Nominees for the 2011 RNR Hall Of Fame:
Alice Cooper
Beastie Boys
Bon Jovi
Chic
Neil Diamond
Donovan
Dr.John
J.Geils Band
LL Cool J
Darlene Love
Laura Nyro
Donna Summer
Joe Tex
Tom Waits
Chuck Willis

Who should get in, who should not? Who should be on the list?

Neil Diamond! He wrote SO many great songs for others to take into the top forty. Not to mention the success with performing his songs himself.

Sweet... Caroline, Neil Diamond in the rock and roll hall of fame?! Well, I guess if Johnny Cash is in it Neil Diamond can be.

I'm kind of shocked to see that the J. Geils Band is not already in the RNR Hall of Fame.

Hmmmmm.....ABBA in, J.Geils Band out.....

Rush.....doesn't even make the list.

What a joke this so-called "Hall of Fame" is. I plan on never going to Cleveland to tour it.

I have always thought that RNR is a state of mind not a certain type of music.
Music to have fun with, to dance to, to enjoy while stoned,to cruise down the hightway to, to drink beer to and to make love to. A way of life. The soundtrack of our lives

I think the following should be in:

FOR SURE
Kiss
Joe Cocker
The Doobie Brothers
Heart
Joan Jett
Steve Miller Band
Tina Turner
3 Dog Night

ALSO
Canned
Heat
Chicago
Rush
Jan & Dean
Jethro Tull
The Monkees
Moody Blues
Ted Nugent
Sonny & Cher
Warren Zevon
Pat Benatar
Guess Who

Some that will be when eligible
Madonna
Guns N Roses
Green Day
Nirvana

I think that a lot of the R&B singers should be in also

Just my thoughts as a music lover.

I may be an old fuddy-duddy, but.........LL CoolJ??? I hope not.

I would tend to agree, Julie.....but LL Cool J has far more rock-n-roll cajones than ABBA.

Again......the whole process is broke. It is best to ignore this disfunctional institution, than to pay them any credence.
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....did I say, "Creedence"?!???
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(nevermind)

No Rush? No Deep Purple? In the exact words of my brother Mike, "The place is dead to me". They can't be taken seriously. ABBA is in, but Tommy Bolin is not? LL Cool J? Please! Donna Summer? Love the womans music, but even Helen Keller knows that Donna Summer is not Rock N Roll. Probably a good stroll down memory lane, but they need to quit pretending to be something they most certainly are not. And change the name. "Hall of Pretty Good Music....Mostly" works for me.

NO CHEAP TRICK??? And yet Donna Summer, who often sounded like she was shoving a banana up her...., makes it

The Small Faces. Enough said.

Cheap Trick for sure

How about:

ELO
Johnny Rivers
Steppenwolf

2011 Rock Hall Nominees: Let the Debate Begin

The annual head scratching that follows the R
ock and Roll Hall of Fame's announcement of nominees has begun. As usual, their net has been cast far beyond rock, with the number of artists from other genres far outweighing the rockers.

First, the shortest list (actual rockers nominated): J Geils Band, Alice Cooper (both long overdue) and Bon Jovi (a decent choice, but there are many artists who have been eligible longer who would have been better choices.)

Artists with a toe just far enough across the line into rock to not be totally inappropriate: Donovan, Dr. John, Darlene Love, Laura Nyro, Joe Tex, Tom Waits.

And those whose nominations spark the usual wonder about why the organization contains the word rock: Beastie Boys, Chic, Neil Diamond, LL Cool J, Donna Summer, Chuck Willis.

Standard disclaimer: all of the artists are exceptionally talented, but only three are rock artists. [Scratch. Scratch. Shrug?]

From these 15, Rock Hall voters will select those who will be inducted into the HOF. Inductees will be announced in December, inducted in March.

Let the debate begin!

My first thought on reading the list was of course Donovan belongs there.

When I was a boy, the term Rock and Roll was being used to cover pretty much anything young people were listening to. It's a big tent.

Well put, Bill. I can add that just about anything goes under that big tent. Lots of it wasn't even considered "music" by my parents. Now I'm a parent and I call lots of it "crap"...
Look what Rock and Roll has been through, and who took it to the next level, or fad. There's the screaming, the body motions, the shock rock, the controversial subject matter, the going- over- the- line which invents Country Rock, the political statements made thru music, not to mention the fashion of clothing and hair, now even skin.
Anyone at the forefront of these changes and inventions should be in the Hall of Fame, like it or not.

