In case you missed the news (or even if you didn't) the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame announced their newest inductees today.
Madonna, John Mellencamp, The Ventures, Leonard Cohen, The Dave Clark Five, bluesman Little Walter.
Not too early to think about future Rock Hall candidates. With the understanding that candidates must have issued their first recording a minimum of 25 years before they can be voted in, here are seven I would like to see given serious consideration:
Dick Dale. He, not the Beach Boys, invented surf music guitar.
Tom Waits. A poet, a seminal Bukowski-like figure, who influenced numerous rock musicians.
Neil Diamond. Wrote so many hits in so many styles. Confounded and crossed musical boundaries.
Chicago- Never rock crit darlings, but set the tone for horn bands. By the way they still rock, 40 years after their 1967 founding.
Alice Cooper: Pioneer of show-centered metal and related theatrics.
Moody Blues- For more than 40 years, they have been offering us thoughtful rock and beautiful melodies, often with a spiritual tinge.
And finally:
The Monkees. Yes, you read that right. With dignity, creativity and more talent than snobs give them credit for, they set the tone for so many teen idol groups who came after them. They weren't the first to start a tv star to live star movement- Ricky Nelson was first- but in terms of groups rather than individuals, they blazed the trail for generations of boy bands.
Who would you like to see get in to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame that hasn't been voted in yet?