In many ways, Questlove is the ideal Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Nominating Committee member. He has a rich, personal appreciation of a broad spectrum of musical genres, knows musical history, has worked with a hundreds of the best artists of all time, and is in tune with (and been a part of) the last quarter century of music. Last November, Questlove was asked by Gold Derby's Zach Laws about his experience on the Nominating Committee and he shared some of his thoughts and frustrations about the "interesting and amazing" process he calls, "the musical recreation of Twelve Angry Men." Some highlights:

• Questlove advocated for Bill Withers in 2015 and got him nominated (and ultimately inducted). He thinks part of the reason Withers was overlooked for so long is because his name is at the end of the alphabet and people don’t have the patience to work through to the end of the list.
• Questlove mentioned that there have been occasions where he'll say a name, and people in the room won't know that they aren't already in the Hall of Fame. “A lot of times I’ll sit on the board and I’ll say a name, and they’ll be like ‘Todd Rundgren's not in the Hall of Fame?’”
• Questlove shared the moment at the 2013 meeting when KISS was finally nominated, thanks to a passionate speech from Tom Morello: "The star of that board room is Tom Morello. I'm grateful and so fortunate to have been within two feet of him when he gave that KISS speech. It was so damn inspirational, even Jann Wenner was going to bust out into Pomp and Circumstance.”
• Questlove compares the process to Washington political lobbying. He talks about making deals with Stevie Van Zandt before the meeting to help each other get artists on the ballot (trading a J. Geils Band vote for a Janet Jackson vote, for example).
• Questlove believes there should be more women in the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame.
• Sometimes it’s the biggest names that have the hardest time getting attention. Questlove talks about discussions at last year’s meeting and how Radiohead almost got forgotten. “Radiohead was so obvious that it was almost like, I'm sure he'll mention it, or she'll mention it. Radiohead was the last name mentioned after a 3-hour process.”
• Questlove, like Chubby Checker, believes “people should get their roses while they're living.”
• ”It's such a narrow process to get through those doors... I wish there was a process that would allow at least 7 to 9 members per year. Because there are a lot of names on there that will get passed up and passed up and passed up. But I love the politics of it all. That's the fun part.”

1. Introduction from Rock Hall Museum President & CEO Greg Harris
2. Tom Petty Tribute (The Killers perform “American Girl”)
3. Bon Jovi (Inducted by Howard Stern; “You Give Love a Bad Name”, “It’s My Life”, “When We Were Us”, “Livin’ on a Prayer”)
4. Dire Straits (No inductor; No performance)
5. Sister Rosetta Tharpe (Inducted by Brittany Howard; “That’s All” - Brittany Howard with The Roots, Paul Shaffer and Felicia Collins; “Strange Things Happening Every Day” - Felicia Collins with The Roots and Paul Shaffer)
6. The Cars (Inducted by Brandon Flowers; “My Best Friend’s Girl”, “You Might Think”, “Moving in Stereo”, “Just What I Needed”)
7. In Memoriam Video
8. Ann Wilson and Jerry Cantrell’s Chris Cornell Tribute (“Black Hole Sun”)
9. Stevie Van Zandt introduces the new Singles category and first six inductees
10. Nina Simone (Inducted by Mary J. Blige; “I Wish I Knew How It Would Feel to Be Free”, “I Put a Spell on You” - Andra Day with The Roots; “Ne me quitte pas”, “Black Is the Color of My True Love’s Hair”, “Ain't Got No, I Got Life”, “Feeling Good” - Lauryn Hill)
11. The Moody Blues (Inducted by Ann Wilson; “I’m Just a Singer (In a Rock and Roll Band)”, “Your Wildest Dreams”, “Late Lament”, “Nights in White Satin”, “Ride My See-Saw”)
12. No All-Star Jam

Just down the road stands the world’s leading institution celebrating the history of rock and roll. We stand here to honor the careers of musicians whose incredible work helped shape that story. But we all know the history of music can be changed by just one song, one record. In three minutes we suddenly enter a new direction, a movement, or a style. Experiencing that three minute song results in a personal revelation, an epiphany that significantly changes our lives. This year we are introducing a new category to the Rock Hall. We’re calling it the “Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Singles” as a recognition of the excellence of singles that changed rock & roll -- kind of a Rock Hall jukebox. The records are by artists not in the Rock Hall. Which is not to say these artists will never be in the Rock Hall, but just that they are not in the Rock Hall at this moment.

