It was 29 years ago tonight (January 23rd, 1986) that the first inductees entered the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in a ceremony held at New York Citys Waldorf-Astoria. The inaugural class of the Hall of Fame featured rocks forefathers: Chuck Berry, Elvis Presley, Little Richard, Fats Domino, Buddy Holly, the Everly Brothers, Ray Charles, James Brown, Sam Cooke and Jerry Lee Lewis. Included in the Non-Performer category were Sun Records founder Sam Phillips and seminal disc jockey Alan Freed, whom many credit for actually coining the phrase Rock And Roll. Also inducted that night in the Early Influence category were blues icon Robert Johnson, countrys Jimmie Rogers, and boogie-woogie pianist Jimmy Yancey. Columbia Records legendary A&R man John Hammond, who was responsible for discovering Billie Holiday, Aretha Franklin, Bob Dylan, Bruce Springsteen, and many others, received the Halls first Lifetime Achievement Award. The emotional inductions included Keith Richards speech inducting Chuck Berry and John Lennons sons Julian and Sean Lennon inducting their fathers hero, Elvis Presley. The ceremony featured the first all-star jam, which closed the nights festivities. Among the stars joining the inductees onstage were Steve Winwood, John Fogerty, Billy Joel, and ZZ Top. The musicians, backed by Late Night With David Lettermans house band -- the Worlds Most Dangerous Band, lead by Paul Shaffer -- rocked into the early hours on classics such as Berrys Roll Over Beethoven, Little Queenie, and Johnny B. Goode; Lewis Great Balls Of Fire and Whole Lotta Shakin Goin On; Creedence Clearwater Revivals Proud Mary; Chubby Checkers The Twist; and the Spencer Davis Groups Gimme Some Lovin, among others. Paul McCartney, told us that the birth of rock n roll in the mid-1950s not only changed his life but the world at large: It was America reawakening the world cause, you know, we were into sort of other stuff then, and suddenly Elvis, Little Richard came screaming out of across the Atlantic, yknow, and it was just so exciting for us all. That is a very exciting time, so to remember it was very exciting, but also being a teenager at that time was a very exciting, interesting time. Mick Jagger spoke about Buddy Hollys influence on the future British Invasion rockers: Every English person you talk to, from my generation, at least, will tell you that Buddy Holly was -- he was a big influence as asongwriter. And he wrote all these songs in a very short period of time, and theyre all very simple. And he was very big in England, I think he toured only once; I saw him on stage. But he was a very big influence. During a recent chat with WSJ Digital Network, Graham Nash recalled first meeting the Everly Brothers in 1960 while still a teen back in England, and never forgot their attention and kindness: The Everly Brothers came to Manchester, and me and Allan Clarke, who later formed the Hollies with me, decided that we were going to meet the Everly Brothers. And that was a dream, I mean, who does that, right? But we waited; the last bus left, we knew we would have to walk nine miles back home in the pissing rain -- it was a drag -- except, we were gonna meet our idols! So, around 1:30 in the morning they come, theyre a little drunk, they come round the corner (laughter) and we go, Oh, theyre here, God, theyre walking towards us, oh my goodness, right? Don and Phil Everly talked to me and Allan Clarke for what seemed like half-an-hour -- just encouraging us. James Burton, Elvis Presleys longtime lead guitarist and bandleader, said that Elvis was never not in full control of his voice, even on his final tours when his health was sometimes in question: Oh yeah, he knew his range. Oh yeah, absolutely. He had perfect pitch. I mean the guy could be clear across the stage and go into a song he probably hadnt sung in years -- it was there. It was such a natural talent, yknow? It was a blessing from God. ZZ Tops Billy Gibbons credits rock n rolls forefathers for everything that came after them: We get the beat from Bo, we got the poetry from Chuck, and we got the insane madness vocal from Little Richard. Those three combined, if you could possibly invent something beyond that, wed be on another planet -- but I think were already there anyway (laughs). FAST FACTS The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Foundation was created in 1983. Artists become eligible to enter the Hall 25 years after the release of their debut single. The official Rock Hall and Museum opened on September 2nd, 1995 in a building designed by I. M. Pei. The city of Cleveland was chosen after successfully lobbying that rock and roll had started with Alan Freed, a Cleveland native who first took to the airwaves in the city. SIDE NOTES There inductees for thee 2015 Rock And Roll Hall of Fame are Joan Jett & The Blackhearts, Ringo Starr, Lou Reed, Green Day, Stevie Ray Vaughan & Double Trouble, Bill Withers, the 5 Royales, and the Paul Butterfield Blues Band. The induction ceremony is set for April 18th at Clevelands Public Hall. Ringo Starr and the “5” Royales were chosen by special committees with Ringo receiving the Award For Musical Excellence and the “5” Royales earning an Early Influence Award.
Posted on: Fri, 23 Jan 2015 14:01:01 +0000
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