Tag Archives: The Temptations

Artists That SHOULD Be in the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame: The 1960s

RRHallofFame

The current crop of artists and bands vying for entry into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame is a very impressive lists. Cutting across all genres, including rap, pop, rock, metal and alternative music (it is arguable that folk isn’t included, but that’s a rarity instead of the norm), the potential inductees in 2020 will have many more shots at the brass ring. But who from the past may be running out of chances at getting into the Rock Hall?

There are 221 artists and/or groups in the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, and many might say that the truly immortal have already been enshrined. It is tough to nitpick this fact, but in this first part of a series of essays on this subject, I was able to come up with five artists from the 1950s who have yet to be inducted for their influences on the world of rock music. In this, the second part of a multi-part essay series, the 1960s will take center stage.

It can be argued that, of all the generations that have been covered by the Rock Hall, the 1960s have been scoured thoroughly for those that should be inducted. That isn’t the case, however, including one group whose contemporaries have earned their seat in music’s version of Valhalla but haven’t gotten the call yet themselves. (As a reminder, we’re not including those that have been nominated this year. And this by no means is a comprehensive list of those who should be inducted – they are arguably the most notable oversights, however.)

Blood, Sweat & Tears

BloodSweatAndTears

There are those out there that would argue that Steppenwolf might be a better selection here, but I am holding forth Blood, Sweat & Tears as the choice. One of the most highly trained bands as far as musicianship, BST incorporated a vast repertoire of styles into their music. Jazz, blues, and country were all fused together to bring out the recognizable sounds of BST, racking up three Top Ten singles (albeit no Number One songs) and ten overall Hot 100 tracks in their career along with massive critical acclaim for their work.

A few things that hold back Steppenwolf might hold back BST, however. They were only around for a short period of time (1969-1974), much like Steppenwolf’s 68-72 tenure. Second, when you look at who can claim to have been a member of the band, there’s a LONG list of players who played under the BST banner (I joked with another person that Steppenwolf’s roster of former members was as long as an NFL roster – BST’s is just about as bad!). I choose BST over Steppenwolf because of the melding of different styles into a new part of the rock scene – while Steppenwolf made the term “heavy metal” come about, it was about motorcycles, not the music they were doing!

Lou Rawls

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Rawls was one of those vocalists a person could hear and, once they were told who the singer was, that person would say “THAT’S Lou Rawls? I LOVE HIM!” That butter-soft baritone (to bass) voice was heard beginning in 1965, when he hit the charts with “Three O’Clock in the Mornin’.” His first #1 song on the Billboard R&B charts was 1966, when he would take “Love is a Hurtin’ Thing.” Overall, Rawls earned his way onto the Billboard Hot 100 18 times, the Billboard R&B 100 28 times and earn three Grammys for his body of work, with “You’ll Never Find (Another Love Like Mine” perhaps recognized as his masterpiece.

Rawls arguably paved the way for such deep-voiced vocalists as Barry White, 2002 Rock Hall inductee Isaac Hayes and a few others. And they would go on to bigger and better success than Rawls did. But that shouldn’t keep out the one who, along with Ray Charles and some other smooth-sounding soul legends, broke the ground for their success.

Charley Pride

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If you want to talk about a “Jackie Robinson” type figure, you don’t have to look any further than country music’s Charley Pride. Yes, there was a black man who was a member of the Grand Ole Opry back before World War II, but DeFord Bailey (thanks for recognizing him, Ken Burns!) would only crack the door slightly. Pride came along and kicked it off the hinges, becoming the first black singer to have substantial success on the country music circuit.

In the history of Pride’s record label, RCA Records, there was only one artist who outsold him…that artist was Elvis Presley. After a failed shot at playing professional baseball (in which he was once traded for a used bus), Pride got into his second love, music, and crafted his niche in the country music genre. He would make it onto the Billboard Hot 100 ten times, 52 Top Ten songs on the Country Hot 100 (including 30 #1 songs), won four Grammy Awards, was the Country Music Association Entertainer of the Year in 1971 (the first and only black artist to win that award) and has sold over 70 million albums in his lifetime.