Tom, you should just look through the list of songs written by Neil Diamond, whether also recorded by him or not, to see what his influence has been to the business of Rock and Roll music. I think you'd be surprised!

I am all for Neil Diamond getting into the RNR HOF. Some people are saying he has turned into pop singer. What about Rod Stewart (one of my favorites) who was inducted in 1994? Maggie Mae one of the best songs ever. He has turned into a crooner although a very good one.
Taylor Swift is an interesting case. Started out country and now is pop and will probably be a singer of love songs down the line. A songwriter who sings and has a huge following and has good influence over a lot of the young females of today.
It is my feeling that anyone who has anything to do with any kind of music should be eligible. As I have said before RNR is a state of mind. Music that drives a person, soothes a person. The soundtrack of our lives.

Chic, instead of Rush.

Bon Jovi, instead of Deep Purple.

Neil Diamond, instead of Ted Nugent.

Like, what is the point of this institution?

I could see Donovan....but certainly not before T. Rex, Donovan's contemporary.

What rocks more...."Sunshine Superman" or "Bang a Gong"?

What's wrong with both. I went to a Donavon concert in CA in the late 60's. A memorable event. The next night to CCR. Same crowd. Everyone dancing to the music and enjoying herb.

Rock and Roll can both Bang a Gong and be Mellow Yellow. As it happens, a college roommate of mine had a hits tape with both of them on it which we played frequently, and I would be happy to see them enter the Hall of Fame together.

Neil Diamond gets my vote.

KISS should be in the RNR Hall of Fame

Kiss should be in the Mary Kay hall of fame. Rock n roll? Not so much. Any 8th grade kid could write better lyrics. Some of their early stuff was ok to listen to, but it became all about the make-up and show, with very little emphasis put on the actual music. Just my opinion, and some of you are gonna skewer me for that comment, but I stand by it. The old standard "You can put lipstick on a pig, but it's still a pig" comes to mind.

If i could vote, definately Beastie Boys.They do say You gotta fight for your right

to PAAAAARRRRTY!!

Gunnar: Absolutely. Rush (which had one of the best drummers ever), Deep Purple (just for "Smoke on the Water", don't need to go past that) and Ted Nugent (for a variety of reasons). I have no idea what the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame stands for otherwise.

The votes are in and next year's Rock and Roll Hall of Fame class will include Neil Diamond, Alice Cooper, Tom Waits, Darlene Love and Dr. John. Leon Russell will be receive The Award For Musical Excellence (formerly the sideman category) and industry legends Jac Holzman and Art Rupe will both receive the Ahmet Ertegun Award. The ceremony will be held March 14 at New York's Waldorf Astoria Hotel and it will be broadcast live on Fuse.

Wait, the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame is in Cleveland. Why is the party in New York? And yes, I've been to Cleveland and LOVED the Mistake on the Lake!

The hall of fame is mis-named. They should have called it the POPULAR MUSIC hall of fame. Then they could include everyone.

There's a huge contingent that thinks the Carpenters should be in the hall. But they're no more rock & roll than Johnny Cash is.

I do see why Chic was nominated. On the surface they seem not to qualify since they were a dance band, but: They were a real band, not a studio creation; they used real drums, not machines unlike most dance bands; and their primary instruments (besides vocals) were drums, guitar and bass, just like a standard rock band. Their members were also outstanding musicians and/or producers outside of the band. That group had a huge impact on music that most people don't know about.

Also I really agree that Cheap Trick deserves a nom. They have a great sound and they're still gettin' it done today with the original four guys.* How many bands can say that? (Check out their album "Rockford," it's excellent!)

(* Yes, I realize Tom Petersson left for a while.)

I think Yoko Ono should be inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, for this performance alone:

I don't know about this. I prefer the Lyle Strobel, Marvin Sherwood, Lloyd McKenzie version.

The Beastie Boys count. They had guitars, even if they didn't technically play them. Like them or not, they were pretty unique. I really can't think of a band that did what they did before or since.

Cher is not in the RNR HOF. I just read that she has had number one songs in 6 decades. Starting with "I got you Babe"in 1965 with Sonny and recently with "You Haven't Seen The Last Of Me" from the movie "Burlesque".