The Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame

Taupin-Cetera · **Posted:** Fri Nov 26, 2010 7:47 am

My Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame induction speech for Chicago is coming soon!

Taupin-Cetera · **Posted:** Mon Nov 29, 2010 9:17 am

To Sampson:

First question:

Why do artists in your 50 Unlikely Candidates and Outside Genre Possibilities categories not have a (1-10) Rock Hall qualification rating included with your critique http://www.digitaldreamdoor.com/pages/b ... e_xlf.html http://www.digitaldreamdoor.com/pages/b ... e_out.html

Second and third questions are about artists who are not critiqued or rated by you on DDD:

What is your Rock Hall qualification rating (1-10) for each of the following artists in the performers category:

The Surfaris, The Kingston Trio, Harry Belafonte, Phil Ochs, Buffy Sainte-Marie, Judy Collins, Fairport Convention

What is your Rock Hall qualification rating (1-10) for each of the following artists in the non-performers category:

John Simon, Quincy Jones, David Porter, Robert Blackwell, Sergio Mendez, David Foster, Jim Steinman, Bernie Taupin
Burt Bacharach and Hal David, Henry Cosby and Sylvia Moy

Fourth and fifth questions:

What is your (1-10) Rock Hall qualification rating for Weird Al Yankovic and where would you list him--S-Z, 50 Unlikely Candidates, or Outside Genre Possibilities

QUESTIONS I WANT ANSWERED FIRST:

Your opinions on Bernie Taupin and Weird Al Yankovic and their chances for induction.

Thank you.

QUALIFICATIONS
1 - Non-existant
2 - Mostly Insignificant
3 - Recognizable, But Minor Credentials
4 - Modest Accomplishments
5 - Worth Examining, But Will Often Fall Short
6 - Strong Case To Be Made
7 - Solid Choice
8 - Unquestioned Credentials
9 - Dominant Artist
10 - The Immortals

VOTE FOR THE ARTISTS YOU THINK WILL BE INDUCTED AT FUTURE ROCK LEGENDS:

http://www.futurerocklegends.com/index.php

Bruce · **Posted:** Tue Dec 14, 2010 10:16 pm

Hall of fame inductees have been announced. Sampson gave them as
follows in his hall of fame section:

Tom Waits - 4
Neil Diamond - 4
Alice Cooper - 7
Dr. John - 7
Darlene Love - 5

The people who did not get in and Sampson's rating:

Beastie Boys - 8
LL Cool J - 8
Bon Jovi - 7
Donna Summer - 7
Chic - 7
Joe Tex - 7
Chuck Willis - 7
Donovan - 6
J. Geils Band - 4
Laura Nyro - 2

------------------------------------------------------------

Tom Waits, Neil Diamond, the Alice Cooper Band, Dr. John and Darlene
Love will be welcomed into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame next
spring, the organization will announce Wednesday.

All five had been long eligible for induction under the halls
criteria that acts wait at least 25 years after releasing their
first recordings. In addition, Jac Holzman and Art Rupe, the
founders of Elektra and Speciality Records labels, respectively, are
entering the hall as co-recipients of the annual Ahmet Ertegun Award
bestowed on influential record executives.

Demonstrating that when Elton John speaks, Rock Hall voters listen,
Leon Russell has been selected as the honoree for the new Award for
Musical Excellence, previously known as the Sideman category. John
had been exceptionally vocal this year when promoting their duet
album The Union in saying that his Oklahoma-based fellow pianist,
singer and songwriter deserved to be in the Hall of Fame.

Of the nominees who were on the final ballot for induction, Bon
Jovi, Donna Summer, Chic, Laura Nyro, the Beastie Boys, Donovan, the
J. Geils Band, LL Cool J, Joe Tex and Chuck Willis were left to wait
for another year to be voted in.

Brett Alan · **Joined:** Thu Oct 07, 2010 3:17 pm **Posts:** 6333

It's interesting that of the five inductees, only Darlene Love had
ever been nominated before. Clearly the voters don't see eye to eye
with the nominating committee.

A lot of Dr. John and Darlene Love's resumes were in session work
rather than their own recordings; neither has a lot of big hits or
major recordings under their own name. (A couple each, yes.)