• Jackie Brenston and his Delta Cats - "Rocket 88" (1951)
• Link Wray & His Ray Men - "Rumble" (1958)
• Chubby Checker - "The Twist" (1960)
• The Kingsmen - "Louie Louie" (1963)
• Procol Harum - "A Whiter Shade of Pale" (1967)
• Steppenwolf - "Born to Be Wild" (1968)

At first blush, this appears to be a new backdoor into the Rock Hall for artists who can’t get over the hump with the voters. The Rock Hall used similar methods to bypass their own Voting Committee to induct Sister Rosetta Tharpe, the “5” Royales, Freddie King, and Wanda Jackson as Early Influences, after they had each been on the ballot as Performers. Unlike Early Influence inductees, the newly honored Singles artists are still not Hall of Famers, so they could theoretically still be nominated, but it sure feels like the Rock Hall is trying to clear out some names from their growing backlog of candidates. We would be shocked to see any of these artists on the ballot next year.

At this point, there are still many more questions than answers, since the Rock Hall has yet to acknowledge this award on its website or in a press release. When they do provide some information, perhaps they can answer these questions:

1. Why was this announced as a surprise at the ceremony? Wouldn’t announcing it in advance provide more exposure for these songs and artists?
2. Were the honored artists and their families invited to the Induction Ceremony? Chubby Checker has been extremely vocal about his absence from the Hall of Fame, so it’s odd he wasn’t at the ceremony.
3. Will songs be honored annually, or is this a one-time award?
4. Will the artists honored in this category become members of the Voting Committee like other inductees?
5. Who is on the committee that picked the first songs?
6. How will these songs be recognized at the Museum? Will they be listed next to the other 2018 inductees on the signature wall?
7. What are the eligibility rules for this category? Does a song have to be older than 25 years?

All of the honored songs are part of the Rock Hall’s 2004 list of the “500 Songs that Shaped Rock and Roll,” so it seems likely that future inducted singles will come from this list. There are over 220 songs left on that list from non-Hall of Famers, so it will take decades for them to honor them all if they continue with the category.

If we had to guess, Steven Van Zandt created this category out of his frustration that many seminal artists have little chance of ever being inducted, and he wanted to do something, anything, to honor them before it’s too late. While the intentions may be pure, the execution was ham-fisted at best. Not inviting the artists and their families to the ceremony, or even notifying them of the honor in advance, just seems sloppy and inconsiderate. The Rock Hall itself has created this situation by limiting the number of inductees to five or six per year while simultaneously lowering the bar by inducting marginal candidates. That generates even more artists who can genuinely be considered snubs who will never be inducted at the current pace.

There are lots of ways to address these problems, but the Rock Hall never seems willing to experiment with their induction system beyond force inducting artists into categories in which they don’t belong.

The low point of the 2018 Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony was undoubtedly the Dire Straits segment. It was the culmination of what must have been a messy behind-the-scenes drama.

Soon after the inductees were announced, it became clear that Mark Knopfler was not particularly interested in the honor. He didn’t provide the usual interviews to Rolling Stone or the Plain Dealer, and there was virtual radio silence from the band’s camp in the months to follow. In late March, keyboardist Guy Fletcher responded to a comment on his website saying there would be no performance at the Induction Ceremony and there would only be a video presentation. A week later, word started to trickle out that David Knopfler had decided not to come to Cleveland after being told the Rock Hall would “only pay certain expenses after telling him it was all covered,” and that Mark Knopfler wasn’t coming either. The iciness continued when the Rock Hall announced the list of presenters for the ceremony and there was barely a mention of Dire Straits.

At the induction ceremony, the Dire Straits induction segment started off in typical fashion with well-produced video showing old footage of the band during their heyday, but then instead of introducing the presenter, the announcer simply introduced the band members who showed up: John Illsley, Guy Fletcher and Alan Clarke. Illsley then awkwardly inducted the band himself:

In the absence of someone here to induct Dire Straits into the 2018 Hall of Fame. As a founding member, I felt perhaps I might be the best qualified one to do this. [puzzled applause] It’s a bit weird, but there we are, life’s strange...

So, I know it’s a bit odd, but it is my honor to welcome Dire Straits into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame.

According to an interview, he mentioned it to the person that runs the Hall to be the one doing it as a joke, however, the person responded by asking if he wanted to and that's why he actually did it.

— Nathan Miller (@NathanMiller88) April 15, 2018

In the 32 Induction Ceremonies leading up to this, lots of artists have been no-shows, but every single inductee has had a presenter. For the Rock Hall to spitefully take that away from one of their own honorees is shameful. Can artists be difficult? Of course. But three Dire Straits members did show up and should have been given the respect they deserved. It’s not just an insult to the band, but also to the fans as well.

