Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame 2014 Nominees

Nominees for the 2014 class have been announced. Here they are, with my thoughts, with the nominees ranked based on representation in my music collection

• Linda Ronstadt (89 songs). I’ve seen in concert twice. “one of the most popular interpretive singers of the '70s, earning a string of platinum-selling albums and Top 40 singles… followed by a lengthy career bridging styles from country to soul to standards.”
• Yes (53 songs). I’ve seen in concert twice. “The definitive English progressive rock band, purveyors of virtuoso playing and vast musical tapestries topped off with gorgeous melodies.”
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• Deep Purple (31 songs). (repeat nominee). “Progressive rock giants who made hard rock a fine art, and unleashed some of the greatest guitar riffs known to the world”
• Peter Gabriel (30 songs). “Theatrical leader of '70s-era Genesis and a bona fide pop star by the '80s despite his experimental, often exotic, material”
• Hall And Oates (22 songs). “Duo whose smooth, catchy take on Philly soul brought them enormous commercial success …. yet little critical success.”
• Nirvana (12 songs). “After the band's second album, 1991's Nevermind, nothing was ever quite the same”
• Cat Stevens (12 songs). (repeat nominee) “Acoustic-based hitmaker who became one of the most popular singer/songwriters of the '70s thanks to his invariably catchy material.”
• Kiss (6 songs). (repeat nominee) “Garish glam rockers with anthems galore, who became rock legends with a reputation for incredible live shows… Most kids were infatuated with the look of Kiss, not their music.”
• · The Zombies (3) “Aside from the Beatles and perhaps the Beach Boys, no mid-'60s rock group wrote melodies as gorgeous as those of the Zombies… To this day, they're known primarily for their three big hit singles.”
• Chic (2) (repeat nominee) “There can be little argument that Chic was disco's greatest band”
• Link Wray (1) “Link Wray may never get into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, but his contribution to the language of rockin' guitar would still be a major one”
• Paul Butterfield Blues Band (1) (repeat nominee) “Iconoclastic Chicago harmonica player whose storming blues band produced seminal work that drew on rock, psychedelia, jazz, and Indian classical.”
• The Replacements (0) “Willfully messy and driven toward self-sabotage, they became one of the best and most influential rock & roll bands of the '80s.”
• LL Cool J (0) (repeat nominee) “Queens rapper who fused beatbox minimalism with defiant lyrics, pushing the music into new terrain and becoming a superstar in the process.”
• N.W.A. (0) (repeat nominee) “Incendiary Compton rappers who introduced the world to gangsta rap”
• The Meters (0) (repeat nominee) “The Meters defined New Orleans funk, not only on their own recordings, but also as the backing band for numerous artists”

 IMHO, Nirvana is a slam dunk, no brainer, certain choice. I’d like to see Yes and Linda Ronstadt, but doubt either will have the support of the . Peter Gabriel has a good shot, unless he’s held back because of Genesis’s induction (2010). I’m not a big Kiss fan, but they probably belong. Remember the criteria is (theoretically): “the influence and significance of the artists’contributions to the development and perpetuation of rock and roll.”…  Once again, there’s a fan vote, let your voice be heard!  But, the key is the opinion of “an international voting body of more than 600 artists, historians and members of the music industry”.