I'm very surprised that neither the Beasties nor LL Cool J got in.
Both seem to me to be obviously worthy.

Leon Russell arguably has had more success as an artist than Love or Dr. John, but he's a good choice as a sideman. Don't know why they're renaming it, though. The non-performer inductees seem reasonable, although the proportion overall of label executives to songwriters and producers is higher than I think it ought to be.

I assume they're not going to do any Early Influence inductees? That category was basically abandoned after 2000 but briefly revived in 2008-2009. Now it's been gone for two years again. Bruce has made the case for Wynonie Harris and The Clovers and I'm convinced that it's criminal not to have them in.

Ryan · **Joined:** Thu Oct 07, 2010 10:46 am **Posts:** 5776

Brett, did you fall prey to Taupin's silly page breaks, or was there briefly a problem with the site's word wrap?

I believe it is ridiculous that Diamond is getting in as a performer. I would have no problem at all if he went in as a Non-Performer, for his songwriting. He's a "pop" musician, and far less "rock" than most pop musicians that are in now. If anything, he didn't release a "rock" album until he started collaborating with Rick Rubin in the last decade. Tom Waits is an interesting candidate. I personally love his music, but I do agree with many of Sampson's statements about his candidacy. Waits, who is the second "alternative music" artist to make it into the hall (barring punk bands), and its nice that they're finally getting around to another genre that they've been ignoring. But aside from critical acclaim, he really has no other criteria (sales do count here, as does mainstream popularity). Aside from Rod Stewart's hit cover of his "Downtown Train", he has no mainstream recognition. Maybe there's an outside chance for Scott Walker, another cultly admired, largely ignored singer/songwriter to get a nomination now. But as a fan of Tom Waits, i'm personally ecstatic that he's in.

ClashWho · **Posted:** Wed Dec 15, 2010 9:47 pm

Neil Diamond's early records are great rock 'n' roll and he should have been inducted years ago.

Chaplin · **Joined:** Wed Oct 13, 2010 7:38 pm **Posts:** 196

piper wrote:

Brett, did you fall prey to Taupin's silly page breaks, or was there briefly a problem with the site's word wrap?

I believe it is ridiculous that Diamond is getting in as a performer. I would have no problem at all if he went in as a Non-Performer, for his songwriting. He's a "pop" musician, and far less "rock" than most pop musicians that are in now. If anything, he didn't release a "rock" album until he started collaborating with Rick Rubin in the last decade. Tom Waits is an interesting candidate. I personally love his music, but I do agree with many of Sampson's statements about his candidacy. Waits, who is the second "alternative music" artist to make it into the hall (barring punk bands), and its nice that they're finally getting around to another genre that they've been ignoring. But aside from critical acclaim, he really has no other criteria (sales do count here, as does mainstream popularity). Aside from Rod Stewart's hit cover of his "Downtown Train", he has no mainstream recognition. Maybe there's an outside chance for Scott Walker, another cultly admired, largely ignored singer/songwriter to get a nomination now. But as a fan of Tom Waits, i'm personally ecstatic that he's in.

I hate to nitpick, but wasn't R.E.M. the second alternative artist to get in? The first being Velvet Underground?

Bruce · **Posted:** Thu Dec 16, 2010 2:36 am

piper wrote:

I believe it is ridiculous that Diamond is getting in as a performer. I would have no problem at all if he went in as a Non-Performer, for his songwriting. He's a "pop" musician, and far less "rock" than most pop musicians that are in now. If anything, he didn't release a "rock" album until he started collaborating with Rick Rubin in the last decade.

All of his early non hit stuff and all of his Bang Records were rock. He's certainly more rock than Leonard fucking Cohen, Joni Mitchell and James Taylor. What did any of them ever do that rocked like this...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vvXCYqd8AAs

Ryan · **Joined:** Thu Oct 07, 2010 10:46 am **Posts:** 5776

Chaplin wrote:

piper wrote:

Brett, did you fall prey to Taupin's silly page breaks, or was there briefly a problem with the site's word wrap?

