Last week the Rock Hall announced its 2022 inductees. Can we just say we’ve heard all these debates before about which ones deserved the honor and which — OMG why are they putting THAT person in?
Seven bands/individuals were inducted as performers including Dolly Parton who initially said she’d decline the honor but appears to have had a change of heart. The others are Pat Benatar & her guitarist/songwriter/husband Neil Giraldo (originally from the Cleveland area, above), Duran Duran, Eminem, Eurythmics, Lionel Richie and Carly Simon. Argue away.
Where the really suspicious stuff starts in a new and perplexing category they introduced last year: “musical excellence.” They’ve long had a sideman category to induct musicians noted for providing backup for stars; the criteria were clear. The new category appeared initially to be created for musicians who were noted for wider musical contributions than just being backing players. And two of the three nominees fit the category: Billy Preston and Randy Rhoads. The third, however, appeared to have been plucked from thin air: LL Cool J, who isn’t a musician at all: he’s a rapper/producer who releases music under his own name.
This year it got even worse. They stuffed a band best known as performers and a major influence in heavy metal, Judas Priest, in this strange category, along with Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis, best know as a songwriting/production team. Neither of these acts possesses more “musical excellence” than anyone in the performer category. The quicker they abolish this category, the better. It has the feel of a booby prize.
Additional nominees include Elizabeth Cotton and Harry Belafonte in the early influence category (but where is Patsy Cline already, about 100 times more influential on today’s Americana/roots rock than Belafonte is on any rock music?) and three undeniable industry heavyweights, lawyer Allen Grubman and record company executives Jimmy Iovine and Sylvia Robinson, in the Ahmet Ertegun Award category for — industry heavyweights.
The induction ceremony takes place November 5, but, alas, not in Cleveland. It will be at the Microsoft Theater in Los Angeles. That’s especially disappointing since Neil Giraldo is from Parma and performed extensively in the local rock scene before hooking up with Benatar’s band.
Get more information at rockhall.com/.