About as acclaimed a songwriter as they come, the music of Lucinda Williams was as meticulous and carefully considered as they came. With heart felt music that was part Country, part Folk, a dash of Alternative and a large helping of Americana, Williams was an original and has received abundant praise through the years, even as high as calling her the “female Bob Dylan”. Williams’ infrequent recordings and her inability to crack the mass populace kept her from becoming a major star, but fame never seemed to be what she sought anyway.

From the musical abyss known as the era between the origin of Rock and Roll and The British Invasion, Bobby Vee was one of that era’s most successful artists. His Brill Building Pop was well crafted and although he was one of that generations “safe artists”, the songs he sang were catchy and still can generate smiles today. Had Vee survived that era (like Anka and Sedaka) he might have a better shot for induction, but if those two can’t get in what chance does Bobby Vee realistically have?

Best known for being one of the primary protest bands against the Vietnam War, Country Joe McDonald was a voice that rang throughout the American counterculture and may have helped define an era. Maybe that’s the problem as music like that does not have a long shelf life and the music which was so topical then seems to have escaped from a time capsule now. Still, the Monterrey and Woodstock connection may help and if there is a more “left” field candidate than Country Joe and the Fish we can’t come up with them.

Many bands on this list have two distinct periods, but it is next to impossible to find any artist that seemingly had two separate careers more than the Tubes. With the first half that featured bizarre performance art based shows and songs of campy parody few acts seemed more “out there” than the Tubes. Their second phase was a band that seriously toned down their camp and concentrated on sleek Arena Rock that although was a departure was very successful. Despite this split personality that the group seemed to have, we have a hard time envisioning either one in Cleveland.