Letter to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame
Dear Rock and Roll Hall of Fame,
Hi, it's me, Greg O'Neill again.
First of all, it goes without saying that you had an excellent 2018 induction class. The Cars, The Moody Blues, Dire Straits, Bon Jovi, Nina Simone, and Sister Rosetta Tharpe are now Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductees.
I know it's still a couple of months away before you are going to pull out the ballot for the 2019 inductees. So I'm just going to try to put a bug in your ear right now. Here are my suggestions for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame:
1. Paul Davis. I mean the one who released "I Go Crazy" to great acclaim in 1977. He was a great keyboardist, and a yet better singer. I recently heard one of his songs at a Trivia Night centered around music. Dave Arnold, the DJ, chose "'65 Love Affair" as one of the '80's choices. I was embarrassed that I didn't know the title and artist right off of the bat. But Mr. Ginglen, the principal of Lewistown Comunity High School, did. We didn't win the Trivia Bowl, which was a fundraiser for the Lewistown band. But we did come in third. And I had the privilege of getting to buy his 1981 album, "Cool Night," on iTunes a couple nights later. Maybe in months to come, I'll look back and feel like I've been overplaying that album in my iTunes rotation. But for right now, every time I listen to the album, front to back, I discover something new. Cool Night is great for a summer night as such where it's way too warm. I finally got to listen to the lyrics. "You Came to Me." "One More Time for the Lonely." "Nathan Jones." I'll grant you, "Nathan Jones" is a cover of a Supremes song, but it was listening to the Paul Davis version when I got the idea for my play, Nathan Jones. "Oriental Eyes." Official song for the Johnny and Joanie love interest in "Nathan Jones," the play. "'65 Love Affair," the official song for my recent revisiting of theatre with Busybody.
2. Walter Egan-I know "Not Shy" may be the only album for which he is really known. Magnet and Steel prompted me to buy this album on iTunes in the first place. I heard that on the radio on our spring trip to Springfield in 2017.I heard enough of the lyrics that I could finally do an internet search and look up the title and artist for the song. That fast-tracked this song to join Greatest Hits Volume 40. I of course couldn't convert it from iTunes' AAC format to the WMA format, but I could buy it on Amazon Music and download it. So I bought it twice. And it was worth every cent. Because I will not only use "Magnet and Steel," a song which I think speaks for anyone out there who's ever slowly but surely completely given into being in love, but I have "Sweet South Breeze," "Finally Found a Girlfriend," "Blonde in the Blue T-Bird," "Just the Wanting," "I Wannit," and a number of other songs. He collaborated well with Stevie Nicks, who by her own right should be inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a solo artist. Waiting patiently for the news to come down about that as well.
3. Andrew Lloyd Webber. I know that he wrote for stage. I know that he has musicals and rock operas. But he has well incorporated rock. He should be in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. I recently purchased the soundtrack to Jesus Christ Superstar. It's legitimately the sound of an artist, a classic rock artist, who should make it into the rock hall. "The Temple," "Everything's Alright," and "I Don't Know How to Love Him" are all headed to future Greatest Hits volumes. (The 1971 Helen Reddy version of Mary Magdalene's beautiful ballad was already on Greatest Hits Volume 10.) Moreover, he's done Cats, Evita, Phantom of the Opera, Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, School of Rock, and a bunch of other shows that I haven't seen yet, but want to. Each of these musical theatre works showcase his ability to seamlessly integrate rock and roll, blues, and symphonic orchestra. Arguably he's the best composer of the 20th Century. Yes, it took me some time to get used to the dissonance. But it's worth it. Because they exist for his heartfelt, evocative love songs and show-stoppers to work. "Memories," "Don't Cry For Me Argentina," "Music of the Night," "Jacob and Sons," "The Railway Cat," "Simon Zealotes/Poor Jerusalem," "Herrod's Song," "Any Dream Will Do," "One More Angel in Heaven," "Another Suitcase in Another Hall," "A New Argentina," "You're in the Band," they all came from this guy. Put him in the hall. I'll make a trip out to Cleveland to lobby for this.
4. Phil Collins. I'll grant you, Phil Collins isn't an obvious choice for solo act. You did put him in as a member of Genesis in 2010. (This had much to do with my visiting the museum at long last in February of 2011.) But he worked hard in the solo albums in between Genesis. To his credit, he has "In the Air Tonight," "One More Night," "Against All Odds," "Easy Lover" (with the singer from Earth, Wind, and Fire), "I Don't Care Anymore" (title correct?), "Every Day," "Take Me Home," "Seudico," "Both You Know and I Know," etc. Let's not forget this guy was a huge star in his own right by the 1980's. I bought "No Jacket Required" at a Barnes and Noble in 2012, and I bought "Phil Collins Love Songs" at a Border's in Gurnee in 2010. My dad bought me Turn it On Again: The Best of Genesis at Twist and Shout in Denver, Colorado in 2009. I imagine the Genesis classics would be brought to bear on Phil Collins getting in as a solo act, such as "Misunderstanding," "That's All," "Turn it On Again," "Invisible Touch," "Mama," "Land of Confusion," "Hold on My Heart," "Follow You Follow Me," "Abacab," in as much as he alrready got inducted on the strength of the said works. Phil Collins has been in the business for a long time. And he's still going now with new music, even with his hearing loss. He deserves to be inducted twice.
