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(Sorry, Bob Dylan,it had to be done.)
Theres plenty of responsibility to go around, but theyre better off without him at this point.
(Cue the John Philip Sousa was the original Skrillexcontingent.)
Its definitely moving into the modern era, another voter says.
The definition of rock and roll keeps changing and the definition of popular music keeps changing.
Its also a double-edged sword of parameters.
Voter 1 stands at just over a decade; Voter 2 has been involved for over 20 years.
Theres a certain sector of people there who will tell you, Were making a TV show.
If we induct Captain Beefheart or someone like that, nobody is gonna know who that is.
I understand that argument but I find it dumb, Voter 2 puts it.
Its your job to tell them who Captain Beefheart is.
This is where the Rock Hall tends to fall down on the job.
We ought to give a shot to preserve it and make it better if we can.
Fiona Apple
This might be controversial, but whatever.
She should be brought into the conversation.
Voter 1
Yoko Ono
Contentious, for sure.
But I think its well deserved.
I hope in the post-Wenner universe this will get redressed.
This is somebody whose work is meritorious in its own right.
If theyre going to vote in Ringo Starr?
Listen,everybody loves Ringo, myself included.
Did he need to be inducted as a solo artist?
You want to stack up Ringos solo albums against Yokos?
Ill do that all day and I know whos going to win.
The dumb stuff just keeps being dumb about her.
His position, sure, enabled her to reach a lot more people than she might have otherwise.
But her work is very strong and holds up.
Voter 2
The Replacements
Their legacy is still being built.
Theyre also one of those bands people might take for granted as far as their importance.
They loom large, defining Minneapoliss sound and a certain strain of hooky yet wildly modern rock.
Theyve been name-checked by later alternative-rock acts and alt-country acts as well.
Voter 1
De La Soul
People complain about hip-hop not being rock and roll.
Voter 2
Joy Division/New Order
Theres nobody who deserves to be inducted more.
There are very few bands in the last 45 years whove had the definitional impact like theyve had.
It reverberates to this day, even if youre just an 11-year-old who bought anUnknown PleasuresT-shirt.
They are canonical for anybody who cares.
I have no doubt he wouldthink its silly.
Their influence is far greater than whatever their record sales may have been.
Its embarrassing theyre not in and its a credibility killer for the Rock Hall.
I dont think wed have the landscape that we have now without them.
It would be a musical and cultural induction.
D.C. is defined by what they did.
Theyre in the shadow of American power, but they forged a path that a lot of people followed.
Voter 1
Wendy Carlos
She needs to be inducted as an early influence.
If you look at people who are really important, she popularized the synthesizer.
She invented a lot of what we think abouthow synthesizersare used.
Before she madeSwitched-On Bach,the synthesizer was an academic tool.
It was the province of university electronics labs or occasionally used for special effects.
She was the first person to make a listenable album of non-academic popular music.
It gave people the idea you’re free to use synthesizers for more than bleep or bloop effects.
The lineage of all modern music and the way its made goes straight back to Wendy Carlos.
Theres an entire generation of American independent bands that are ripe for consideration and need to be in.
Nile Rodgers is still working with artists and hes a vital life force in the musical realm.
Its absurd that theyrenot in.
Voter 1
Weird Al Yankovic
His influence in music?
I finally saw him perform for the first time years ago.
It was during the tour where he was only doing his originals and it was amazing.
The generation who grew up watching the Eat It music video is in power now.
I think thatthe moviehelped as well.
If you get a Daniel Radcliffe co-sign, thats pretty good these days.
Voter 1
Sleater-Kinney
One of the greatest rock-and-roll bands, ever.
I cant even begin to tell you when I saw them play in the mid 90s.
Theyre among the most exciting live bands Ive ever seen in my entire life.
You could see the excitement.
Their discography is fantastic.
They were an unbelievably good band at the peak of their powers.
You could probably make that argument about Bikini Kill, but Sleater-Kinney were the better band by far.
Bikini Kill is more important sociologically than musically.
Most of the male members have been inducted.
Hal Blaine and Earl Palmer have been in for over 20 years.
Why is Carol Kaye not in the Rock Hall?
They have a side person category, which she would be ideal for.
They came into their own as players and as songwriters.
But youre seeing less of that now.
Look at the reaction to, say, Olivia Rodrigo and how she originated at the Disney Channel.
Its much more open-armed, right?
Voter 1
Weve outgrown our weird purity test with the Monkees.
Its dumb to exclude them at this point.
Its the same, dumb, dismissive arguments.
The Monkees had huge pop hits and some of thebest singlesof that entire era.
Whatever the circumstances of their creation, the work stands the test of time and deserves recognition.
Not everything happens organically, especially in pop music.
Things come into clearer focus the more time passes.
Voter 2
Correction: A previous version of this story featured a photo caption that incorrectly identified Ian Curtis.
It has since been updated.
