September 21, 2005

No Rock and Roll Hall of Fame love for 1980


"Rock Hall Snubs 1980"

The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame nominating committee was unable to find a band or artist from the newly eligible class of 1980 worthy of putting on the ballot sent out to voters last week. This is a little surprising, because it's seemed to me over the last several years that they'll put anybody in that bleepin' thing, truly rock and roll,

or not
I don't know if there just weren't any new rock bands or artists worthy, or any new rock bands or artists in general (this was, after all, the last days of the disco fad). I do know though there were some classic rock albums that year,

such as:

Does anybody here remember Vera Lynn?
(actually released December of '79 in the U.S.)

The phoenix rising from the flame.

Hot funk, cool punk, even if it's old junk--It's still rock and roll to me.

You can't tell me this isn't rock and roll when he's clearly channeling Hendrix on the guitar solos. And, he opened for The Rolling Stones.
It's hard to explain just how cool The Police were, so I won't even try. Consider though that Zenyatta Mondatta had a song called "Behind My Camel".

The last "good" Queen album.

XTC, the Rodney Dangerfield of rock bands. Guess they were skipped over last year?

At least for the first two songs!

NAMBLA's fave?

Speaking of NAMBLA...just kidding! I love St. Pete!! He was doing research. Research, people. Much love to Townshend.

All this machinery making modern music can still be open-hearted.

Like...Bridgette Bardot! (inducted last year)

The album which ended with Springsteen contemplating a
"Wreck on the Highway", leading perfectly to his next, 1982's dark and dreary (but so good)

Just kidding. Making sure you're awake, gentle reader. Although, the title track is a guilty pleasure (c'mon, admit it), and E.L.O. had a couple of good tunes on it.

Finally, my personal favorite
The Clash's epic, three album set. A three album set a year after putting out the classic double album, London Calling (Rolling Stone mag's album of the decade for the 1980s). Let's see Babyshambles, The Darkness, or even Green Day do that! I don't think so.

Sex Pistols + The Beatles = The Clash

The album it came from may have been critically panned, but the single

is a classic, and the video for it was groundbreaking (it seemed so weird!).



In other words, there were interesting things happening in the world of rock, circa 1980, just nothing "new" or "fresh".
A year too late to "save" 1980 from the dim view the Hall o' Fame would hold of it, twenty-five (ugh) years later?

Speaking of the fab four, 1980 was the year I dropped all interest in what I had been into (
science fiction), and became obsessed with rock and roll, specifically,

I wanted to be a Beatle. Unfortunately, my interest in them was primed by the tragedy that ended 1980:
Maybe this event soured the Hall of Fame on 1980? Which reminds me of an album released in 1980 that was at least half a classic:
Just like starting over...

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