Letter to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame
Dear Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
Hi, Greg O'Neill here. Can you believe it's been five years since I wrote my first letter to you by way of Livejournal? And in that time, look what great groups you've inducted! From the Greatest Hits family, or from my album collection, you've brought in ABBA, Genesis, the Hollies, the Crickets, Red Hot Chili Peppers, the Miracles, Heart, Randy Newman, Hall and Oates, Peter Gabriel, Linda Ronstadt, the E Street Band and Nirvana have all been officially inducted.
Furthermore, you've brought in Guns 'N' Roses (thanks for disregarding the strange behavior of Axel Rose), the Beastie Boys, Neil Diamond, Darlene Love, Donna Summer, Cat Stevens, Kiss, Alice Cooper, and Rush.
ABBA and Genesis actually pushed me over the ledge and made me visit your museum in 2011.
Here are some recommendations I have for 2015.
Lenny Kravitz- It's been a quarter century since Lenny Kravitz burst onto the scene. I got his album Mama Said for Christmas of 2012. The springboard for buying that was to add "It Ain't Over 'Til It's Over" to Greatest Hits at long last. But it also introduced me to "Always on the Run," "Fields of Joy," and "Stand by My Woman." In addition to that, he has "Fly," his remake of "American Woman," (I might add I liked his version better than the Guess Who), "I Belong to You," (correct title?) and "Again." Furthermore, there's his film work. I knew it'd be tough watching Cinna get beaten to a pulp in Catching Fire. But the way that works seems to be the more violent the death, the better the person is. The peacekeepers' wailing on poor Lenny Kravitz, the closest thing Katniss Everdeen had to a paternal figure in the Capitol, made me feel like adding Lenny Kravitz to this list. He has crossed categories from music to cinema ably.
Tears for Fears- They had the song "Everybody Wants to Rule the World," so well used in the 2005 Disney movie Sky High. (I had thought that song was by Crowded House, but it's not.) In addition, we have "Break It Down Again." Tears for Fears brings back memories of very young childhood. They had terrific voices, and made use of the new wave instruments, recording studio resources and sound to construct some truly personal work at a time that is often scoffed at by orthodox rock and roll enthusiasts. It's true that the Rock Hall is lax to induct 1980's artists. They can get grandfathered in if they had hits in the 1970's, (Billy Joel, Elton John, Bruce Springsteen, Fleetwood Mac), or if they were more purist in their approach (well, Michael Jackson, Prince, Madonna, REM, and the Police have made the cut.) I do look forward to the new wave or even glam rock groups of the 1980's slowly but surely getting entry.
.38 Special- I have been a fan of .38 Special since Ian Mason introduced me to Hold On Loosely in 2005. I immediately took a liking to them and bought the 20th Century Master's CD from a Border's in Normal, Illinois in 2006. "Caught up in You," "Rocking into the Night," "Wild-Eyed Southern Boys" and "Back Where You Belong" immediately entered my lexicon. "Back Where You Belong" made a greatest hits artist out of .38 Special, placed on Volume 24. I saw .38 Special in concert at the MetroCentre in Rockford in 2010. They were touring with Styx and REO Speedwagon. But .38 Special was actually the draw. They had a great time and really got the audience worked up. More so even than the headlining bands that followed.
Belinda Carlyle or The Bangles. Copy and paste everything I said by Tears for Fears. I know my chances here are grim. But I loved "Mad About You," "Heaven is a Place on Earth" and that song that was on all of those best of the 1980's compilation CDs that came out in the 1990's. (What was it? "I get weak every time that we meet" or something like that?) Belinda Carlyle instantly brings me back to the 1980's every time I listen to her. She is a time capsule. And everything about the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame espouses time capsule. It is a giant time capsule where the past very literally comes back and brings you into it. I felt this seeing Stevie Nicks' outfits from her tours with Fleetwood Mac. Or Michael Jackson's suit from the Free Willy video. It's kind of like the movie Field of Dreams. All these relics of rock have come to your museum, and going there is like reexperiencing youth. Or moreover, being transported to another time. It's mesmerizing.
The Smiths. Hang on, The Smiths really aren't in the Rock Hall yet? I need to check your website, because that's hard to believe. I bought the (500) Days of Summer Soundtrack, and "A Light that Never Goes Out" became my song for the summer of 2012. (Along with "The Finer Things" by Steve Winwood, "Just a Game" by Birdy and "Tell Her About it" by Billy Joel. Also the song with the lyrics "please please please let me let me get what I want... God knows it would be the first time." Their work was brilliant and no matter what the style or genre, the messages were timeless. Morrissey and The Smiths get referenced in countless Rolling Stone special books about the best albums and records. They fit in your hall. Sad British pop songs that Joseph Gordon-Levitt listened to as he fell in love with Zooey Deschanel.
Honorable mentions:
Steve Winwood (solo artist)
Boston
Three Dog Night
Chicago
Kenny Loggins
Greg Allmann (solo artist)
The Doobie Brothers
Richard Marx
Bryan Adams
Peabo Bryson
Luther Vandross
The Pointer Sisters
Toto
Michael McDonald (solo artist)
The Spinners
Yes
Chic
Roxy Music
Cyndi Lauper
Whitney Houston
Phil Collins (solo artist)
Mike + the Mechanics
Mister Mister
Howard Jones
Bruce Hornsby and the Range
I am absolutely serious about all of these suggestions.