5. The Spencer Davis Group. I had this idea not from my own love of Steve Winwood. Though that could be attributed. I was combing through internet blogs and articles about people's recommendations for future inductees into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Someone recommended the Spencer Davis Group in theirs. I'm one of the biggest Steve Winwood fans there is. And I'll grant you, I don't own any of the Spencer Davis groups' LPs. I have "Gimme Some Lovin'", #2 in the UK, #7 in the U.S. in 1966; and "I'm a Man" on "20th Century Masters: Steve Winwood" (purchased at a Border's in Normal, Illinois, 2009); and on Revolutions: The Best of Steve Winwood (bought for me at Twist & Shout in Denver, Colorado, 2011). But I intend to go to a record store that does have one of their records, and I'm going to discover their other work. "Somebody Help Me" and "Keep on Running." If I need to download the entire catalog of this band, comprised of Spencer Davis, Muff Winwood, and Steve Winwood, by way of iTunes, Amazon Prime, or seek it out by way of Spotify, Pandora, or Apple Music Streaming, I will. I understand the nature of the recording industry is changing. And I'll adapt. I know that The Spencer Davis Group music is hard to find, outside of their biggest hits on Steve Winwood's career-long compilations; but maybe inducting them into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame would help to remedy that.
Ambrosia
10 CC
England Dan and John Ford Coley
Ben Folds
New Kids on the Block
The Raspberries
Blue Swede
Norman Greenbaum
The Doobie Brothers
Stevie Nicks- solo artist
Whitney Houston
Janet Jackson
Peabo Bryson
James Ingram
Dolly Parton (I'll grant you she's country)
Carole King as a performer (she's in as a songwriter with Gerry Goffin)
Paula Abdul
Roxette
The Smiths
Styx
REO Speedwagon
.38 Special
Thank you so very much! Here's a very good article I found on NPR that does well to explain why certain artists have not yet gained entry, and whether or not we have the right to complain.
https://www.npr.org/sections/therecord/2014/10/17/357009772/the-right-way-to-complain-about-the-rock-and-roll-hall-of-fame
Did enjoy my trip to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
Greg O'Neill
Hi, it's me, Greg O'Neill again.
First of all, it goes without saying that you had an excellent 2018 induction class. The Cars, The Moody Blues, Dire Straits, Bon Jovi, Nina Simone, and Sister Rosetta Tharpe are now Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductees.
I know it's still a couple of months away before you are going to pull out the ballot for the 2019 inductees. So I'm just going to try to put a bug in your ear right now. Here are my suggestions for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame:
1. Paul Davis. I mean the one who released "I Go Crazy" to great acclaim in 1977. He was a great keyboardist, and a yet better singer. I recently heard one of his songs at a Trivia Night centered around music. Dave Arnold, the DJ, chose "'65 Love Affair" as one of the '80's choices. I was embarrassed that I didn't know the title and artist right off of the bat. But Mr. Ginglen, the principal of Lewistown Comunity High School, did. We didn't win the Trivia Bowl, which was a fundraiser for the Lewistown band. But we did come in third. And I had the privilege of getting to buy his 1981 album, "Cool Night," on iTunes a couple nights later. Maybe in months to come, I'll look back and feel like I've been overplaying that album in my iTunes rotation. But for right now, every time I listen to the album, front to back, I discover something new. Cool Night is great for a summer night as such where it's way too warm. I finally got to listen to the lyrics. "You Came to Me." "One More Time for the Lonely." "Nathan Jones." I'll grant you, "Nathan Jones" is a cover of a Supremes song, but it was listening to the Paul Davis version when I got the idea for my play, Nathan Jones. "Oriental Eyes." Official song for the Johnny and Joanie love interest in "Nathan Jones," the play. "'65 Love Affair," the official song for my recent revisiting of theatre with Busybody.
2. Walter Egan-I know "Not Shy" may be the only album for which he is really known. Magnet and Steel prompted me to buy this album on iTunes in the first place. I heard that on the radio on our spring trip to Springfield in 2017.I heard enough of the lyrics that I could finally do an internet search and look up the title and artist for the song. That fast-tracked this song to join Greatest Hits Volume 40. I of course couldn't convert it from iTunes' AAC format to the WMA format, but I could buy it on Amazon Music and download it. So I bought it twice. And it was worth every cent. Because I will not only use "Magnet and Steel," a song which I think speaks for anyone out there who's ever slowly but surely completely given into being in love, but I have "Sweet South Breeze," "Finally Found a Girlfriend," "Blonde in the Blue T-Bird," "Just the Wanting," "I Wannit," and a number of other songs. He collaborated well with Stevie Nicks, who by her own right should be inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a solo artist. Waiting patiently for the news to come down about that as well.