There are those that say Pride might have already topped out the accolades with his induction into the Country Music Hall of Fame and membership in the Grand Ole Opry. But there’s one person who might want Pride to get full recognition – Darius Rucker, who made a long career with Hootie & The Blowfish before himself crossing over to country music and continued success. THAT’S what an inspiration does, and Pride is definitely that.

Tammy Wynette/Dolly Parton/Loretta Lynn

There is a dearth of women in the Rock Hall, especially those who have set the standard for female vocalists/songwriters with their career works. In addition to the gross overlook of Patsy Cline in the Rock Hall (discussed in the last segment of this series), there are other women who set themselves apart from the crowd that deserve their own recognition.

Photo of Tammy WYNETTE and Loretta LYNN and Dolly PARTON

Topping that list is Dolly Parton, who has spent basically the last 50 years proving everyone wrong about her talents. Originally just looked at as “eye candy” alongside Porter Waggoner, Parton quickly demonstrated that she played second fiddle to nobody, writing a string of hit country and pop songs that made her famous. Nine Grammy Awards, 25 #1 songs on the Country Hot 100, nominations for every part of the EGOT (Emmy, Grammy, Oscar and Tony Awards) and the author of over 3000 songs, Parton will forever be known as the woman who penned “I Will Always Love You,” taken to #1 twice by herself and 2020 Rock Hall nominee Whitney Houston.

Wynette and Lynn might not be as accomplished as Parton, but both or either would be worthy elections to the Rock Hall. Lynn might be the one to get the nod, however, because of her virulently feminist stance in an era when the “little lady” was supposed to be seen and not heard. Lynn wrote songs protesting the Vietnam War (“Dear Uncle Sam”), the way that divorced women were treated (“Rated X”) and birth control (“The Pill”) at a time when such discussion was quite controversial. Wynette would also have her moments in the sun during this era, but Lynn actually was the one rocking the boat…if that ain’t “rock and roll,” just what is?

The 5th Dimension

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This was one that, to be honest, I wasn’t aware of. I thought The 5th Dimension was already IN the Rock Hall. I looked it up and there were The Temptations and The Four Tops, but surprisingly the 5th Dimension wasn’t enshrined. This is arguably a gross oversight.

The 5th Dimension spanned the gap between the R&B world and the psychedelic world by delivering the anthem for a generation. “Aquarius/Let the Sun Shine” became the anthem of the Woodstock generation and 1969 was called “The Age of Aquarius” with this tune as its theme song. The group wasn’t just a one-hit wonder, however, hitting the Top Ten six times, the Top 100 30 times and the R&B charts 17 times.

Perhaps the best legacy of The 5th Dimension is that, when they did break up, the artists went on to further success. Founders Billy Davis, Jr., and Marilyn McCoo not only made great music as a duet, they were married and continued to have a happy life. Nick Ashford and Valerie Simpson, who were songwriters for The 5th Dimension, would also have their own success as a duet in the 1970s and 80s, but it all started with The 5th Dimension, something that should be honored.

The next part of this series will arguably be the toughest one of the lot. The 1970s gave us a great deal of legendary music and fantastic artists that created it for us. Like the 1960s, you might think that the 70s have been thoroughly covered, but that is far from the truth. There are some out there in the hinterlands that are waiting for their call from the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame to take their place in music’s Pantheon of immortals. But will that call ever come? As we will probably end every part of this series, the longer that we as fans – and the voters for the Hall – are removed from their heydays, the less likely it is that these artists and groups will earn their induction.

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A Treatise Remembering the Thin White Duke

Many years ago, I was but a wee one who was still trying to forge my identity, my signature, my own style, if you will. At that age perhaps it was a bit young to even think about things like that, but everything you go through at that age would help hammer you into what you will become. I always had an interest in the space program – this was a time after NASA had landed astronaut Neil Armstrong on the moon, but also just after the failure of Apollo 13 put the kibosh on moon missions for a period. I also was beginning to build an interest in music, although in the beginning only one format was made available.