Thank you,
Greg O'Neill
Hi, Greg O'Neill here. Can you believe it's been five years since I wrote my first letter to you by way of Livejournal? And in that time, look what great groups you've inducted! From the Greatest Hits family, or from my album collection, you've brought in ABBA, Genesis, the Hollies, the Crickets, Red Hot Chili Peppers, the Miracles, Heart, Randy Newman, Hall and Oates, Peter Gabriel, Linda Ronstadt, the E Street Band and Nirvana have all been officially inducted.
Furthermore, you've brought in Guns 'N' Roses (thanks for disregarding the strange behavior of Axel Rose), the Beastie Boys, Neil Diamond, Darlene Love, Donna Summer, Cat Stevens, Kiss, Alice Cooper, and Rush.
ABBA and Genesis actually pushed me over the ledge and made me visit your museum in 2011.
Here are some recommendations I have for 2015.
Lenny Kravitz- It's been a quarter century since Lenny Kravitz burst onto the scene. I got his album Mama Said for Christmas of 2012. The springboard for buying that was to add "It Ain't Over 'Til It's Over" to Greatest Hits at long last. But it also introduced me to "Always on the Run," "Fields of Joy," and "Stand by My Woman." In addition to that, he has "Fly," his remake of "American Woman," (I might add I liked his version better than the Guess Who), "I Belong to You," (correct title?) and "Again." Furthermore, there's his film work. I knew it'd be tough watching Cinna get beaten to a pulp in Catching Fire. But the way that works seems to be the more violent the death, the better the person is. The peacekeepers' wailing on poor Lenny Kravitz, the closest thing Katniss Everdeen had to a paternal figure in the Capitol, made me feel like adding Lenny Kravitz to this list. He has crossed categories from music to cinema ably.
Tears for Fears- They had the song "Everybody Wants to Rule the World," so well used in the 2005 Disney movie Sky High. (I had thought that song was by Crowded House, but it's not.) In addition, we have "Break It Down Again." Tears for Fears brings back memories of very young childhood. They had terrific voices, and made use of the new wave instruments, recording studio resources and sound to construct some truly personal work at a time that is often scoffed at by orthodox rock and roll enthusiasts. It's true that the Rock Hall is lax to induct 1980's artists. They can get grandfathered in if they had hits in the 1970's, (Billy Joel, Elton John, Bruce Springsteen, Fleetwood Mac), or if they were more purist in their approach (well, Michael Jackson, Prince, Madonna, REM, and the Police have made the cut.) I do look forward to the new wave or even glam rock groups of the 1980's slowly but surely getting entry.
.38 Special- I have been a fan of .38 Special since Ian Mason introduced me to Hold On Loosely in 2005. I immediately took a liking to them and bought the 20th Century Master's CD from a Border's in Normal, Illinois in 2006. "Caught up in You," "Rocking into the Night," "Wild-Eyed Southern Boys" and "Back Where You Belong" immediately entered my lexicon. "Back Where You Belong" made a greatest hits artist out of .38 Special, placed on Volume 24. I saw .38 Special in concert at the MetroCentre in Rockford in 2010. They were touring with Styx and REO Speedwagon. But .38 Special was actually the draw. They had a great time and really got the audience worked up. More so even than the headlining bands that followed.
Belinda Carlyle or The Bangles. Copy and paste everything I said by Tears for Fears. I know my chances here are grim. But I loved "Mad About You," "Heaven is a Place on Earth" and that song that was on all of those best of the 1980's compilation CDs that came out in the 1990's. (What was it? "I get weak every time that we meet" or something like that?) Belinda Carlyle instantly brings me back to the 1980's every time I listen to her. She is a time capsule. And everything about the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame espouses time capsule. It is a giant time capsule where the past very literally comes back and brings you into it. I felt this seeing Stevie Nicks' outfits from her tours with Fleetwood Mac. Or Michael Jackson's suit from the Free Willy video. It's kind of like the movie Field of Dreams. All these relics of rock have come to your museum, and going there is like reexperiencing youth. Or moreover, being transported to another time. It's mesmerizing.
The Smiths. Hang on, The Smiths really aren't in the Rock Hall yet? I need to check your website, because that's hard to believe. I bought the (500) Days of Summer Soundtrack, and "A Light that Never Goes Out" became my song for the summer of 2012. (Along with "The Finer Things" by Steve Winwood, "Just a Game" by Birdy and "Tell Her About it" by Billy Joel. Also the song with the lyrics "please please please let me let me get what I want... God knows it would be the first time." Their work was brilliant and no matter what the style or genre, the messages were timeless. Morrissey and The Smiths get referenced in countless Rolling Stone special books about the best albums and records. They fit in your hall. Sad British pop songs that Joseph Gordon-Levitt listened to as he fell in love with Zooey Deschanel.
Honorable mentions:
Steve Winwood (solo artist)
Boston
Three Dog Night
Chicago
Kenny Loggins
Greg Allmann (solo artist)
The Doobie Brothers
Richard Marx
Bryan Adams
Peabo Bryson
Luther Vandross
The Pointer Sisters
Toto
Michael McDonald (solo artist)
The Spinners
Yes
Chic
Roxy Music
Cyndi Lauper
Whitney Houston
Phil Collins (solo artist)
Mike + the Mechanics
Mister Mister
Howard Jones
Bruce Hornsby and the Range
I am absolutely serious about all of these suggestions.
Thank you,
Greg O'Neill