We almost missed this one. Gene Simmons of KISS has been very vocal about his distain for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame; before and after he got in, but there was an excerpt from his recent interview with Radio.com that we thought was worth mentioning, where he slammed some of the Rap and Hip Hop entrants to the Hall.
“A long time ago it was diluted. It’s really back room politics, like Boss Tweed. A few people decide what’s in and what’s not. And the masses just scratch their heads. You’ve got Grandmaster Flash in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame? Run-D.M.C. in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame? You’re killing me! That doesn’t mean those aren’t good artists. But they don’t play guitar. They sample and they talk.”
But if you asked Donna [Summer], ‘What kind of artist are you?’ do you think she would say ‘rock?’ If you asked Madonna, ‘What kind of artist are you?’ do you think she would say, ‘Oh, rock!’ So what they hell are they doing in the Hall of Fame? They can run their organization any way they’d like, but it ain’t rock! It just isn’t! If you don’t play guitar and you don’t write your own songs, you don’t belong there.”
Hmmm. We here at Notinhalloffame.com have been vocal advocate of KISS entering the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, and are in complete agreement with them about how they have been snubbed due to not being critical darlings, however we could not disagree more about how the Rock Hall should include multiple genres as the Rock spectrum itself is far from specific.
Frankly, it is an archaic way of thinking, and the Rock Hall has inducted many (namely Elvis Presley) who did not write their own material, and we did not know that a guitar was the only rock and roll instrument. We doubt that this is a view that even in his contemporaries shares; as Aerosmith helped put Run DMC in the mainstream (and salvaged their own career) with their collaboration on “Walk This Way”. Hell, how many bands today would answer they are a “Rock Band”? We would bet, not very many.
Gene, we love you, but get your head out of your ass on this one.
Comments powered by CComment