‘Disco queen’ inducted into Rock Hall of Fame. What the hell?

When I was in high school in the late 1970s, nothing was less rock ‘n’ roll than disco.
Disco was more than a derided type of music. It was a lifestyle. There were disco clubs, disco-style fashions and disco dance moves. As a teenager, I hated disco. It was something lame older people enjoyed.
Disco also was responsible for killing the rock music scene at the time. Clubs replaced live music with DJs spinning disco tracks.
Fast forward to the present and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame is inducting Donna Summer, the “Queen of Disco” music, into its ranks on Thursday at a ceremony in Los Angeles. What the hell?
Growing up in Chicago, young people in the disco age rebelled against the disco craze. “Disco sucks” was a common refrain.
Chicago also was the scene of Disco Demolition Night at Comiskey Park, where DJs from a local rock station blew up disco records after a White Sox game as part of an ill-fated promotion. The second game of a planned double-header on July 12, 1979, had to be canceled after fans stormed the field. The spirit of rock-and-roll rebellion lived that night.
Now, I don’t have anything against Donna Summer personally. A lot of her music is very good. But she’s not rock and roll.
I’ve said many times that the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame should be called the Popular Music Hall of Fame because it includes other genres like rap and pop.
During Donna Summer’s heyday, I was listening to Pink Floyd, Rush and other bands. Ironically, Rush also is being inducted into the Rock Hall this year, along with Heart (finally), hip-hop group Public Enemy and producer Quincy Jones.

Photo: Cover of Donna Summer’s 1975 single “Love to Love You Baby.”

Heart, women rockers snubbed by Rock and Roll Hall of Fame

The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame announced its latest round of inductees today, including Guns N’ Roses, the Beastie Boys, the Red Hot Chili Peppers, and the Faces. But this year’s selections included only one woman, the late singer/songwriter Laura Nyro, the Associated Press and EW reported.
I can’t fault the hall for its main picks this year. At least it chose a lot of rockers, unlike past years where it selected the likes of ABBA, Neil Diamond and Madonna.
But where are the women?
Among those nominated but not chosen for induction this year were Heart, Joan Jett & The Blackhearts, Donna Summer, and Rufus with Chaka Khan.
I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame needs to induct Heart. Sisters Ann and Nancy Wilson are the core of a popular hit-making band that can really rock. They also were hugely influential to female rockers who followed.

Photos: Covers of Heart albums "Little Queen" (1977) and "The Essential Heart" greatest hits collection.

Heart deserves to be in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame

Tonight I watched rock band Heart perform at an outdoor concert in Naperville, Ill. Fronted by sisters Ann and Nancy Wilson, Heart was in top form.
I left the 90-minute show with two impressions: First, those ladies can still rock and, second, it’s a crime that they’re not yet in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
Heart burst onto the music scene with their debut album “Dreamboat Annie” in 1976 and cemented their reputation with the successful follow-on albums “Little Queen” in 1977 and “Dog and Butterfly” in 1978. Heart was one of the first major rock bands where women were in complete creative control.
At the Naperville concert Thursday, they played hits including “Barracuda,” “Crazy on You,” “Magic Man,” “Straight On” and “Alone.” They also played covers of Led Zepellin and Who classics.
Lead singer Ann Wilson’s voice is amazing and Nancy Wilson’s guitar work is stellar.
So why aren’t the Wilson sisters and Heart in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame? Politics and personal bias by the judges. If the hall is to have any credibility it needs to induct Heart next year.

Photos: The Wilson sisters of Heart today (top) and the cover of their 1976 album “Dreamboat Annie.”

Rock Hall needs an overhaul

The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame has been fraught with controversy from the start.
But as each year passes and the list of prominent artists snubbed by the hall grows, it’s becoming painfully clear that the organization needs an overhaul.
The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Foundation announced the 2009 inductees on Jan. 14. Of the five performer inductees, two are rock-solid choices: Jeff Beck and Metallica.

But the selection of rap group Run-D.M.C. is another pick made by the foundation for commercial reasons and to broaden the scope of the hall. It’s not just rock and roll now, it’s hip hop, funk, country, and pop music.
The other performer inductees – Bobby Womack and Little Anthony & the Imperials – are old-school picks from the 1950s and 1960s. Meanwhile, performers that were more popular or more influential continue to be overlooked.
FutureRockHall.com keeps a list of performers who get passed over for induction. Here are a few and their first year of eligibility: Boston (2001), Def Leppard (2004), Genesis (1993), Heart (2001), INXS (2005), Journey (2000), KISS (1999), Rush (1998), The Cars (2003), The Cure (2003), The Damned (2001) and Yes (1994).
I lost respect for the hall when it inducted Madonna last year. She’s a talented performer, known for dance and pop music, but definitely not rock and roll.
The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame’s nominating process has been widely criticized. The main criticism is that it’s controlled by a few people who are not even musicians, including Rolling Stone magazine founder Jann Wenner. Their personal biases have kept certain bands off the ballot, while accommodating friends and clients.
The hall needs to expand the voting process to include input from more musicians, especially those it has already voted into the hall of fame.
MTV.com wrote a good piece about the nominating process. The Wikipedia entry on the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame also covers the issue.
FutureRockHall.com has lots of fiery debates about the process and who should get in.
Reviewing the hundreds of performers and bands in its database, I noticed that one of my favorites – Concrete Blonde – was not listed. They’re eligible for consideration in 2011 and I hope they get their due. I’ve e-mailed FutureRockHall and hopefully they’ll correct the omission.

Photo: The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum in Cleveland, Ohio. Photo by Derek Jensen (Tysto).