3. Andrew Lloyd Webber. I know that he wrote for stage. I know that he has musicals and rock operas. But he has well incorporated rock. He should be in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. I recently purchased the soundtrack to Jesus Christ Superstar. It's legitimately the sound of an artist, a classic rock artist, who should make it into the rock hall. "The Temple," "Everything's Alright," and "I Don't Know How to Love Him" are all headed to future Greatest Hits volumes. (The 1971 Helen Reddy version of Mary Magdalene's beautiful ballad was already on Greatest Hits Volume 10.) Moreover, he's done Cats, Evita, Phantom of the Opera, Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, School of Rock, and a bunch of other shows that I haven't seen yet, but want to. Each of these musical theatre works showcase his ability to seamlessly integrate rock and roll, blues, and symphonic orchestra. Arguably he's the best composer of the 20th Century. Yes, it took me some time to get used to the dissonance. But it's worth it. Because they exist for his heartfelt, evocative love songs and show-stoppers to work. "Memories," "Don't Cry For Me Argentina," "Music of the Night," "Jacob and Sons," "The Railway Cat," "Simon Zealotes/Poor Jerusalem," "Herrod's Song," "Any Dream Will Do," "One More Angel in Heaven," "Another Suitcase in Another Hall," "A New Argentina," "You're in the Band," they all came from this guy. Put him in the hall. I'll make a trip out to Cleveland to lobby for this.
4. Phil Collins. I'll grant you, Phil Collins isn't an obvious choice for solo act. You did put him in as a member of Genesis in 2010. (This had much to do with my visiting the museum at long last in February of 2011.) But he worked hard in the solo albums in between Genesis. To his credit, he has "In the Air Tonight," "One More Night," "Against All Odds," "Easy Lover" (with the singer from Earth, Wind, and Fire), "I Don't Care Anymore" (title correct?), "Every Day," "Take Me Home," "Seudico," "Both You Know and I Know," etc. Let's not forget this guy was a huge star in his own right by the 1980's. I bought "No Jacket Required" at a Barnes and Noble in 2012, and I bought "Phil Collins Love Songs" at a Border's in Gurnee in 2010. My dad bought me Turn it On Again: The Best of Genesis at Twist and Shout in Denver, Colorado in 2009. I imagine the Genesis classics would be brought to bear on Phil Collins getting in as a solo act, such as "Misunderstanding," "That's All," "Turn it On Again," "Invisible Touch," "Mama," "Land of Confusion," "Hold on My Heart," "Follow You Follow Me," "Abacab," in as much as he alrready got inducted on the strength of the said works. Phil Collins has been in the business for a long time. And he's still going now with new music, even with his hearing loss. He deserves to be inducted twice.
5. The Spencer Davis Group. I had this idea not from my own love of Steve Winwood. Though that could be attributed. I was combing through internet blogs and articles about people's recommendations for future inductees into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Someone recommended the Spencer Davis Group in theirs. I'm one of the biggest Steve Winwood fans there is. And I'll grant you, I don't own any of the Spencer Davis groups' LPs. I have "Gimme Some Lovin'", #2 in the UK, #7 in the U.S. in 1966; and "I'm a Man" on "20th Century Masters: Steve Winwood" (purchased at a Border's in Normal, Illinois, 2009); and on Revolutions: The Best of Steve Winwood (bought for me at Twist & Shout in Denver, Colorado, 2011). But I intend to go to a record store that does have one of their records, and I'm going to discover their other work. "Somebody Help Me" and "Keep on Running." If I need to download the entire catalog of this band, comprised of Spencer Davis, Muff Winwood, and Steve Winwood, by way of iTunes, Amazon Prime, or seek it out by way of Spotify, Pandora, or Apple Music Streaming, I will. I understand the nature of the recording industry is changing. And I'll adapt. I know that The Spencer Davis Group music is hard to find, outside of their biggest hits on Steve Winwood's career-long compilations; but maybe inducting them into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame would help to remedy that.
Ambrosia
10 CC
England Dan and John Ford Coley
Ben Folds
New Kids on the Block
The Raspberries
Blue Swede
Norman Greenbaum
The Doobie Brothers
Stevie Nicks- solo artist
Whitney Houston
Janet Jackson
Peabo Bryson
James Ingram
Dolly Parton (I'll grant you she's country)
Carole King as a performer (she's in as a songwriter with Gerry Goffin)
Paula Abdul
Roxette
The Smiths
Styx
REO Speedwagon
.38 Special
Thank you so very much! Here's a very good article I found on NPR that does well to explain why certain artists have not yet gained entry, and whether or not we have the right to complain.
https://www.npr.org/sections/therecord/2014/10/17/357009772/the-right-way-to-complain-about-the-rock-and-roll-hall-of-fame
Did enjoy my trip to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
Greg O'Neill