I believe it is ridiculous that Diamond is getting in as a performer. I would have no problem at all if he went in as a Non-Performer, for his songwriting. He's a "pop" musician, and far less "rock" than most pop musicians that are in now. If anything, he didn't release a "rock" album until he started collaborating with Rick Rubin in the last decade. Tom Waits is an interesting candidate. I personally love his music, but I do agree with many of Sampson's statements about his candidacy. Waits, who is the second "alternative music" artist to make it into the hall (barring punk bands), and its nice that they're finally getting around to another genre that they've been ignoring. But aside from critical acclaim, he really has no other criteria (sales do count here, as does mainstream popularity). Aside from Rod Stewart's hit cover of his "Downtown Train", he has no mainstream recognition. Maybe there's an outside chance for Scott Walker, another cultly admired, largely ignored singer/songwriter to get a nomination now. But as a fan of Tom Waits, i'm personally ecstatic that he's in.

I hate to nitpick, but wasn't R.E.M. the second alternative artist to get in? The first being Velvet Underground?

Yeah, but they often aren't considered alternative (just a massive influence on the genre) by quite a few sites. Its even a stretch to call Waits alternative, to be honest, but I suppose by the same broad definition, VU is alternative and I just forgot about them.

And yes, I did forget Diamond's Bang Records sides. I still think he'd be a better fit in Non Performers as a songwriter than as a performer.

Bruce · **Posted:** Thu Dec 16, 2010 10:28 am

piper wrote:

And yes, I did forget Diamond's Bang Records sides. I still think he'd be a better fit in Non Performers as a songwriter than as a performer.

What rock songs did he write for anybody other than himself aside from "I'm A Believer?" I guess there's "Red Red Wine" that he did first and later was a hit for UB40, but he is in no way a hall of fame songwriter but not a hall of fame performer given that almost everything he wrote was for himself.

How can you possibly forget the guy's first 8 or 10 hits?

ClashWho · **Posted:** Thu Dec 16, 2010 5:29 pm

piper wrote:

And yes, I did forget Diamond's Bang Records sides. I still think he'd be a better fit in Non Performers as a songwriter than as a performer.

You might change your mind if you ever attended one of his concerts.

ClashWho · **Posted:** Thu Dec 16, 2010 8:10 pm

"Holly Holy" is so awesome.

Bruce · **Posted:** Thu Dec 16, 2010 11:49 pm

ProgRocker wrote:

Bruce wrote:

What rock songs did he write for anybody other than himself aside from "I'm A Believer?" I guess there's "Red Red Wine" that he did first and later was a hit for UB40, but he is in no way a hall of fame songwriter but not a hall of fame performer given that almost everything he wrote was for himself.

Just a couple I could find:

Sweet Caroline: Charted for Bobby Womack in 1972
Kentucky Woman: Charted for Deep Purple in 1968
Holly Holy: Charted for Junior Walker and the All Stars in 1971
He ain't heavy, He's my Brother: Charted for The Hollies in 1970 and Olivia Newton-John in 1976
Girl, You'll Be a Woman Soon: Charted for Urge Overkill in 1994

Neil did not write "He Ain't Heavy" that was written by Bob Russell and Bobby Scott.

Maybe you're just not grasping this. He only wrote one song of note that he did not write for himself (I'm A Believer).

Somebody who is going to go in only as a songwriter has to have written songs for other people aside from himself. Every song that you listed here is a song that Diamond wrote FOR HIMSELF...and then other artists redid the songs later on.

None of those other remakes above were better than Neil's own version of the song.

Here is a scan of the label of the original version of "He Ain't Heavy"

Attachment:

0-0-0-0HeAintHeavy.jpg

Brett Alan · **Joined:** Thu Oct 07, 2010 3:17 pm **Posts:** 6333

piper wrote:

Brett, did you fall prey to Taupin's silly page breaks, or was there briefly a problem with the site's word wrap?

Oh, no, I was just pasting from something I had written elsewhere, so that's why the line breaks were funky.

As others have said, Neil Diamond's early stuff was definitely rock. The Hall has taken a pretty broad view of rock is, so I have no problem at all with Diamond getting in, although it makes me wonder all the more why Chicago hasn't gotten in. They also were most "rock" in their early days and eventually got pretty saccharine, but they if anything did more in the rock field per se.

