Classic Rock News And Views

Shop For: Classic Rock Gear    Classic Rock Ringtones    Classic Rock Posters

Efforts Ramp Up For Rush Hall of Fame Induction

I’m not sure there is any more intense hot button issue with dedicated Rush fans than the group’s omission from the Rock And Roll Hall of Fame. Now it appears at least one blog author at Wired magazine believes the group deserves a place among the other rockers in that famous institution.

Wired blogger Scott Thill contacted a source at the Rock And Roll Hall of Fame and inquired about the chances of getting answers to three questions from readers — who also happen to be Rush fans — regarding the whole issue of the group’s exclusion.

The article resulted in 500 responses, which was said to be record-breaking – perhaps even breaking a site-wide record for reader responses.

To summarize, fans noted that Rush has 24 gold and 14 platinum records to their credit, with an impressive 40 million units sold worldwide. Also touted are the musicianship of the individual members of the group, who few are likely to argue with, I suspect.

There’s also the fact that the group is still together and still working, having released a new album not long ago and finished up an extensive tour in July.

Finally, fans asked if Jann Wenner – co-founder of the Rock And Roll Hall of Fame – simply dislikes Rush, and as a result, has excluded the Canadian trio from induction due to his personal feelings.

As the article points out, the ball is now in the court of the Rock And Roll Hall of Fame and we’ll be listening for any response. The 2009 inductees have already been selected and Rush seems to be absent from the list yet again.

Although comments from the group indicate that they are not losing any sleep over their exclusion, it’s clear that many fans believe that it’s high time they received the honor they have earned. As they say so often in the world of sports: “Maybe next year.”

Subscribe to RRN via RSS Feed or e-mail to stay up-to-date on classic rock news

Tags: Fan Questions, Hall of Fame, Rock and Roll, Rush, Wired

Rock And Roll Hall of Fame’s ‘In The Know’ Sweepstakes

What rock fan wouldn’t love a private guided tour of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame? That’s just what the “In The Know” sweepstakes is all about. The winner will receive four tickets to the house that rock built, enabling them to join the curator of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame museum on a private guided tour of the facility.

The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Foundation was created in 1983, and began the search for a location to build a facility dedicated to the music that was popularized by early rock pioneers like Bill Haley, Elvis Presley, Chuck Berry and Little  Richard.

Although serious consideration was given to locating the new facility in Memphis or Cincinnati, Cleveland, Ohio was ultimately chosen for a number of reasons, including the credit that was given to WJW disk jockey Alan Freed for promoting rock and roll in its infancy, as well as being instrumental in making the term “rock and roll” become the standard for this new genre of music.

Cleveland is also recognized as the location where the first major rock and roll concert took place in in 1952 at the Moondog Coronation Ball, an event that was organized by Freed, who obviously deserves a lot of credit for being one of the first DJs to put Rock and Roll out on the airwaves, and help give birth to a whole new genre of music that may just be around as long as there are people here on this planet to listen to it.

There is some debate about whether Cleveland was chosen for the location because it was able to come up with the money necessary to construct the facility before the other cities were able to, but there’s also the petition drive that was signed by 600,000 or so fans in favor of Cleveland to consider, as well as the poll in the national newspaper USA Today where Cleveland beat out Memphis by about 100,000 votes.

The facility opened on the shores of Lake Erie on September 2, 1995 after two years of construction.

To enter the “In The Know” Sweepstakes, visit the official website and submit your entry.

Tags: Cleveland, Hall of Fame, In The Know Sweepstakes, Rock and Roll

Hall of Fame Petition Drive For Yes

I’ve definitely got a soft spot in my heart for Yes, one of my favorite progressive groups of the 1960’s and 1970’s, so I wanted to help make other Yes fans aware of this effort.

Although I have not been able to find much detail regarding this, I did receive an e-mail message informing me that a Philadelphia talk show host has started an online petition to promote the induction of Yes into  the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame.

For me, the album that stands out was Fragile, which the group released in 1972. At the time, I had not previously heard anything quite like it and was amazed by the musicianship that was represented on that album and have been a Yes fan ever since.

Currently, some members of the group are still touring on their own or with other groups. However, there are some rumors around that claim a Yes tour is being considered and other rumors that claim it is a reality and will happen this summer. We shall see.

In the meantime, if you are a fan who believes that Yes belongs in the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, you may want to head on over and sign the petition.

Yes Ringtones

Tags: Hall of Fame, Petition, Rock, Yes