The Dire Straits portion of the 2018 inductee exhibit is also an example of the Rock Hall doing the bare minimum. Granted, they don’t have control over whether or not the artists provide them instruments or clothes, but the exhibit looked pretty sad -- a fan’s tour jacket, some albums (still in plastic) and an accordion.

Today’s exhibit guide at the @rockhall is dripping with irony since Knopfler is just blowing off the event tonight. Also the Dire Straits portion of the exhibit is noticeably thin. pic.twitter.com/5acqcKoqS6

— Jonathan Hopwood (@jonathanhopwood) April 14, 2018

Update: Billboard reports some additional information about the Dire Straits situation:

Dire Straits John Illsley decided to handle the band’s induction speech himself on Saturday morning, when it became apparent the Rock Hall hasn’t found anybody to do it that night (Keith Urban and Neil Young were reportedly approached but declined). “We didn’t have anybody to induct us for all sorts of reasons.,” Illsley said in the press room, “so I said, ‘Would it be crazy if I did it?’ And (producer Alex Colleti) said, ‘What a great idea.’ I sort of wrote it about 15 minutes before we came down, so that why I had to read it out, because I couldn’t remember what I had written down.”

There’s also this report that the Rock Hall turned down Robbie Robertson’s offer to induct them after the other choices had fallen through:

There was a journalist on @siriusxmvolume Friday who said Keith Urban was going to cancel a show to do the induction but once he found out Mark Knopfler wasn't coming, he backed out. Also said Robbie Robertson was willing but the @rockhall said were just doing a video.

— Greg P. (@GregP821) April 17, 2018

Update 2: A rep for Keith Urban denies the story.

Performers:

• Bon Jovi
  
• The Cars
  
• Dire Straits
  
• The Moody Blues
  
• Nina Simone
  

Early Influence:

• Sister Rosetta Tharpe
  

Inductees will be honored at the Induction Ceremony in Cleveland on April 14, 2018. An edited broadcast of the induction ceremony will again air on HBO.

And they aren’t alone. Since 2013, 58% of inductees have finished in the top five of the fan vote. The Rock Hall has also leaned heavily on artists who are nominated for the first time, with 62% of inductees getting in immediately (including five out of six last year).

So, there is some correlation between the fan vote winners and the inductees, as well as those who are fresh names on the ballot. The official fan poll winners were: Bon Jovi (2nd nomination), The Moody Blues (1st nomination), Dire Straits (1st nomination), The Cars (3rd nomination) and Judas Priest (1st nomination).

Future Rock Legends predicts the inductees of the Rock Hall class of 2018 will be:

• Bon Jovi: Jann Wenner’s dislike of the band has probably been one of the main reasons they haven’t gotten in yet, but his influence seems to be waning, and the momentum is strong this year. Don’t be surprised if a big summer tour follows their induction with Richie Sambora back in the fold.
• The Moody Blues: If it weren’t for Bon Jovi, The Moody Blues would have been the big story this year. Their fans have been nagging the Rock Hall for years about the snub. Voters should vote them in quickly now that they have the chance.
• Radiohead: Yes, their disinterest could hurt their chances of induction this year, but Level 3 or 4 Hall of Famers don’t come around very often. The Rock Hall will look hopelessly foolish and out of touch to an entire generation if they don’t get in (as if they don’t already).
• Dire Straits: Like Jeff Lynne and E.L.O. last year, voters will jump at the chance to induct Mark Knopfler.
• Judas Priest: The Rock Hall undeniably needs more metal, and Judas Priest are more than happy to be inducted. Unlike Radiohead, they even left a gap in their tour schedule for the induction ceremony.
• Nina Simone: Women getting inducted is rare, but a black woman hasn’t been inducted since Donna Summer in 2013.

Since this is a Cleveland Induction Ceremony, the Early Influence category should be resurrected. We’ll predict they’ll again pull from the performer ballot and induct both Link Wray and Sister Rosetta Tharpe.

Inductees will be officially announced on Wednesday, December 13th.

The Rock Hall Induction Ceremony will take place on Saturday, April 14 at Public Hall in Cleveland.