Besides "I'm A Believer", Neil also wrote "A Little Bit Me A Little Bit You" for the Monkees and "Sunday & Me" for Jay & The Americans, but that's nowhere near enough to get in under "non-performer".

Never knew there was a version of "He Ain't Heavy..." before The Hollies.

Taupin-Cetera · **Posted:** Wed Jan 12, 2011 11:52 am

MY ROCK AND ROLL HALL OF FAME INDUCTION SPEECH FOR CHICAGO

The year was 1966, and the place was Chicago's DePaul University. That was where a saxophone, clarinet, and flute player named Walter Parazaider got together with a drummer named Danny Seraphine, a guitar player and singer named Terry Kath, a trumpet player named Lee Loughnane, and a trombone player named James Pankow. Then in 1967, they met a piano player and a singer named Robert Lamm, from Chicago's Roosevelt University, who was performing at the Belmont Lounge and Yogi's Den in Chicago, and they asked him to join their band, which he did. The band would be called The Big Thing, and The Big Thing would play on the Midwest club circuit, building a following. An engagement during the second week of December 1967 proved to be an important gig. The Big Thing was an opening act at Barnaby's in Chicago for a band called the Exceptions, which was the biggest club band in the Midwest, and they stuck around and listened to them. If The Big Thing had stayed late to see the Exceptions, one of the Exceptions had come early to see The Big Thing. That night, singer and bass guitar player Peter Cetera would leave the Exceptions and join The Big Thing as its seventh member, and big things were about to happen.

James William Guercio, who had been a DePaul University student of music as well, moved the band out to Los Angeles and he would become their manager and producer. The Big Thing would become The Chicago Transit Authority, and then simply, Chicago. The plan from the beginning was to start a horn centered Rock and Roll band, a Rock and Roll band with a horn section, a Rock and Roll band with horns that were an integral part of the music, a Rock and Roll band whose horn section formed the heart of the band, a Rock and Roll band with a horn section that was another lead voice dancing with the vocals. Chicago's use of brass and woodwinds was like no other band. They took what is called a "melodic" approach to the horns rather than a "harmonic" approach. The horns actually acted as an additional vocal line, not just performing fill rifts. This is what was innovative about Chicago. Chicago was a rock 'n' roll band with horns, and a band way ahead of its time.

True to the need of the album-oriented rock format that launched them, the first four albums released by Chicago between 1969 and 1972 comprised three double albums and one quadruple album. That's 10 albums in three years. Chicago's next five albums: Chicago V, VI, VII, VIII, and IX all hit number one on the Billboard 200 Albums Chart, and included Chicago's eighth member, percussionist and conga player Laudir De Oliveira, who would remain with the band for their next five albums: Chicago X, XI, Hot Streets, 13 and XIV. Chicago took America and the world by storm without the help of their faces. Total subjugation of individual ego to the collective good of the group was the rule in Chicago, even to the point of using a logo rather than a picture of the band on all of their album covers. Chicago refused to emphasize celebrity over the music. The group turned its anonymous, professional air into a virtue and a marketing strategy. They were the faceless band behind a logo. Chicago's logo and its facelessness were very much in keeping with the style of the late '60's that valued group effort over individual ego. The group would come to be identified by a logo, and that logo, designed by Nick Fasciano, would become the most famous logo in Rock and Roll history. Some people though would offer a more sinister viewpoint of the logo, suggesting that management used the fact that nobody really knew what the members of Chicago really looked like as a reminder that nobody in the band was irreplaceable. Inspired by classical music, Chicago chose to number most of their albums with Roman numerals instead of giving them full names.

