Madonna leads Rock Hall inductees

Amid the flurry of the Golden Globes and the Mitchell Report, it was easy to overlook that today was the day inductees were to be announced for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, a $22 tourist attraction in Cleveland.

This year's inductees:

-Madonna
-John Mellencamp
-The Ventures
-Leonard Cohen
-The Dave Clark Five

I've never really seen the Rock Hall as striving to honor music forebears.

The induction ceremony will come March 10 at New York's Waldorf Astoria hotel. Hey -- you expect the music biz to be troubled to go to the Midwest in the winter? Dinner will cost guests more than $2,000 a plate, and entertaining the diners is priority No. 1.

So you mix in some hard-to-argue-with past-due choices (Dave Clark Five), and add in one of today's top entertainers (Madonna), and industry suits can politely raise a glass of wine in the name of rebellion.

Madonna is the most-deserving of the bunch, an artist who rewrote what it meant to be a pop star. This year's most puzzling choice, however, is Mellencamp.

Ken Barnes over at USA Today argues that Mellencamp was an overdue no-brainer, since Tom Petty and Bruce Springsteen are already in, but I would take the opposite point of view and argue that since two like-minded and superior artists are already in, there's no need to rush in Mellencamp.

Cohen is another nice but not essential artist to usher in, especially when disco leaders Chic and hip-hop pioneers the  Beastie Boys were on the ballot. As for the Beasties, the Rock Hall is criminally short on hip-hop artists, as most are just now becoming eligible, and it makes no sense to ignore one of the genre's defining artists over a heartland rocker and a singer/songwriter.

But Van Halen got in last year over the Stooges, so such slights are expected. And besides, Cohen is probably a better dinner guest than the Beastie Boys' MCA.

(Photo courtesy Getty Images)

Comments

[Frankie R.]

Nice to see Madonna inducted. Mellencamp is a good choice...has good songs under his belt. Leonard Cohen is alright choice but someone else would have been preferable. And finally the Dave Clark Five...the band members are in litigation over royalties and such...would be interesting to see who show ups but they won't play together I'm sure. Sadly though, you can't purchase their CDs here in the U.S. but if you Google and pull up links, you can purchase their CDs through imports. Just love playing DC5 CD in my car stereo.

[CC]

How can you say that "Cohen is another nice but not essential artist to usher in"???
Are you mad??? Or maybe deaf???

Mr Cohen is one of the most influential artists EVER. His dry singing style and his poetic kind of lyrics make him the most deserving of the bunch.

Yes, is sad that the Beasties and Chic are out now, but it would be most unforgivable if Mr Cohen were shut out when this year he's celebrate 'Songs of... ' 40th anniversary.

[politicalsanity]

Isn't this the Rock and Roll hall of fame? If so, why would anybody CONSIDER Madonna or the Beastie Boys, neither one of which were rock artists? At the very most, Madonna was pop, and the Beastie Boys are hip-hop. Very far away from what rcok music stands for. : (

[nfurtado]

Mellencamp is the most deserving of the bunch ''by a mile''.His body of work is ''consistently'' excellent which is more than you can say for Springsteen and Petty.But of course you would have to actually listen ''without bias'' to his work to know that.Something which ''obviously'' the author of the article hasn't done .

[maggie]

Question for 'CC' may i ask you what you think rock music stands for? A mens club perhaps, perhaps an aging male guitarist going through the motions? Its great Madonna is included. Women artists and musicians are sorely lacking in the Rock and Roll hall of fame, and there should be a whole lot more.

[David Coffin]

Todd,
How old are you? 13? You describe Mellencamp choice as rushed but you suggest Beastie Boys as an alternative? That band didn't become commercially viable until the mid-80's. And the Stooges over Van Halen? Oh.. Please! You should be be doing 'extended play' for the Radio Disney crowd, not contemporary rock.

[mcfly]

LOL Madonna? This is a joke. What did she do to further the development of rock music? NADA. She makes catchy pop fluff, prances around half naked and takes cheap jabs at the Catholic Church. I would respect her as an artist if I felt her jabs at Catholicism were genuine. It is just controversy to fuel sales of her stupid records.

[abujj]

I'm willing to bet that if you asked the Beastie Boys (whose time will come) whether they should proceed Leonard Cohen in the RR Hall of Fame, they'd be embarrassed at the shear possibility.

[mark]

"Madonna is the most-deserving of the bunch, an artist who rewrote what it meant to be a pop star. This year's most puzzling choice, however, is Mellencamp. "

Are you another musically illiterate music critic?Madonna rewrote what it means to be a pop star? AS in her image?Too bad she cant write any good music.Something mellencamp can do quite a bit better....What the heck this isnt about your musical talent just your image.

"But Van Halen got in last year over the Stooges, so such slights are expected"
Edward van halen is the most gifted rock guitarist since hendrix.A guitar genius and pioneer.What did the stooges excel at?Talentless punk 1 chord noise?Next thing your going to write is how talented and gifted the ramones were....Typical illiterate music critic.