For eleven years we have been conducting our own unofficial poll here which, unlike the official Rock Hall poll, requires voters to select five artists on their ballot. The results (after 1084 ballots):

1. The Moody Blues 53%
2. The Cars 51%
3. Radiohead 44%
4. Dire Straits 39%
5. Bon Jovi 38%
6. Nina Simone 34%
7. Eurythmics 31%
8. Judas Priest 31%
9. Depeche Mode 29%
10. The Zombies 26%
11. Kate Bush 25%
12. Rage Against the Machine 20%
13. MC5 15%
14. Sister Rosetta Tharpe 15%
15. Link Wray 14%
16. LL Cool J 14%
17. The J. Geils Band 13%
18. The Meters 6%
19. Rufus featuring Chaka Khan 5%

Despite the perceived acrimony, the Hall of Fame has actually had a pretty good run of artist participation in the induction ceremonies lately. You have to go back to 2006 when the Sex Pistols wrote the “piss stain” letter and rejected the honor that there was this level of total indifference from an inductee. Since then, there have been a few artists who have stayed home, like Andrew Loog Oldham (2014), Axl Rose (2012), and most of Van Halen (2007), but there is usually at least a portion of the band there to collect the trophies and play some songs, even if they’re doing it more for the fans than the Hall of Fame itself.

Radiohead don’t seem to care about any of it. Earlier this year, Andy Greene from Rolling Stone got these great quotes from the band about the Rock Hall:

Phil Selway: "It's a bit like having the free bus pass in the UK when you reach a certain age. Blimey. Have we got to that point? God knows [if we'll go]. We'd have to sit down and talk about it, but it's probably not at the top of my list of things to do. But who knows? I don't know.”

Jonny Greenwood: "I don't care. Maybe it's a cultural thing that I really don't understand. I mean, from the outside it looks like ... it's quite a self-regarding profession anyway. And anything that heightens that just makes me feel even more uncomfortable.”

Ed O'Brien: "I don't want to be rude about the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame because for a lot of people it means something, but culturally I don't understand it. I think it might be a quintessential American thing. Brits are not very good at slapping ourselves on the back. It seems very show-biz and I'm not very show-biz. We haven't even been asked. I don't want to be rude. But if you ask me what I'd rather be doing that night, I'd rather be sitting at home in front of the fire or going to a gig. I realized years ago that I didn't like award ceremonies. You walk in there and you feel self-conscious. It's just really uncomfortable. Wherever there is media there seem to be a real level of bullshit. It just feels non-authentic to us.”

Thom Yorke: "It wouldn't be the first place ... don't ask me things like that. I always put my foot in my mouth.”

Colin Greenwood: "I'd be grateful if we got in. Look at the other people that have been inducted. I don't know if everyone else will go though. It might be me just doing bass versions of everything like, 'Come on, you know this one!' I'd have to play the bass part to 'Creep' five times.”

So what options does the Rock Hall have, assuming Radiohead gets the necessary votes for induction?

1. The remote trophy presentation: You’ve probably seen something similar on other award shows, where the artist is shown receiving their trophy via satellite and maybe does a song from the concert. With Radiohead performing in Argentina the night of the ceremony (two hours ahead of Cleveland), this is technically feasible, but it seems like a long shot, especially after the band rep’s terse statement of, “They’re not attending.”
2. Make the best of it: Treat Radiohead’s induction similar to the way they have with others who wouldn’t perform (Madonna, Black Sabbath) and put together a tribute performance (“Creep”, of course) that would at least provide some content for HBO to work with.
3. The bare minimum: The Rock Hall would show the inductee video, have someone make a speech, then accept the award on Radiohead’s behalf and just skip the tribute performance.
4. The deferral: If the Rock Hall believes this year’s absence was just an unfortunate conflict and have been assured that Radiohead will have a change of heart and agree to participate in the future, they could basically defer their induction a year or two.
5. The blackball: The Hall of Fame could simply ignore them and move on with other artists who aren’t so resistant to the idea of being inducted.

So what will the Rock Hall do when they inductees are announced next week? Our guess is they will go ahead and induct them with the bare minimum option. The Rock Hall would likely prefer to get their induction out of the way now rather than go through this humiliation again.

In an attempt to get ahead of these controversies, the Rock Hall has started releasing which members are included at the time the nominees are announced, in the hopes to get the furor out of the way by the time the inductees are announced in December. So, of the 2018 Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Nominees, which members of the nominated bands made the cut? Let’s take a look:

Bon Jovi

Nominees: David Bryan, Jon Bon Jovi, Richie Sambora, Alec John Such, and Tico Torres

Who did the Rock Hall miss? Hugh McDonald has been Bon Jovi’s (unofficial?) bass player for the last 20+ years (maybe since the beginning?) and might be this year’s most egregious snub. [Update 12-19-2017: Hugh McDonald has been added to the list of inductees.] Also, Phil X has filled in recently for Richie Sambora on guitar.

