Do you think Warren Zevon should be in the R&R HOF?

Count me as a YES vote. I believe there are few songwriters in pop/rock music that can match Warren's catalogue. As someone wrote earlier in this thread, both Dylan and Springsteen (and many other famous musicians) both respected and admired Warren's incredible ability as a songwriter. Pretty good credentials, I would say!

By the way, I was fortunate to catch a Dylan show where he did an excellent rendition of "Mutineer".

"Stand in the Fire" is one of my favorite live albums. Warren could really bring it when the mood was right!

 

It's a museum and library run by a not-for-profit foundation for the purpose of interpreting rock music history, putting on educational programs, making historical material available to the public, etc, whose inductees are chosen, according to the institution's own criteria from among those who "have had a significant impact on the development, evolution and preservation of rock & roll." Not my definition. The Hall's.

 

I saw a Dylan show in what I'm pretty sure was the period between announcement of his illness and his death in which he did THREE Warren covers....quite an experience. Mutineer, Martyr, and Lawyers....

It was a very cover-filled little period for Bob---same show with the three Warren's included Neil's "Old Man" and "Brown Sugar" believe it or not---all very well done.

 

No brainer...he definitely belongs!!

 

No.

 

They have everything from A to Z - so Zevon qualifies, no?

Certainly he spoke for me on many occasions. And Patty Hearst bought it!

 

Jeff Ament of Pearl Jam included Warren on his shirt during their induction on Friday night.

Instagram post by Pearl Jam • Apr 8, 2017 at 7:13pm UTC

 

Journey. Enough said.

 

As far as West Coast songwriters go, I'll take Warren over James Taylor and Jackson Brown any day of the week. A yes vote for me. Desperadoes Under The Eaves. Enough said.

 

Enough said, what? I am not a Journey fan, but I think the band passes the George Bailey test.

 

If Percy Sledge is the by all means yes Zevon should be too.

 

c'mon, percy sledge, the one hit wonder, makes jann wenner look cool.

hell, the sex pistols are in, they made one record, one!

 

Enough said that the R&R HOF criteria is rubbish. As are many of their selections.

 

That's right, Fall 2002 or so.
I believe this was also the first tour where Dylan played keyboards almost exclusively.

 

What do you want the RNRHOF to be? It's a foundation and museum dedicated to education about and interpretation of rock history in the kind of "heritage interpretation" sense like in a national monument: that is, to illuminate rock history for future generations through direct involvement of the audiences with objects, artifacts, media and things like that. Late '70s, early '80 arena rock generally, and Journey as the ultimate exemplar of the style in particular, is clearly, without question, a major part of the story of rock's history and development and a chapter that should be told in doing that kind of interpretation. Of course that band should be in a hall of fame and museum dedicated to illuminating that history. That's a no-brainer as far as I'm concerned, even though it's not music I like. There are other choices I understand that people may quibble with -- Joan Baez? That may be the most left-field, inappropriate, unnecessary choice in the history of the museum. Honestly, her story is barely tangential to the story of the history and development of rock and roll, only because it touches Bob Dylan's story. But Journey? Like 'em or not, I don't see what the beef is with Journey's role in rock history.

 

My shelves are my RRHOF! Warren is in!

 

Well, the Sex Pistols clearly belong in the RNRHOF. Brief though their (initial) career was, their impact -- and punk's impact -- on rock history, the sound and style of rock, was and is substantial and enduring. Percy Sledge, fine singer, but, not so much. 60's and especially '70s soul is overrepresented in the hall generally. Now, I'm more of a fan of '60s soul than I am off '60s rock and roll, so, I'm not casting a value judgement on the music. You're more likely to find me listening to Sam Cooke, Aretha Franklin, Sam & Dave, Otis Redding, James Brown, Curtis Mayfield, Smokey Robinson, etc than you are to find me listening to the Beatles or Led Zeppelin or something. But how many of the inducted soul acts are central to being able to tell rock's story. Some I think -- Ray Charles, Sam Cooke, Aretha Franklin, Otis Redding, James Brown -- but Bill Withers? the O'Jays? The Dells? The Midnighters? Percy Sledge? Fine artists all, but I get if someone has a beef about their induction. But the Sex Pistols? How could anyone vote against the Sex Pistols induction?

 

Yes and it was very cool that Dave Letterman made that request at the RRHOF while inducting Pearl Jam.

 

Lindley is amazing. Seeing him with El Rayo X was one of the hottest shows I've ever seen. Every single person in that room was sweating right along with the band. That joint was a pressure cooker. Awesome!

 

Totally disagree. There are several glaring omissions (Moody Blues come to mind) that should be in before Journey. And there are many inclusions that are not even Rock and Roll. Baez, rap bands, etc. That is not rock and roll.

Believe what you want to believe. We all do.

 

Because they can't distinguish their personal biases from a broader, more objective view of the band's impact on the music scene. I'm not personally a huge Sex Pistols fan, but you'd have to be blind not to see their influence.

I personally like Zevon a lot, particularly for his unflinching honesty and his caustic wit, but I'm not convinced that he left a big enough mark on the broader scene to merit induction. Making arguments like "Well look at all of the other crummy bands they let in..." isn't too convincing to me.

 

i did not know that. good for letterman.

let's hope someone listens.

 

actually, no. Lots of respect for him, and some (not all) of his songwriting is amazing. "Desperadoes Under The Eaves" is one of those once in a lifetime songs that's both deeply personal and universal, and seems to create its own genre.

But the RRHOF is a lost cause. If it was what I think it should be, there might be 50 members in it. If you think Warren Zevon belongs (and again, I hasten to add I'm big fan, though I think he became a very inconsistent artist) I can make the case for others who belong before him. Ian Hunter and Gene Clark, among them. authentic R+R is too messy, rebellious, audacious to be left in the hands of Jann Wenner and his minions. Inducting Warren would just further validate that which is a travesty.

 

i love 60's soul also, but i just don't think percy sledge, as good as he was, is hall of fame caliber.

i've argued the sex pistols before and it is a battle that can't be won, i have agreed to disagree. i get he punk influence, i get johnny rotten, i get sid vicious, i even get punk, but one album, nope you just can't convince me, what's next PIL, just because johnny rotten was the lead singer?

the sex pistols are in, warren zevon should have been the year he passed, they could have invoked the roberto clemente rule (unless he was good anyway), but now it's time.

 

Well, who gets in before who, what difference does that make? Either you deserve to be in or you don't deserve to be in without regard to who else is in. But I'm trying not to approach this from the perspective of "belief" or from the perspective of anything personal. More from the perspective of the Hall's stated mission and an arm's length view of history. The museum's purpose is to interpret rock history. Even a lot of non-rock music I get -- how do you tell the story of the development of Nu Metal and something like Rage Against the Machine or the changing uses of sampling and looping and drum machines in rock without talking about the history of hip hop and it's cross fertilization with rock, much like you had to talk about soul & R&B in the '50s and '60s.

I do think Hall has a kind of mission creep....I mean, to "to engage, teach and inspire through the power of rock & roll," WTF does that mean? But in terms of it being a museum dedicated " to the celebration and preservation of rock & roll music," through interpretation, I don't see who Journey doesn't make the grade.