Radiohead, The Cure, Janet Jackson Among Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame 2019 Inductees
It could’ve been a whole lot worse! The Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame has just announced its 2019 class of inductees, and if you’re willing to accept the idea that the Hall Of Fame is a legitimate enterprise, the newest acts in the Hall might represent some progress from the baby-boomer ’60s-rock template. A few of the acts in this year’s class are legit groundbreakers who seem worthy of inclusion by any standard.
The big news this year is that Radiohead, who were passed over last year, are now on their way into the Hall Of Fame. The members of the band have generally not seemed very amped about the prospect of joining those ranks, and there’s always the possibility that they won’t show up for their induction, but at least we know they’re in there now.
Indeed, none of the acts going into the Hall Of Fame are eligible for the first time. Other than Radiohead, all of them have been in there for years. The Cure — Radiohead’s peers in gloomy, sweeping, ambitious British rock music — will also join the Hall. So will vastly important pop polymath Janet Jackson.
Slinky glam pioneers Roxy Music are joining the Hall this year, and that means original member Brian Eno, not in the Hall Of Fame for his solo work, will have his name in there. UK pop-metal overlords Def Leppard are in there as well. Stevie Nicks, already in the Hall Of Fame because of her work in Fleetwood Mac, is also joining the Hall Of Fame as a solo artist; she’s the first woman to become a two-time Hall Of Famer. And psych-rockers the Zombies are the only real ’60s band joining the Hall this year. Here’s the complete list of inductees:
The Cure
Def Leppard
Janet Jackson
Stevie Nicks
Radiohead
Roxy Music
The Zombies
The Hall announced the full list of 15 nominees in October. As ever, plenty of acts from the list were passed over. This year, the snubs are Rage Against The Machine, Devo, Kraftwerk, MC5, LL Cool J, John Prine, Todd Rundgren, and Rufus & Chaka Khan.
The induction ceremony goes down 3/29 at Brooklyn’s Barclays Center. It’ll air on HBO in spring.
UPDATE: Radiohead have released a (mildly amused?!) statement regarding the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame induction (via Variety:
The members of Radiohead have been surprised to learn of the band’s induction into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Class of 2019. The band thanks the Hall of Fame voting body and extends congratulations to this year’s fellow inductees.
The Cure’s Roger O’Donnell also said that it’s “extremely unlikely” that former members will be invited to play at the induction ceremony.