Ertegun Award, which generally goes to producers, record executives, songwriters, and various industry figures that have made their indisputable mark on rock and roll.

In a previous installment, the merits of Rick Rubin and Daniel Lanois for the Ahmet Ertegun were reviewed. This time around, the focus turns to two more prospects, one a notable rock and roll activist, the other a legendary DJ.

Bob Geldof at Live Aid
Bob Geldof
His name is forever synonymous with Live Aid, the monumental 1985 all-star concert for African famine relief, but Bob Geldof's achievements are many. For instance, this time of year, you are very likely to hear Band Aid's "Do They Know It's Christmas," a huge international hit from 1984 penned by Geldof and Ultrovox's Midge Ure, and sung by a then-who's-who of Irish and British music stars. This mega-selling single was a clear prercursor to USA for Africa's "We Are the World."

Geldof's activist achievements also include Live 8, a 10-concert charity extravaganza in 2005 intended to raise consciousness around African economic, hunger, and AIDS issues. (The internationally-held event was also notable for reuniting Pink Floyd's long-estranged members for an historic performance.) To this day, he continues to fight on behalf of the impoverished as a member of the Africa Progress Panel as well as the ONE Campaign.

Before activism was a major aspect of his life, Geldof was the frontman for the New Wave group the Boomtown Rats, best known for their 1979 single "I Don't Like Mondays"—a harrowing song that both bemoaned and offered commentary on a school shooting long before such events sadly became commonplace. Elsewhere in his resume, it seems most rock fans either forget or are unaware that he played the lead role of "Pink" in the movie version of Pink Floyd's The Wall.

A major figure in the realm of rock and roll activism, music, and even film, Bob Geldof should probably be a part of any future Ahmet Ertegun Award conversation. This Rock Hall trophy might be a tad anticlimactic, as Geldof has an honorary knighthood from the Queen, and a Man of Peace award from the World Summit of Nobel Peace Laureates, among other honors... but for his high-profile, decades-long committment to the greater global good, he should be recognized.

Top 40 Legend: Casey Kasem
Casey Kasem
A broadcasting luminary hailing from Detroit, Kemal Amin "Casey" Kasem was one of the most well-known, household name-level DJs in America until his death in 2014. For a wide swath of the populus, his weekly show American Top 40 (which ran between 1970 and 2004) was a regular listening habit—a ritual marked by hearing the latest pop songs, "Long Distance Dedications" and Kasem's resonant, reassuring voice. And zoinks, lest we forget, Kasem, a busy voiceover artist, was even the voice of Shaggy on the beloved animated show Scooby-Doo.

Kasem's most obvious peer on some levels is Dick Clark, who was given the Ahmet Ertegun Award in 1993, and if we're talking DJs, the first recipient of this honor was Mr. Alan Freed himself. While Kasem is perhaps more of a "pop music" figure, there's no denying the fact his voice was deeply woven into the American tapestry; he held an important cultural position long before MP3s, streaming music, and irretrievably fragmented musical tastes became the modern norm. His worthiness for the Ahmet Ertegun Award is, well, off the charts.