[Jean Paul]

There have been many artists over the years who have been inducted into the RRHF who would not be considered rock and roll in style but have influenced rock and roll trends, other artists and personify the rock n roll attitude, Madonna opened the door for many female artists to make their own path without having to look back and be completely non-apologetic. I'm not sure if you can get any more rock and roll than that, Her set of family jewels make Mr. John Lydon's look like a couple lil cubic zarchonias.

[JC]

Why even pay attention to this person? He's obviously lame.

[jimmy webbsite]

Johnny Cougar is an eighth rate Dylan imitator. If for no other reason, that insipid car-anthem "This is our Country" should not only disqualify him for the Hall of Fame, he should be drawn and quartered for writing such a lousy "This Land is My Land" parody to shill autos! He is the phoniest of phonies!!

[SREED]

Mellencamp is a Springsteen-wannabe! Plain and simple and does not belong! He blew it big time with that commercial he wrote!

Also...the R&R HOF is meaningless until KISS gets in! How is KISS not in the HOF?

[rockchick]

About time the Ventures were honored Their guitar style arguably set it up for everyone else. Just as importantly, their music still holds up, which is more than can be said for more recent "artists."

And no, pop stars and punk stars should NOT be included. Because, you know, it's the ROCK AND ROLL Hall of Fame.

[Kent Benson]

Is the Rock and Roll Hall now like the Walk of Fame , enshrinement for a fee ? Madonna is a great talent , great business person,great many things , but she sure as hell isn't Rock and Roll . Like Bette Midler , I think she could have if she wanted ,if she felt it , but she didn't , so she isn't .

[Javier]

Madonna was a dancer who convinced people she was a black r&b singer. Dave Clark Five? Can anyone not believe that rock n roll is dead? Led Zep on th cover of Rolling Stone? Lenord Cohen is cool, he should have his own museum.

[Jake]

Madonna was a given. I don't have a problem with that. But i agree -- the Rock and Roll Hall is kind of a joke. And to the person who mentioned the Ramones: The Ramones absolutely were a better band than VH.

[-TM]

>>I'm willing to bet that if you asked the Beastie Boys (whose time will come) whether they should proceed Leonard Cohen in the RR Hall of Fame, they'd be embarrassed at the shear possibility.
<<<

I certainly think Cohen is a nice and deserving choice, as I said above.

However, I'd like to see the Rock Hall take a broader view of what rock'n'roll is first, which is why I believe the Beasties and Chic were more essential artists to usher in on this vote.

And the Ramones have already -- and rightfully -- been inducted.

[markt]

Rock and Roll is not to be confused with Madonna nor Beastie Boys. Its not a pop and rap hall of shame. Mellencamp is no more a Springsteen wanabe than the boss is a Dylan clone. Everyone in Rock and Roll is following others. The only originals are long dead. Mellencamp is a airhead in many ways but his music and band has consistently struck a chord with millions of fans. He definitely belongs and the cheap shots levelled here are outrageous.

[krazybob]

Amazing, None of you losers even mentioned The Ventures. Without them and others like them, rock and roll would not be where it is today.

[Aaron]

Good on Madonna, and good on the Hall Of Fame (with far too many men on its walls!) for recognising a woman who has completely dominated an industry longer than most record buyers today have been alive. Credit where credit is due.

[Don]

Bravo for the Ventures! As a child of the 60s, I can remember the unique sound of the Ventures and their pure instrumental ability. They created a sound that is timeless !

[mark]

Madonna is a POSER.She, like the ramones,stooges is at a best a performer.Like the beastie boys,stooges,punk bands etc. she is not a musician nor artist.They are posers who cannot play a musical instrument if theiir life depended on it.Madonna,ramones are no more talented than jessica simpson.They just peddle an image,attitude but musically theiy are zeroes on musicianship.The fact that the hall and music critics hail this bunk tells you a lot about musical literacy or lack thereof...

[Chris]

I smell coastal elitism. Mellencamp combined his heartland poetry and rock music to create songs every bit as memorable and important as any other artist in the Rock Hall. Those little blobs of light in the cornfields you see below you on your next flight to somewhere pretentious are filled with real people to whom Mellencamp connected with almost perfectly. That's the true sign of Hall Of Fame performer.

[-TM]

Hi Chris,

No, there's absolutely no coastal elitism. I'm from the Midwest.

I think Mellencamp is a fine artist. I'm not taking anything away from any of the songs he has written.

However, when you're talking "Hall of Fame," and you're only inducting a couple artists per year, the conversation has to change a little bit. It's not just about a body of work, but how that body of work has influenced and shaped the cultural landscape. And if you're looking at lasting impact, Mellencamp, in comparison to some of the other artists in the running this year (Chic, the Beastie Boys), just isn't in the same league.

But that does not mean he hasn't written his share of terrific songs.

-TM