2016 Rock n Roll Hall of Fame nominees

[Vandal]

The 2016 inductees will be announced in December and the induction ceremony will be held in New York in April.

This year's hopefuls:

Chicago. Formed in Illinois in the late '60s with a revolving door of members ever since, the band is in the midst of a U.S. tour.

Cheap Trick. The hard-rocking, power-pop pioneers (Dream Police) found success in Japan before breaking through stateside and have toured almost nonstop over the band's four-decade history.

Deep Purple. The British quintet, which helped define the heavy metal genre with its organ-driven thick sound and early covers of Hush and Kentucky Woman, hijacked the charts with Smoke On the Water and Woman From Tokyo.

The Cars. The Boston rockers have had enduring classics in songs such as Just What I Needed, My Best Friend's Girl and Drive, and reunited for 2011's Move Like This after Benjamin Orr died from pancreatic cancer in 2000.

Chaka Khan. Hailed as the Queen of Funk, the emotive songstress has won 10 Grammy Awards, including best R&B vocal performance for standard I Feel for You.

Chic. With dance-floor classics Le Freak and Good Times, Nile Rodgers and company gave disco a brilliant, soulful upgrade and influenced generations of pop and hip-hop artists.

The J.B.'s. The original name of James Brown's '70s band, which included members such as Bootsy Collins and Bobby Byrd, and climbed the charts with funk tunes Gimme Some More and Doing It to Death.

Janet Jackson. A dance/pop icon and the youngest child of the Jackson family, the Rhythm Nation singer has gotten some of the best reviews of her career for new album Unbreakable, which is expected to debut at No. 1 on the Billboard album charts next week.

Los Lobos. The Latin rockers seamlessly blend country, R&B and folk, and reached No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1987 with their cover of Ritchie Valens' La Bamba.

Steve Miller. The veteran guitarist has released more than a dozen albums with his Steve Miller Band since the mid-1960s, scoring hits with seminal anthems The Joker, Abracadabra and Jet Airliner.

N.W.A. Immortalized onscreen in this summer's blockbuster biopic Straight Outta Compton, the West Coast rap group led by Dr. Dre, Ice Cube and Eazy-E caught the attention of the FBI with its gangsta rap classic F--- Tha Police.

Nine Inch Nails. Trent Reznor's industrial rock project scored its biggest hit more than a decade ago with The Day the World Went Away, but has remained a force thanks in part to extensive touring, a recent album (2013's Hesitation Marks) and Reznor's film work as an Oscar- and Grammy-winning composer.

The Smiths. They were only together five years, but the British pop quartet released four influential albums in the '80s, distinguished by Morrissey's baritone howls and Johnny Marr's finesse as guitarist.

The Spinners. The Detroit-bred R&B group helped shape the smooth-funk sound of Philadelphia soul in the '70s, charting hits such as Could It Be I'm Falling in Love, I'll Be Around and Mighty Love.

Yes. Largely responsible for bringing progressive rock to the mainstream, these symphonic, experimental Englishmen are considered the forefathers to other beloved synth-driven bands such as Rush and Dream Theater.



I would vote for Yes, Steve Miller and Chicago

[T_Bone0806]

The 2016 inductees will be announced in December and the induction ceremony will be held in New York in April.

This year's hopefuls:

Chicago. Formed in Illinois in the late '60s with a revolving door of members ever since, the band is in the midst of a U.S. tour.

Cheap Trick. The hard-rocking, power-pop pioneers (Dream Police) found success in Japan before breaking through stateside and have toured almost nonstop over the band's four-decade history.

Deep Purple. The British quintet, which helped define the heavy metal genre with its organ-driven thick sound and early covers of Hush and Kentucky Woman, hijacked the charts with Smoke On the Water and Woman From Tokyo.

The Cars. The Boston rockers have had enduring classics in songs such as Just What I Needed, My Best Friend's Girl and Drive, and reunited for 2011's Move Like This after Benjamin Orr died from pancreatic cancer in 2000.

Chaka Khan. Hailed as the Queen of Funk, the emotive songstress has won 10 Grammy Awards, including best R&B vocal performance for standard I Feel for You.

Chic. With dance-floor classics Le Freak and Good Times, Nile Rodgers and company gave disco a brilliant, soulful upgrade and influenced generations of pop and hip-hop artists.

