17 March 2008

“Trailblazers” Honored by Rock and Roll Hall of Fame

Diverse artists redefine and broaden rock ’n’ roll landscape

 

Madonna is inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame March 10 in New York. The Hall of Fame calls her “one of the most ferociously original artists in music today.” (© AP Images)

Madonna is inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame March 10, 2008, at a ceremony in New York. (© AP Images)

By Melody Merin
Special Correspondent

Washington -- The artists honored by the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2008 represent many of the styles and genres that have shaped the vibrant American musical landscape.

Pop icon Madonna, blues harmonica player Little Walter, singer-songwriters John Mellencamp and Leonard Cohen, British rockers the Dave Clark Five, rock instrumentalists The Ventures and soul music producers Kenny Gamble and Leon Huff were inducted into the Hall of Fame at a ceremony in New York on March 10.

“The 2008 inductees are trailblazers -- all unique and influential in their genres,” said Joel Peresman, president and chief executive officer of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Foundation. They “demonstrate the rich diversity of rock ’n’ roll itself.”

Over the 23 years since the first group of inductees included Elvis Presley and Little Richard, defining what and who represents “rock ’n’ roll” continues to evolve.

One example is Madonna -- the “Queen of Pop” -- with hits such as “Material Girl” and “Like a Virgin” in the 1980s and “Vogue” and “Justify My Love” in the 1990s. Madonna has evolved and moved to icon status, outlasting many of her contemporaries by constantly reinventing her look and mixing up her sound along the way -- for instance, incorporating the distinctive qualities of disco and electronica into her songs.  The Hall of Fame calls her “one of the most ferociously original artists in music today.”

Just as Madonna has helped broaden the rock genre, hip-hop artists also are pushing those boundaries. In 2007, Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five was the first hip-hop group to be inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Joseph Saddler (Grandmaster Flash) said during the ceremony in 2007 that the honor “opens the gates to our culture.” And Mele Mel, the rapper in the group’s 1982 hit “The Message,” urged music executives to “make hip-hop the culture that it was, instead of the culture of violence it is right now.”

For many artists and musicians, socially and politically conscious messages are part of the fabric of rock ’n’ roll. Following in the footsteps of Woody Guthrie and Bob Dylan (both inducted in 1988), rocker John Mellencamp was honored in 2008. Famous for melodic hits like “Jack and Diane” and “Small Town,” Indiana-born Mellencamp is credited with shedding light on issues important to Americans living in the heartland. In 1985, he co-founded Farm Aid, a nonprofit organization that works in behalf of farmers and their families. Along with fellow musicians Willie Nelson and Neil Young, he also organized the first Farm Aid concert.

Billy Joel, who inducted Mellencamp, said people “need to hear somebody out there who feels like they do, in the small towns or the big cities. And it doesn't matter if they hear it on a jukebox or in a gin mill.”

 

Kenneth Gamble, left, and Leon Huff are inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame March 10 in New York. They are joined in this photo by rhythm and blues singer Patti LaBelle, who performed “If You Don’t Know Me by Now,” which won Gamble and Huff a Grammy in 1990 for producing Simply Red’s cover of the Blue Notes’ 1972 hit. (© AP Images)

Kenneth Gamble, left, and Leon Huff are inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Patti LaBelle is in center. (© AP Images)

Onstage, Mellencamp said he was lucky to be there, and he shared the story of having to undergo lifesaving surgery for a spinal birth defect at the age of six weeks.

Montreal-born Leonard Cohen, known for his elegiac melodies and mysterious lyrics -- such as in the much-covered song “Hallelujah” -- was introduced by Lou Reed. Cohen gained acclaim with the 1966 release of Judy Collins’ album In My Life, which contained his songs “Suzanne” and “Dress Rehearsal Rag.” His album The Songs of Leonard Cohen was released in 1967.

Reed said, “We're so lucky to be alive at the same time Leonard Cohen is.”

Longtime partners Kenny Gamble and Leon Huff, who write and produce songs and own the record label Philadelphia International, were inducted by rhythm and blues singer Patti LaBelle. She belted out “If You Don’t Know Me by Now,” which won Gamble and Huff a Grammy in 1990 for producing Simply Red’s cover of the Blue Notes’ 1972 hit.

The Brit pop group the Dave Clark Five, minus singer Mike Smith, who recently died of pneumonia at the age of 64, was inducted by actor Tom Hanks. Considered one of the most successful “British Invasion” bands in the 1960s, the group is famous for hits like “Glad All Over” and “Bits and Pieces.”  The band has sold more than 50 million records.

The Ventures, known for instrumental surfer anthems of the 1960s, performed two of their most famous -- “Walk, Don’t Run” and “Hawaii Five-O” -- during the ceremony.

"When the Ventures first hit the radio, I would say I was gone," singer John Fogerty said in inducting the band.

Posthumous honors went to Little Walter Jacobs, who died in 1968. Praised for his pioneering use of the microphone, which helped establish the modern blues harmonica, Little Walter recorded with legends like Muddy Waters and Bo Diddley.

Artists can be considered for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame 25 years after their first record is released. Others in the music business, such as songwriters and producers, are also honored. There is also a category called Early Influences, acknowledging artists from earlier eras whose music inspired and influenced rock ’n’ roll. Woody Guthrie is one, as well as singers Nat “King” Cole, Billie Holiday and Louis Armstrong, folk singer Pete Seeger and bluegrass icon Bill Monroe, among others.

All the honorees are commemorated in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum in Cleveland. More information is available on the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Web site.

See The Arts - Music.