In 1969, Chicago released their first album, and to this day, it is considered to be one of the greatest groundbreaking albums ever produced in the history of Rock and Roll; that album being The Chicago Transit Authority. It was a blend of jazz, classical, and straight-ahead rock and roll. It included an unheralded synthesis of electric guitar rock and roll to more deeply rooted jazz influences and arrangements. It was funky, melodic, emotive, and politically intoned. I'm guessing most people in this room tonight have never listened to The Chicago Transit Authority. You can not buy a Chicago greatest hits record and understand what I'm talking about, but there are so many people that I am speaking for tonight who know exactly what I'm talking about. When The Chicago Transit Authority was released in 1969, it seemed to be the perfect synthesis of everything that was diametrically opposed. It had smooth, lush harmonies, it had the distorted feedback-drenched pyrotechnic guitar works of Terry Kath, it had the Beatles-meet-Motown bass works of Peter Cetera, it had the Buddy Rich-meets-Mitch Mitchell drum works of Danny Seraphine, it had the churning Hammond organ and classical piano works of Robert Lamm, and it had those powerful horns of Walter Parazaider, Lee Loughnane, and James Pankow weaving in and out of the arrangements, ending up toe-to-toe with everything else, and it all worked. The dynamics were perfect. The Chicago Transit Authority seemed to have everything in the right place. The horn section, the vocalists, and the rhythm section were tight and unified. Individually, the members of Chicago were all outstanding on their respective instruments. Unlike many bands of the era that utilized session musicians for their recordings, Chicago was completely self-contained.

Chicago's first 11 albums all showcased the impeccable musicianship of all the members of the band. At first, Chicago's sound was a hard sell. Radio stations wouldn't play their songs. Chicago's music was not easily identifiable what it was. Chicago could not be pigeonholed. Their sound met with resistance. Record executives turned to Guercio, and Guercio edited a number of Chicago's songs to make them shorter and more radio friendly. It was a compromise to be on the radio, and it was what it was. You can still listen to all of the band's songs in their entirety on all the early Chicago albums; it's the radio versions of the songs that are shorter. Basically, the songs were made shorter because (as Robert Lamm put it) Chicago's music wasn't for people with Attention Deficit Disorder. You know, because those are the people who listen to radio—people with A.D.D. As the '70's became the '80's and the demands of the music industry started to change, Chicago went looking for a new record label. During Chicago's search for a new record company, one label said to them, "If you get rid of the horn section we'll sign you," to which Chicago responded, "Go fck yourself!" Asking Chicago to get rid of the horn section is like asking Elton John to get rid of the piano, as James Pankow once said. Chicago would go on to sign with a new record label, and the horns stayed, and the band played on for forty more years.

Question: What do you get when you mix the voice of Ray Charles with the voice and the guitar playing of Jimi Hendrix? The answer is Chicago's first lead singer and lead guitarist, Terry Kath. Terry Kath had a very soulful quality to his voice and he was an outstanding, superb, deep and wicked virtuoso of a guitar player. One of the best examples of Terry Kath’s brilliant guitar playing can be heard on the hit single 25 Or 6 To 4 from Chicago’s second album. The song's distinctive descending riff has been murdered by as many beginning guitarists as has been done with Deep Purple's "Smoke on the Water," Black Sabbath's "Iron Man" and Led Zeppelin's "Stairway to Heaven." The terrifyingly brilliant guitar solo performed by Terry Kath-a mountain few players ever dare to climb-is what makes 25 Or 6 To 4 absolutely essential. It is one of the greatest moments in Rock history for the electric guitar. The song's rather mystical title is just a reference to the time of day the song was written: 25 (or 26) minutes to 4 A.M. In a group known for its horns, it was Terry Kath's hard-edged guitar and soulful vocals that kept the band rooted in rock and roll. Chicago's line-up for such a large band was astonishingly stable, broken after eleven years and eleven albums only by the death of Terry Kath. After Terry Kath's tragic death in 1978, Chicago could have gone on to produce albums under a different name, they could have dissolved their band completely with each member going off to do other musical projects, or they could have just left the music business altogether and done other things with their lives, but they didn't. Chicago soldiered on for another forty years with the help of other notable lead rock guitarists, from Donnie Dacus and Chris Pinnick, to DaWayne Bailey and Keith Howland.

