Talk about waiting a long time to get into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. Charley Patton released his first song in 1929, making him eligible for induction in 1954, 41 years before the Rock Hall opened.
Patton, known as the Father of the Delta Blues, was inducted as an Early Influencer, honoring the role he played in mentoring and inspiring countless other blues artists.
LL Cool J is another in what promises to be a long line of rappers inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. I already touched on that trend in my post about Jay-Z’s induction, so I won’t revisit it here.
LL Cool J was nominated five times for the Hall before making it on his sixth attempt. He was inducted in the Musical Excellence category, which differs from the Performers category in ways I have yet to understand. From what I can tell, the difference is that Performers have “changed the face of rock & roll” while those in Musical Excellence have “had a dramatic impact on music.” OK.
‘Freddy, My Love’ is one of the few songs from the stage musical Grease that did not make it into the 1978 movie.
On stage, the tune is sung by Marty Maraschino during the girls’ slumber party, after she shares that she’s dating a Marine. While it’s a fun and catchy song, I agree with the cut. The slumber party scene works beautifully as is, highlighted by Rizzo’s ‘Look at Me, I’m Sandra Dee’ and Sandy’s ‘Hopelessly Devoted To You,’ which was newly written for the film.
The Random iTunes Fairy has an ear for the hits. Today’s track is the second random selection from Lisa Loeb’s 1995 album Tails, and both tracks were among the album’s three singles.
First up was ‘Taffy,’ the album’s second single, and now we have ‘Do You Sleep?,’ the first single and a Billboard Top 20 hit.
German electronic band Kraftwerk formed in 1969 and over the next decade released seven albums that helped define the electro-pop and rap music of the 1980s. Without Kraftwerk, there would likely be no Depeche Mode, Human League, OMD or Soft Cell.
Depending on your taste, that might not be a ringing endorsement. But their impact is undeniable, and so they were inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in the ‘Early Influence’ category, reserved for acts that might not have made a huge splash commercially but helped pave the path for others.
Meet Me In Montauk 