Tag Archives: Rock & Roll Hall of Fame

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Song of the Day #5,325: ‘Some Kind of Wonderful’ – Carole King

My final post on the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame class of 2013 covers the other non-performer honored that year, Lou Adler. Adler is a record and movie producer responsible for some iconic work over the course of his lengthy career.

The acts most associated with Adler are the unlikely grouping of Carole King, the Mamas & the Papas, and Cheech & Chong. Adler produced King’s classic Tapestry and nine other albums by the singer-songwriter. He’s also the producer of the Mamas & the Papas’ biggest hits, including ‘California Dreaming’ and ‘Monday Monday.’

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Song of the Day #5,324: ‘Back on the Block’ – Various Artists

The Rock & Roll Hall of Fame also inducts non-performers with notable contributions to the music industry, and in 2013 that honor went to Quincy Jones. I don’t know if there are similar eligibility rules for non-performers but Jones got his start in the early 50s so I assume he could have (and should have) gotten this award even earlier.

Jones has worked as a performer, composer, arranger and producer for seven decades now, collaborating with some of the most notable artists in the world. His work with Frank Sinatra and Michael Jackson alone could earn him a spot in the Hall.

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Song of the Day #5,323: ‘Hot Stuff’ – Donna Summer

The final artist inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2013 as a performer was Donna Summer, the Queen of Disco and one of the most iconic singer-songwriters of the 70s and 80s.

Summer was first eligible for the Hall in 2000 but didn’t receive her first nomination until 2008. She was nominated in ’08, ’10, ’11 and ’12 before finally making the cut in 2013. Sadly, she died of lung cancer in 2012 before she made it in.

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Song of the Day #5,320: ‘New World Man’ – Rush

Our next 2013 Rock & Roll Hall of Fame inductee is the Canadian prog rock trio Rush. Formed in Toronto in 1968, the band took a few years to land on its core lineup of vocalist/bassist Geddy Lee, guitarist Alex Lifeson and drummer Neil Peart, the three gentlemen honored by the Hall.

Rush was first eligible for the Rock Hall in 1999 but didn’t receive a nomination until their induction year of 2013. They were considered one of the major snubs up to that point by Rush Rats.

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Song of the Day #5,319: ‘Bring the Noise’ – Public Enemy

In 2013, Public Enemy made it into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in their first year of eligibility, making them the second hip-hop act to do so (following Run DMC in 2009). Cue the perennial argument over whether rap acts belong in the Rock Hall.

I land in the ‘yes’ camp, recognizing that rock music over the last 35 years owes as much to rap as the rock music of the previous 35 years owed to country and blues. The Rock Hall features plenty of country and blues musicians, so why not rap artists?

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