My mom and father were both avowed country music fans – to the point of using that line from The Blues Brothers where Joliet Jake and Elwood ask the woman what type of music was played in the honky tonk bar they’ve arrived at and she says, “Both types:  country and western” – so there wasn’t much beyond the staples of the time in the house:  Conway Twitty, Tammy Wynette, Loretta Lynn…you know, the basics. If there was some “renegade” country music played, it was George Jones or perhaps Johnny Cash, Waylon Jennings or something along that level. I always knew that there was something else out there, especially when I poked around through my mom’s album collection and saw bands that looked nothing like the country artists she listened to, folks like The Supremes, The Temptations, The Four Tops, Jefferson Airplane…I knew someday I had to hear those groups.

Fortunately, that day came much sooner than either my mom or father ever thought would be possible. My father had another son by another woman, my half-brother Monty, who sometimes came around when he was “in the area.” On one of those trips, my half-brother and I ended up riding around in his Monte Carlo, for no apparent reason, when he finally said to me, “Hey, you like space…here’s something you should check out.” He pulled out a cassette and popped it into the player. After a few moments, the intro to David Bowie’s “Space Oddity” and its fade-in synthesizers gently entered my mind for the first time.

From the first listen to that song, I was hooked not only on the artist but on the music. The guitars, the lyrical storytelling, everything was there that was in country music, it just seemed better in this format. Monty would move on a few days later – leaving the cassette with me – and I would wear it out. I only saw him a few more times over my young life and, to this day, do not actually know whether he is alive or not.

When I heard about the death of David Bowie this morning from cancer at the age of 69, I remembered that time long ago in my life and how much that Bowie had been interlaced with my existence. The days of “Space Oddity”, of course, begat the Ziggy Stardust Era of Bowie’s work, where he took on the persona of an outer space alien that came to Earth. The music that emerged from that era – “Starman,” “Jean Genie” and “John, I’m Only Dancing” being particularly memorable – seemed to be something that others in what was called “rock music” weren’t doing.

Then came the stage of Bowie’s career that I particularly enjoyed. Blending the sounds of rock, soul, German and synthesizer music, the Thin White Duke epitomized the cool of the 70s. Supposedly an offshoot of his character from the film The Man Who Fell to Earth, the Duke was a distantly cool but always in tune person. Unfortunately, Bowie probably was able to draw the ability to conceive such a character – as I learned later in life – because of massive amounts of drug use (while drug use can help artistic performance and development, it can also be the destroyer of those same worlds).

Fortunately for Bowie, he was able to emerge on the other side for what was arguably his greatest phase of his career. Following a few Brian Eno/German influenced albums (especially Low and Lodger), the 80s would be where Bowie would truly bloom. Perhaps because of the video element added by MTV – or perhaps because of his own development as an artist – Bowie would crank out his finest work in this decade. Scary Monsters (and Super Freaks), Let’s Dance, Tonight and his work with Queen on “Under Pressure,” his Live Aid performance and his duet with Mick Jagger on “Dancin’ In The Street” all gave Bowie the credit as an artist that he truly deserved. He was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1996 and, over the two decades since then, has simply delighted us fans with everything he ever did (and this is completely glossing over all the work he did in films and on stage as an actor).

And I’ve been fortunate enough to have been there for most all of it.

Bowie was formative in my early years and during my career in radio. That era of the 1980s was his heyday and was the apex of my career in Album Oriented Rock (AOR) radio and, in reflecting back on those times, it always seemed as if Bowie was just ever so slightly ahead of the curve, as he had been since his days of “Space Oddity” and Ziggy Stardust. Even after I left the radio business, his later work still had that artistic edge, looking forward to the next big thing, that was always the benchmark of Bowie’s life and career, whether it was in music, acting, art or a myriad of other areas he would dip his fingers into.

Perhaps it is a sign of age, or the passing of time, when we begin to lose our heroes, be they athletic, musical, acting or even familial, that it begins to hurt the worst. Even from my time in radio, I’ve been unfortunate to see men younger than me pass away:  Jani Lane of Warrant and Scott Weiland of Stone Temple Pilots are two who come to mind off the bat, but their deaths were from their own problems and issues. Even some of the greats that I thought I’d have in my old age, like Stevie Ray Vaughan, were unable to join me in potentially making it to my rocking chair. Lemmy just passed and some of the others, like Bruce Springsteen and others, are on the other side of 60; hell, Bono only has a few years on me!