Chicago's second lead singer was Robert Lamm—an ambitious composer and piano player whose songwriting talents made him the default leader of the band in the early years. The Robert Lamm-penned hits included, Beginnings, Does Anybody Really Know What Time It Is, Questions 67 & 68, Saturday in the Park and of course the afore mentioned, 25 or 6 to 4. His clear baritone voice was an asset, as were his stylized keyboarding skills. The International press portrayed Robert Lamm as Chicago's social conscience, and many of his best songs (Dialogue, Free, Harry Truman, State of the Union) all espoused political themes. Some of Robert Lamm's compositions had a swing feel to them as well. Frank Sinatra could have handled Does Anybody Really Know What Time It Is, very well. Actually, as the story goes, it was Colour My World, a portion from trombonist James Pankow’s Ballet For A Girl In Buchannon that Frank Sinatra wanted to do a remake of. It never happened though because Frank Sinatra wanted James Pankow to write an additional verse for it, and James Pankow wouldn't do it. You don't mess with a classic, even if the chairman of the board himself asks you to. Other Chicago songs penned by James Pankow included the hits, Make Me Smile, Old Days, Just You 'n' Me, I've Been Searchin' So Long, and Feelin' Stronger Everyday. That last one, by the way, was written by James Pankow and Chicago's original bass guitarist and third lead singer, Peter Cetera—the elastic tenor voice who was brought in to hit the high notes and keep up with the horn section, which the baritone voice of Robert Lamm and the gruff voice of Terry Kath couldn't.

If you were to ask any Chicago fan or Rock music historian to name the first three Chicago songs they think of when they hear someone say the name Peter Cetera, they will all tell you the exact same thing—what else but the smoochadelic classics, If You Leave Me Now, from the 1976 Chicago X album, Baby, What A Big Surprise from the 1977 Chicago XI album, and Hard To Say I'm Sorry from the 1982 Chicago 16 album—the comeback album. The sexiest, the sweetest, the most distinctive tenor voice in all of Rock And Roll history belongs to Peter Cetera mthrfckrs! There is no comparison. “High above shimmering, echoing ballads and rock-solid choruses that aim for the bleachers, Cetera’s tenor voice soars like a bird in flight. If it doesn’t strike you deep in your heart, it’ll at least stick deep in your head.” That's what an unknown source from Rolling Stone Magazine's website once said about Peter Cetera. Well Peter, I would like to tell you tonight on behalf of all your fans that your voice has actually done both for us. Your voice has struck us deep in our hearts and it is stuck deep in our heads and that is where we want it and that is how we like it! In May of 1985, after 18 years with the band, and after Chicago's biggest commercial success (the Chicago 17 album), Peter Cetera left Chicago for a solo career. Let's just say that things got really ugly. It was like a divorce, as Peter would say, and that's all I'm going to say about that because it's none of my gddmn business! So, out walks Peter Cetera and in walks singer/songwriter and bass guitar player Jason Scheff, the son of Jerry Scheff, who was a bass guitar player for Elvis Presley. Jason Scheff has been with Chicago now for over 25 years. To tie this whole thing together, I have to take you back to 1981 because that was the year that singer/songwriter, keyboard player and guitarist, Bill Champlin, the lead singer of the late 60s and 70s psychedelic rock band, the Sons of Champlin, joined Chicago and played a huge role in the success of Chicago 16 and 17. During his 28 years with Chicago, Bill Champlin's husky voice was the perfect complement to both, Peter Cetera and Jason Scheff. Chicago 18, 19, Twenty-1, Night and Day, Stone of Sisyphus, Chicago XXX, and a whole bunch of greatest hits and Christmas albums all included Bill Champlin and Jason Scheff.

And finally, Chicago's original drummer; its backbone, Danny Seraphine. During his time with Chicago, Danny Seraphine played drums in a style that, ironically perhaps, can best be described as lyrical. To be a good drummer one must develop his own technique. Good timing and good taste is essential, but it is the technique that sets the truly great drummers apart from the rest, as Danny Seraphine once said. After 25 years with the band, let's just say a little more drama ensued, and Danny Seraphine was replaced by drummer Tris Imboden, who has been with Chicago now for over 25 years. And that folks was Chicago. 50 years, 50 albums, 5 number one albums, 130 million albums sold worldwide, 50 hits, and 3 number one songs later, Chicago is being inducted into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame.