The Cars

Nominees: Elliot Easton, Greg Hawkes, David Robinson, Ric Ocasek, and Benjamin Orr

Who did the Rock Hall miss? No one.

Depeche Mode

Nominees: Vince Clarke, Andy Fletcher, Dave Gahan, Martin Gore, and Alan Wilder

Who did the Rock Hall miss? Touring members Christian Eigner and Peter Gordeno.

Dire Straits

Nominees: Alan Clark, Guy Fletcher, John Illsley, David Knopfler, Mark Knopfler, and Pick Withers

Who did the Rock Hall miss? Guitarists Hal Lindes, Jack Sonni, and drummer Terry Williams would seem to have a case for inclusion.

Eurythmics

Nominees: Annie Lennox and Dave Stewart

Who did the Rock Hall miss? No one.

The J. Geils Band

Nominees: Stephen Jo Bladd, Magic Dick, J. Geils, Seth Justman, Danny Klein, and Peter Wolf

Who did the Rock Hall miss? No one.

Judas Priest

Nominees: Les Binks, K. K. Downing, Rob Halford, Ian Hill, Dave Holland, Glenn Tipton, and Scott Travis

Who did the Rock Hall miss? Halford, Downing, Tipton, and Hill formed the core band while they had a revolving door of drummers. Drummers Binks, Holland and Travis were included, while early drummers John Hinch, Alan Moore and Simon Phillips were left out. Short term subs, vocalist Tim Owens and guitarist Richie Faulkner, were not included.

MC5

Nominees: Michael Davis, Wayne Kramer, Fred “Sonic” Smith, Dennis Thompson, and Rob Tyner

Who did the Rock Hall miss? Early contributors Leo LeDuc, Billy Vargo, Bob Gaspar and Patrick Burrows were left out.

The Meters

Nominees: Joseph Modeliste, Art Neville, Cyril Neville, Leo Nocentelli, and George Porter Jr.

Who did the Rock Hall miss? Pretty much anyone who joined the group after 1976: Willie West, Russell Batiste, David Batiste, Sr., Brian Stoltz and Ian Neville.

The Moody Blues

Nominees: Graeme Edge, Justin Hayward, John Lodge, Mike Pinder, and Ray Thomas

Who did the Rock Hall miss? Early members Denny Laine [Update 12-16-2017: Denny Laine has been added to the list of inductees.] , Clint Warwick, and Rodney Clark. Also missing is 80’s keyboardist Patrick Moraz.

Radiohead

Nominees: Colin Greenwood, Jonny Greenwood, Ed O'Brien, Philip Selway, and Thom Yorke

Who did the Rock Hall miss? Producer Nigel Godrich has been an indispensable 6th member and deserves some kind of recognition, even though he’s not officially in the band.

Rage Against the Machine

Nominees: Tim Commerford, Tom Morello, Zack de la Rocha, and Brad Wilk

Who did the Rock Hall miss? No one.

Rufus featuring Chaka Khan

Nominees: Dennis Belfield, Al Ciner, Andre Fisher, Chaka Khan, Tony Maiden, Kevin Murphy, Ron Stockert, Bobby Watson, Willie Weeks, and David Wolinski

Who did the Rock Hall miss? Even with 10 nominated members (so much for the rumored cap?), there are others who didn’t get named: Paulette McWilliams, James Stella, Chuck Colbert, Jr., Lee Graziano, Dennis Belfield, Nate Morgan, Richard “Moon” Calhoun and John Robinson.

The Zombies

Nominees: Rod Argent, Paul Atkinson, Colin Blunstone, Hugh Grundy, and Chris White

Who did the Rock Hall miss? They nominated the classic lineup but left off more recent band members Keith Airey, Tom Toomey, Jim Rodford, Steve Rodford and Sebastian Santa Maria.

So, did the Rock Hall get it right this year?

• Bon Jovi
  
• Kate Bush
  
• The Cars
  
• Depeche Mode
  
• Dire Straits
  
• Eurythmics
  
• J. Geils Band
  
• Judas Priest
  
• LL Cool J
  
• MC5
  
• The Meters
  
• The Moody Blues
  
• Radiohead
  
• Rage Against the Machine
  
• Rufus featuring Chaka Khan
  
• Nina Simone
  
• Sister Rosetta Tharpe
  
• Link Wray
  
• The Zombies
  

Please vote in our fan poll!

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