David Bowie led one of the most remarkable lives that mankind can even imagine. He was at the forefront of his generation, but he was also mindful of his place in the world. He was an artist, but he also appreciated the beauty in the work of others. The world is a much darker place without the visage of the Thin White Duke looking down upon it.

So Who SHOULD Be In The Rock & Roll Hall of Fame?

Last week, the nominations came out for the 2016 Rock & Roll Hall of Fame and, at the very end of my thoughts, I posited the question, “Who should have been nominated?” Mind you, the list of nominees was outstanding overall: longtime overlooked acts such as Chicago, Deep Purple and Yes getting nominated again (and three bands that I believe are long overdue the honor), newcomers like Janet Jackson, The Cars and Cheap Trick (all no votes) and outside shots such as The J.B.’s (another vote in from me), Chic (no) and N.W.A. (yes). However, there were several other artists that should have been on this year’s ballot if not already inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame.

The Rock & Roll Hall of Fame is personal to me because of my long love affair with music. Despite the factor that I could never play an instrument with any high level of competence, I admire those that can create art out of music, words, melodies and thoughts. While it could be said that writing is something like that, the songwriter and/or musician is an artist that encompasses different aspects, pulling them into one cohesive idea. Thus, I’ve always been a huge fan of music overall and rock music in particular.

My first introduction to rock music dates back to someone who, unfortunately, I don’t know if they’re still alive. The year was 1971 and, riding around in a car with my half-brother Monty (his real name could have been Montague, don’t really remember) on a hot summer day, saw him pop a cassette into the tape deck. Suddenly the mystifying tones of David Bowie’s “Space Oddity” came pounding out of the speakers and, as I listened to the words and music, I was transported (you have to remember, these were the heady days of NASA’s Apollo space program) to being “Major Tom” and traveling through space myself.

From there, it was a quick indoctrination into the world of music. My mother had the classics – Johnny Cash, Merle Haggard, Waylon and Willie and others – from the country music side, but she also had such gems as The Temptations, The Supremes and other R&B acts from the 60s in the record cabinet. My investigations in the rock music genre touched on Santana, The Who, Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young and James Taylor, then began to branch out into the harder edged rock of ZZ Top, KISS and Led Zeppelin, among others (on a personal note, was always more of a Rolling Stones guy than the Beatles).

As the mid-70s passed, punk rock became the next touchstone. The Sex Pistols, New York Dolls, The Ramones – these were the gates to pass through on the way to adulthood. As I reached high school, not only was it the disco era but it was almost time for the double shotgun-blast of the New Wave from England and MTV, opening the world even further (and we cannot go on without also recognizing the New Wave of British Heavy Metal). As I had to be a part of the music scene, I did the only logical thing a person with little to no musical talent could do – I became a DJ.

Through the 1980s and well into the 1990s, I plugged along as a DJ at pretty much every radio format that you could think of doing. Album-Oriented Rock (AOR), Top 40, easy listening, R&B, adult contemporary, news/talk – about the only thing I didn’t do was country (much like “country” music today, there’s a thin line between what was country music then and pop music). Along the way, there were some great times had in the conduct of my job and…well, let’s just save those stories for another time.

Hopefully you see that who gets in the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame is important, at least to me. It isn’t “live or die” important, mind you, but it is something that I want to show my son one day and say, “Yeah, I saw them, they were great.” Maybe we will sit down and listen to a CD or, pray tell, if we still have vinyl by then, an album, and talk about music and its history. He’s got a great musical ear, however, so he may be entertaining me with his music rather than our just listening to it.

OK, getting sappy here…

My criteria for putting someone in the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame would be somewhat along the lines of what poker uses for its Hall of Fame. These are the criteria that I would use in putting someone in the Rock Hall:

1. Length of career with sustained critical or commercial excellence
2. Influence on a genre of music or on several artists
3. Respect from fellow musicians

Pretty simple, wouldn’t you say? Alas, there are some glaring errors in the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. How about some of these artists, bands and contributors?

