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The first issue of Rolling Stone, November 1967 Just in case you're not familiar with Jann Wenner, he was the founder of Rolling Stone magazine way back in 1967, and until this past weekend the highly influential publisher also held a seat on the board of directors of the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame since its inception in 1983. Wenner's surprising and rapid removal from the Cleveland museum's board is a news story currently receiving a lot of deserved attention. His downfall came because of things he said during an interview with David Marchese  of the New York Times while promoting his new book, The Masters . The  396 page volume contains old interviews Wenner conducted for his famous rock magazine that he sold in 2017. The interviews are with seven musicians he believes are the most intellectually articulate. Alphabetically, they are Bono, Bob Dylan, Jerry Ga...

All photos by Karin Ricci The sign at the entrance to the hall I've continually dumped all over the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame  for many years by heavily questioning what artists should or shouldn't be inducted. It's been a hobby of mine. I still have strong opinions on the subject, especially because all of the obvious choices were rewarded with plaques on the building's third floor gallery a long time ago. Now, just to keep the money rolling in - and produce an annual, overblown, TV extravaganza - the hall seems to honor every artist who meets their minimum eligibility requirements whether they deserve it or not. (I'm looking at you Judas Priest). That said, I must offer some sort of an apology to the hall because - despite their often poor choices - as a museum it was way better than expected and is a place you must see. While there, you'll realize that who is or ...

Stevie Nicks is the first woman to be enshrined into the Rock 'n Roll Hall of Fame twice: first, for her accomplishments with Fleetwood Mac and now for her solo career. Getting straight to the point, I contend that on her own Nicks is, at best, a borderline case for the hall. There are female artists with more chart action and greater influence who haven't even been nominated. Many of Nicks' top selling singles were duets and to me that detracts from her overall accomplishments. Would she have had the same success without Don Henley, Tom Petty, and Kenny Loggins? What did Nicks do on her own that Carly Simon, Tina Turner, Carole King, and others haven't? Historically, unless you're Joni Mitchell, female singer-songwriters have always gotten the short end of the stick. Carole King is already one of the hall's most worthy members and she was rightfully inducted with Gerry Goffin as part of the phenomenal songwriting team that influenced so many recording a...

Former Rolling Stone writer Tom Nawrocki, who is also a voting member of The Rock 'N Roll Hall of Fame, once posted on his blog, Debris Slide , that it is possible to play your way out of the hall . He was referencing Chicago the band and he used their hit, "Look Away," as evidence. Let it be said that the horn band is not the only artist to release music that is unworthy of their status. While Chicago are included in the list below some other great Hall of Fame members turned out "art" that is just as galling. I was recently told that it is too easy for somebody with access to a keyboard to trash others without regard to their feelings and that is probably true. However, if you don't want to be harshly criticized don't make records as bad as these renowned musicians did. It should be noted that all of the hall inductees mentioned here are artists I have greatly admired for a long time. The Beach Boys - L. A. (Light Album) (1979) After the...

I paid a lot more attention to the Rock 'n Roll Hall Of Fame election this year far more than I usually do for two reasons. First and foremost is the fact that Chicago, one of my all time favorite bands, was nominated. Secondly, I discovered Tom Nawrocki's blog. He is an official voting member of the hall and a former editor for Rolling Stone so I quickly became interested in his thoughts behind his ballot choices. Nawrocki voted for The Smiths, Janet Jackson, Chic, Cheap Trick, and N. W. A. He was correct on just two of them. He discussed the reasons behind his choices at Debris Slide . Here are my thoughts on the five winners. N.W.A. I find their music repulsive and their behavior often hard to tolerate. Despite the fact they have an extremely small recorded catalog of one full length, smash hit, album, an EP, and a second album that didn't create nearly as much buzz, they deserve to be in the hall because they are extremely huge cultural icons. They not only help...

Tom Nawrocki's career included several years as an editor at Rolling Stone magazine. He also writes about music on the Internet at both his own site and at more professional sites for many years now. He is also a voting member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Nawrocki's personal blog, Debris Slide , had been dormant for a long time but he has recently revived it to offer his insights on how he will complete his ballot for those artists currently nominated for induction into Cleveland's much maligned museum. You can tell Nawrocki takes his voting privilege very seriously and while I don't agree with all of his points he is more than qualified to be among the people who may cast a ballot. Many of us often think lunatics run the hall but after reading Nawrocki's thoughtful posts it's possible that the decision makers are not asylum escapees after all. Nawrocki's initial post is about first time nominee, Chicago. I've always longed for their inducti...

Yesterday the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame held their annual induction ceremonies. This year ABBA, Genesis, The Hollies, Jimmy Cliff, and The Stooges were the honorees and, once again, disagreements have arisen over who is deserving of membership. As always, the only real eligibility requirements are that you can not be inducted until twenty-five years after you made your first record and (here is where the controversy begins) you must make a significant contribution to the art form. There are artists in the hall who most definitely are not rock musicians but their influence on the music has been significant. That explains why Cliff was inducted. The Stooges were only marginally popular with the masses but were critical favorites. The opposite is true of ABBA. They were hated by the music snobs but were hugely popular worldwide. Genesis were lucky enough to receive both widespread popularity and artistic acceptance. My favorite among this year...

The Dave Clark Five , from the Tottenham section of London, England, almost immediately followed The Beatles over to America in 1964 and briefly challenged them for the rock 'n roll throne that the mop tops had just recently claimed for themselves. I still remember a newspaper headline I saw when "Glad All Over" knocked "I Want to Hold Your Hand" out of the top spot on the charts. It read: "Tottenham sound crushes The Beatles ." By 1967 the DC5 charted seventeen top 40 hits before disappearing from the music scene and disbanding in 1970. According to the All Music Guide they appeared on the Ed Sullivan Show more than any other British act. In addition to "Glad All Over" British Invasion fans will remember many of their other boisterous rockers such as "Bits and Pieces," "Catch Us If You Can," "Over and Over," "You’ve Got What It Takes," "Can’t You See That She’s Mine," and a whole lot m...

Here is a link for an article titled The Rock & Roll Hall Of Shame and a reprint of the same article I found on the Internet regarding Cleveland's Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame and their continuing snub of some very famous and popular rock & rollers, most notably Chicago. THE ROCK & ROLL HALL OF SHAME Copyright 2004 by Jamie Reno As you've probably heard, the 2003 Rock & Roll Hall of Fame inductees were announced recently. And, once again, there's a whole boatload of glaring omissions. Among the non-invitees: Bob Seger, Yes, Linda Ronstadt, John Mellencamp, The Guess Who, Genesis, Black Sabbath, Thin Lizzy, Three Dog Night, the Moody Blues, KISS, Alice Cooper, John Denver, Hall & Oates, Johnny Rivers, Neil Diamond, Gram Parsons, Charlie Daniels, the Hollies, the Doobie Brothers, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Emerson, Lake & Palmer, Jethro Tull, Jackson Browne, Cat Stevens, Deep Purple, Steppenwolf and Chicago. Of course, these are some of the most popular ...