The J.B.'s. The original name of James Brown's '70s band, which included members such as Bootsy Collins and Bobby Byrd, and climbed the charts with funk tunes Gimme Some More and Doing It to Death.

Janet Jackson. A dance/pop icon and the youngest child of the Jackson family, the Rhythm Nation singer has gotten some of the best reviews of her career for new album Unbreakable, which is expected to debut at No. 1 on the Billboard album charts next week.

Los Lobos. The Latin rockers seamlessly blend country, R&B and folk, and reached No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1987 with their cover of Ritchie Valens' La Bamba.

Steve Miller. The veteran guitarist has released more than a dozen albums with his Steve Miller Band since the mid-1960s, scoring hits with seminal anthems The Joker, Abracadabra and Jet Airliner.

N.W.A. Immortalized onscreen in this summer's blockbuster biopic Straight Outta Compton, the West Coast rap group led by Dr. Dre, Ice Cube and Eazy-E caught the attention of the FBI with its gangsta rap classic F--- Tha Police.

Nine Inch Nails. Trent Reznor's industrial rock project scored its biggest hit more than a decade ago with The Day the World Went Away, but has remained a force thanks in part to extensive touring, a recent album (2013's Hesitation Marks) and Reznor's film work as an Oscar- and Grammy-winning composer.

The Smiths. They were only together five years, but the British pop quartet released four influential albums in the '80s, distinguished by Morrissey's baritone howls and Johnny Marr's finesse as guitarist.

The Spinners. The Detroit-bred R&B group helped shape the smooth-funk sound of Philadelphia soul in the '70s, charting hits such as Could It Be I'm Falling in Love, I'll Be Around and Mighty Love.

Yes. Largely responsible for bringing progressive rock to the mainstream, these symphonic, experimental Englishmen are considered the forefathers to other beloved synth-driven bands such as Rush and Dream Theater.



I would vote for Yes, Steve Miller and Chicago

Well, I must say this is, overall, a more palatable list than I've seen in a while. Still a couple of head scratchers and, of course, glaring snubs, but a few names I always complain about being ignored are finally recognized. Now it's a matter of them actually getting voted in. Chicago is one of those that should've been in years ago...no, not for the sappy ballads they hit the top of the charts with in the 80's, but the jazz-rock horn-based output of the 70's. Their first handful of albums are true classics and were a style very few bands were employing. It was a sound immediately identifiable with them. Yes and Deep Purple were also among the pioneers of their genres, progressive and hard rock respectively. Their induction is also long overdue. I am thrilled that Cheap Trick is at last getting some love. Those who only know them from The Flame (their biggest hit...and worst record in my opinion) don't know them. Combining the melodic sense of The Beatles with the power of The Who, they are a bigger influence on many of today's popular rock bands than most folks realize. They still play a gazillion gigs a year and rock as hard as ever. And with a plethora of melody, to boot. I personally like The Cars more than Steve Miller, but I concede that Miller should precede The Cars in induction, although I've always been meh on Steve. Just always got the impression that his records were half-hearted in effort, that he was so much better than what we heard. As for the others...I see they're STILL trying to get Chic inducted. Give me a flippin' break. I have respect for Los Lobos, the J.B.'s, and Chaka Khan, but no. Janet Jackson...maybe someday, based on some of the others already in, but there are too many others more deserving that need to hear their names called first. The Spinners are close...a long career with a few classic r and b tunes, but not if you don't induct the ones I endorsed above as well. NWA speaks to my dislike of rap so I am not, I'm afraid, an unbiased commentator. Still, this is not the RAP Hall of Fame...can we at least get the blatant snubs inducted first? N.I.N. and The Smiths have influenced their share of artists for sure, but I'm just not feeling the love.


Next year can we look at The Moodys, Doobies, and Tull at least?

[ontellen]

Can't believe the Moody's haven't made it in all this time.

[kroxquo]

I concur on the Moody Blues, Doobie Brothers, and Jethro Tull, but also would like to see the Monkees and The Guess Who. Also, is there a seperate category for someone like Casey Kasem who should be there in some way?

[Pastor Fireball]

Also, is there a seperate category for someone like Casey Kasem who should be there in some way?

Yes, the Ahmet Ertegun Award for Lifetime Achievement gives inductions to non-performers. Alan Freed and Dick Clark are in the Hall as non-performers, so why not Casey, too?

[Wierd Al Yankovic]

I see I got overlooked again. And I was even closer to Michael Jackson than his stupid kid sister...