Warren Zevon – The singer-songwriter born in Chicago has been overlooked for far too long when it comes to the Rock Hall. Responsible for writing such songs as “Poor, Poor Pitiful Me” (covered by far too many artists to list but most notably by Rock & Roll Hall of Fame inductee Linda Ronstadt), Zevon was a part of the California scene in the mid-70s, working with such people as Jackson Browne, Neil Young, members of the Eagles and counting Bruce Springsteen amongst his admirers.

When it came to his own efforts, Zevon was beyond compare. Along with his iconic “Werewolves of London,” Zevon penned and performed such classics as “Lawyers, Guns and Money,” “Roland the Headless Thompson Gunner,” “Accidently Like a Martyr,” and “Keep Me in Your Heart,” which was nominated for a Grammy after Zevon’s death in 2003. With a career that spanned more than 30 years, commercial and critical success and the respect of your fellow musicians, there’s no one more deserving than Zevon for induction into the Hall.

Jimmy Buffett – Another product of the singer-songwriter era of the early 70s, Buffett is notable for forging his own path in the music industry. When I say his own path, I mean he created a whole GENRE of music that didn’t exist before – let’s call it “tropical rock,” music with a Caribbean/calypso/reggae/country feel that didn’t fit neatly into any of the “categories” of music in the 1970s (and still doesn’t today, to be honest). Buffett himself has said about that period, “I wasn’t country enough to be played on those stations and I wasn’t rock enough to be played on AOR.”

The way to beat that? Write a song like “Margaritaville” that transcended any charts, genres or radio stations. Today that song has led Buffett into the world of literature, casino and hotel ownership and a “40-year summer job” that the man still enjoys to this day as he approaches 70. He’s influenced a host of country musicians (the Zac Brown Band is a prime example) and, as owner of a recording studio and a record company (Mailboat Records) is ensuring that the “tropical rock” he created will have outlets for the future.

The Runaways – While Joan Jett went in with The Blackhearts last year, she really should have gone in with The Runaways because, without them, there is no Joan Jett.

The Runaways were “created” by producer Kim Fowley who, having drummer Sandy West and guitarist Jett in the fold, was looking to create a “jailbait” band of teenaged girls who could rock out just as well as any group of guys. First found by the group was Micki Steele, who didn’t last long but went on to join The Bangles, before gold was struck with guitar virtuoso Lita Ford, vocalist Cherie Currie and bassist Jackie Fox to fill out the roster. With the group lineup set, The Runaways broke ground as one of the first female hard rock/metal acts to ever have any success in the recording industry.

From the seminal track “Cherry Bomb” to other tunes such as “Queens of Noise” and “I Love Playin’ with Fire” (covered by Jett during her Blackheart days), the band earned a great deal of attention and respect in the industry. The members of the group went on to arguably better success as solo artists or in other creative endeavors, but they were the ones who helped to get such groups as The Bangles, The Go-Gos, Vixen and rock “chicks” like Pat Benatar, Chrissie Hynde and Deborah Harry (among many others) in the door. It is arguable that, without The Runaways, some if not all of these women wouldn’t have gotten into the industry.

Judas Priest – This is one of those omissions by the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame that is inexcusable. A band that has sold 45 million albums, generated rock anthems such as “Breaking the Law,” “You’ve Got Another Thing Comin’,” “Heading Out To The Highway,” “Living After Midnight”…I could go on, but you get the point. So what has kept them out?

Over the years, the band has been targeted in various arenas outside of music. They were accused of using subliminal messages in their album British Steel that allegedly caused two men to try to kill themselves. They’ve been targeted by conservative Christian groups for their musical content and singer Rob Halford has taken some sabbaticals from the band over the decades. But when you have a list of bands that were influenced by you such as Metallica, Megadeth and Pantera (among others), you’ve done your job well.

There are a slew of other artists that could be held up for consideration – The Carpenters, Kate Bush, Slayer, Bon Jovi, Thin Lizzy, Motorhead – and maybe they are just waiting for their time. There are also those “pop” artists that I am overlooking, but this is the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, after all. If you’re waiting for a time that “works,” however, take it from someone who watches how these Halls of Fame work – if you don’t get in within your first couple of years of eligibility, your chances of getting in get worse as time goes by. All the artists listed here deserve to have their place in the pantheon of the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame…now will anyone listen and induct them?