Now I am going to present you with information that must be stated! According to Billboard chart statistics, Chicago is second only to the Beach Boys as the most successful American Rock and Roll band of all time, in terms of both albums and singles. The number one charting Rock and Roll band of the 1970s was Chicago! The Top 4 charting Rock And Roll bands of all-time on both the Billboard 200 Albums Chart and the Billboard 100 Singles Chart just happen to be the same four bands on both lists, and this is how the lists read: Number 1 - The Beatles! Number 2 - The Rolling Stones! Number 3 - The Beach Boys! And at number 4, (all together now) Chicago! And in case you are wondering who's at number 5, it's The Bee Gees! And that says it all right there folks! And up until tonight, Chicago was the only band on those lists who had not been inducted into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame yet! And all I have left to say is that it's about fckng time Chicago got inducted into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame because this is Chicago mthrfckrs! This isn't Boston or Kansas—if you know what I mean! So, without any further ado, ladies and gentlemen, CHICAGO!!!

THE CHICAGO INDUCTEES

01. Walter Parazaider (1967-Present: saxophone; clarinet; flute; songwriter)
02. Lee Loughnane (1967-Present: vocals; trumpet; flugelhorn; songwriter)
03. James Pankow (1967-Present: vocals; trombone; songwriter)
04. Robert Lamm (1967-Present: vocals; piano; keyboards; songwriter)
05. Terry Kath (1967-1978: vocals; guitar; songwriter)
06. Peter Cetera (1967-1985: vocals; bass guitar; songwriter)
07. Danny Seraphine (1967-1990: drums; songwriter)
08. Laudir De Oliveira (1973-1980: congas; percussions; songwriter)
09. Bill Champlin (1981-2009: vocals; keyboards; guitar; songwriter)
10. Jason Scheff (1985-Present: vocals; bass guitar; songwriter)
11. Tris Imboden (1990-Present: drums; songwriter)

POSSIBLE CANDIDATES FOR GIVING THE ROCK AND ROLL HALL OF FAME INDUCTION SPEECH FOR CHICAGO

Barack Obama, Bill Clinton, Clive Davis, David Foster, Paul McCartney, Ringo Starr, Al Jardine, Brian Wilson, Mike Love, Bruce Johnston, Al Kooper, Bobby Colomby, Barry Gibb, Philip Bailey, Verdine White, Ralph Johnson, Al McKay, Jeff Lynne, Don Henley, Glenn Frey, Joe Walsh, Timothy B. Shmit, Steven Van Zandt, Bruce Springsteen, Elton John, Billy Joel, Sting, Gerry Beckley, Steve Lukather, Bobby Kimball, Alistair Ian "Ali" Campbell, Huey Lewis, Johnny Colla, Chris Isaak, Harry Connick Jr., Dave Matthews, Lenny Kravitz, Axl Rose, Slash, Chris Cornell, Dave Grohl, Taylor Hawkins, Tom Morello, Rob Thomas, Stephan Jenkins, Mark McGrath, Steve Malkmus, Trey Anastasio, Justin Vernon, Robin Thicke, Questlove

ALTERNATE ENDING IF CHICAGO IS INDUCTED DURING A BARACK OBAMA PRESIDENCY

Now I am going to present you with information that must be stated! According to Billboard chart statistics, Chicago is second only to the Beach Boys as the most successful American Rock and Roll band of all time, in terms of both albums and singles. The number one charting Rock and Roll band of the 1970s was Chicago! The Top 4 charting Rock And Roll bands of all-time on both the Billboard 200 Albums Chart and the Billboard 100 Singles Chart just happen to be the same four bands on both lists, and this is how the lists read: Number 1 - The Beatles! Number 2 - The Rolling Stones! Number 3 - The Beach Boys! And at number 4, (all together now) Chicago! And in case you are wondering who's at number five, it's The Bee Gees! And that says it all right there folks! And up until tonight, Chicago was the only band on those lists who had not been inducted into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame yet! And you know what's funny? First, a Chicago politician named Barack Obama is elected the first black President of the United States of America in 2008. Then, in 2010, the National Hockey League's Chicago Blackhawks win their fourth Stanley Cup in franchise history, but their first Stanley Cup since 1961, the year of Barack Obama's birth. Then in 2013 the Chicago Blackhawks win their fifth Stanley Cup in franchise history and their second during a Barack Obama presidency. Then in 2015 the Chicago Blackhawks win their sixth Stanley Cup in franchise history and their third during a Barack Obama presidency. Then, what do you know, Chicago, the band, is finally inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 20??, during a Barack Obama presidency, but Chicago the band isn't black, but they did play Rock and Roll, which stems from the blues, which is the music of black people as Jann Wenner said at the 2008 Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame induction ceremony in reference to the induction of Little Walter. Walter is also the name of Chicago's saxophone, clarinet and flute player. Walter Parazaider that is. Well, you know what they say, things always happen in threes, and in this case it's Barack Obama, the Chicago Blackhawks, and Chicago the band. And all I have left to say is that it's about fckng time Chicago got inducted into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame because this is Chicago mthrfckrs! This isn't Boston or Kansas—if you know what I mean! So, without any further ado, ladies and gentlemen, CHICAGO!!!

