Seven performers were inducted into the 2022 class of the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. Alphabetically, the first of them was 80s New Wave sensation Duran Duran.

The English quintet was the best-selling band from the “Second British Invasion,” which found synth-driven pop acts delivering songs that would come to define the sound of 80s music. That sound was derided by many critics at the time, but has come to be much appreciated (and copied) in recent decades. They have been eligible for the Rock Hall since 2007 but went un-nominated until last year.

Duran Duran has been nominated for only two Grammys (both for their innovative work in music videos) but have sold more than 100 million records, underlining the divide between their critical and commercial popularity. They have had 14 top ten hits in the UK and 11 in the United States. ‘The Reflex’ reached #1 on both charts.

A list of some of those hits serves as both a trip down memory lane and a reminder that these guys were excellent pop songwriters: ‘Girls On Film,’ ‘Hungry Like the Wolf,’ ‘Save a Prayer,’ ‘Rio,’ ‘Is There Something I Should Know?,’ ‘Union of the Snake,’ ‘A View to a Kill,’ ‘Notorious,’ ‘Ordinary World,’ and ‘Come Undone.’

Given their talent and success, and the ground they broke in pop music history as trendsetters both musically and visually, I’m all for Duran Duran’s inclusion in the Rock Hall.