2012 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Yellfest

As do I, but I think we're in the minority

 

Jane's and De La Soul would be my last two in, but it's the RRHOF. No need to be picky, except for with Rush.

The Replacements should already be in.

 

The video in this link is hilarious. These two older white dudes trying to sell this whole BS about how "music is just so visceral, and it's gotta hit you in the gut, and um. um. duh . . . VOICE!!!!!!!!"

Among the more irrelevant dinosaurs is the newspaper rock critic. And these guys show why.

 

I think Jane's Addiction and Smashing Pumpkins will definitely get in.

I'm not so sure about Ice Cube. He'll get in with NWA, but I think he's on the fence as a solo artist.

I always liked De La Soul, but critics LOVE them. I think they'll eventually get in.

Tribe, Dre, Green Day, 2Pac, Rage and Soundgarden are all locks.

I really like STP, but I don't see it...

 

The Raspberries ... fuck yeah. Very underrated and somewhat influential group on 80s and 90s alternative and power pop music. Side 3 is a great album.

 

Hmm ...

-Geddy's voice
-That Neil Peart has read Ayn Rand ... and has moved on.
-Neil Peart's lyrics were too pretentious.
-They weren't party animals (what Gene Simmons said about them in the documentary was priceless).

I don't think any of the last three hold a drop of water. The first I can understand to an extent, but as already mentioned, it didn't stop people from flocking to Bob Dylan, who didn't exactly sound refined.

-----

Norrin, a big part of the reason Genesis got in was the last three albums, how well they sold and the fact that, during the '80s, one couldn't move without hearing something done by Phil Collins. That was the criteria, not the storytelling, Tony Banks' lyrics or chord progressions or Steve Hackett's contributions until his departure after "Wind & Wuthering." In summary, Genesis' inclusion had little - if anything - to do with what it accomplished in Prog Rock.

 

Cube was the biggest respectable (as in, MC Hammer and Vanilla Ice don't count) rapper in the world from about 1987-92. His first two albums are certifiable classics. Death Certificate, his second, was No. 2 on the charts, and The Predator, his third, was No. 1. Even his later albums sold well, and his last two, in particular 2008's Raw Footage, are actually good music. And he was writing the lyrics for Eazy E and Dr. Dre on most N.W.A. songs and was himself the best in the group.

Add that to his influence through movies — he wasn't always a prostitute — and his exclusion would basically require the Hall to put a cap of no more than 20 rappers ever allowed to make it.

Most hard-core rap fans also love De La. While A Tribe Called Quest overshadowed them in the early-1990s, there is little argument that De La has done twice as much great work. Tribe had two classic albums and one near-classic album, released in a span of four years, then fell off, broke up and gained cult status because of it. But De La remains together (if inactive) and has made one classic, two or three near-classics and three or four very good albums, released in a span of 15 years.

We love the groups that peak early, crumble and die. De La kept doing it. The Grind Date was one of the five best rap albums of 2004. We should be praising them for not releasing bad content (though 2000's AOI: Mosaic Thump drew criticism) and not breaking up. Instead, there seems to be an outpouring for Tribe because the back-story is more interesting. Tribe never innovated like De La, either, and 3 Feet High & Rising was probably the best album by any Native Tongues group.

 

Spot on analysis, Sam.

That's why it was great when Phish busted out "Watcher of the Skies" to honor Genesis at their 2010 induction. I wonder how many people in the crowd had ever heard that song before.

 

I dig Joan Jett - the Runaways and her solo stuff? She's just cool as sh$t.
Albert King never played rock music, but based on the others bluesmen they've pinched he should get.
I'd say yes to Rush.
Deep Purple - I'm on the fence.
Donna Summer before Chic, but in my opinion, no to both.
Public Enemy never had anything to do with rock music, but based on previous entries I'd say yes. One of the few rap groups that really holds up over time for me.
NWA - Loved them when they hit, but I don't think there's enough of a body of work. Further, I don't think the stuff that was good holds up very well. I certainly don't Ice Cube deserves to get in solo, and his degeneration into celebrity has bankrupted his cool account.
Kraftwerk is one of the most influential groups in popular music. I don't know if that's a reason to put them in, but I certainly respect what they did.

I know I missed some. If I couldn't recall a nominee after I stared writing, that's a default no.

 

Buck has flipped! Suck it ... oh wait.

 

Rush fans are still the same group of nerds who play Magic:The Gathering.

The downside is once Rush gets, Triumph, Kansas and Marllion all get in.

 

Triumph is the worst Canadian band of all time, just an abomination of warmed-over Zep riffs, lame, cliched, self-help lyrics and a shitty cover of "Rocky Mountain Way". Their implosion did make for a great Behind the Music-type doc that aired up here.