ALTERNATE ENDING IF CHICAGO IS INDUCTED DURING A BARACK OBAMA PRESIDENCY

Now I am going to present you with information that must be stated! According to Billboard chart statistics, Chicago is second only to the Beach Boys as the most successful American Rock and Roll band of all time, in terms of both albums and singles. The number one charting Rock and Roll band of the 1970s was Chicago! The Top 4 charting Rock And Roll bands of all-time on both the Billboard 200 Albums Chart and the Billboard 100 Singles Chart just happen to be the same four bands on both lists, and this is how the lists read: Number 1 - The Beatles! Number 2 - The Rolling Stones! Number 3 - The Beach Boys! And at number 4, (all together now) Chicago! And in case you are wondering who's at number five, it's The Bee Gees! And that says it all right there folks! And up until tonight, Chicago was the only band on those lists who had not been inducted into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame yet! And you know what's funny? First, a Chicago politician named Barack Obama is elected the first black President of the United States of America in 2008. Then, in 2010, the National Hockey League's Chicago Blackhawks win their fourth Stanley Cup in franchise history, but their first Stanley Cup since 1961, the year of Barack Obama's birth. Dustin Byfuglien becomes the first African-American hockey player in NHL history to win the Stanley Cup (Note: Black goaltenders Grant Fuhr and Eldon Reddick won the Stanley Cup with the Edmonton Oilers, but they were Canadians). Then in 2013 the Chicago Blackhawks win their fifth Stanley Cup in franchise history and their second during a Barack Obama presidency. Three more black hockey players win the Stanley Cup: Ray Emery, Jamal Mayers, and Johnny Oduya. Obama and Oduya both have five letters and they both begin with the letter O and end with the letter a. Obama and Oduya both have Kenyan ancestry. Then in 2015 the Chicago Blackhawks win their sixth Stanley Cup in franchise history and their third during a Barack Obama presidency. Johnny Oduya becomes the second black hockey player in NHL history behind Grant Fuhr to win more than one Stanley Cup championship. Then, what do you know, Chicago, the band, is finally inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 20??, during a Barack Obama presidency, but Chicago the band isn't black, but they did play Rock and Roll, which stems from the blues, which is the music of black people as Jann Wenner said at the 2008 Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame induction ceremony in reference to the induction of Little Walter. Walter is also the name of Chicago's saxophone, clarinet and flute player. Walter Parazaider that is. Well, you know what they say, things always happen in threes, and in this case it's Barack Obama, the Chicago Blackhawks, and Chicago the band. And all I have left to say is that it's about fckng time Chicago got inducted into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame because this is Chicago mthrfckrs! This isn't Boston or Kansas—if you know what I mean! So, without any further ado, ladies and gentlemen, CHICAGO!!!

JUST SOME EXTRA INFORMATION WHICH SHOULDN'T BE USED IN THE SPEECH

Also, "Chicago" had seven letters and seven members until a game of rumored Russian Roulette. Then there were six, just like the six letters in "Barack", who is an "ally" of Russia. Keeping one's nuclear rivals close can be seen as a six-lettered gamble itself, and gambling was born of the Chicago mob scene. Seven Blackhawks on the ice would have been too many.

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The Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame

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