The induction dinner and ceremony will be held in April in Cleveland, Ohio, home of the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame and will be filmed by HBO and shown on the network at a later date.
BON JOVI
Formed in 1983 and named after lead singer, Jon Bon Jovi, this classic rock hair band found worldwide fame with their third album, "Slippery When Wet" in 1986 and features some of their best known songs, "Wanted Dead or Alive", "You Give Love a Bad Name" and "Livin' on a Prayer". Bon Jovi has sold over 130 million records and performed in over fifty countries during their career.
THE CARS
The Cars first came on the scene in the late 1970's merging punk and new-wave to create their own unique sound. Their self-titled debut in 1978 was an immediate hit with the singles, "Just What I Needed", "My Best Friend's Girl", "Good Times Roll" and "You're All I've Got Tonight" reaching the pop charts. Guitarist, Ric Ocasek wrote most of the band's material and shared vocal duties with bass guitar player, Benjamin Orr (who passed away in 2000) and the Cars would enjoy plenty of other hits throughout the '80's before disbanding in 1988. In 2011, the surviving members of the band reunited, recorded an album, "Move To This" and went on tour.
DIRE STRAITS
Brothers Mark and David Knopfler along with friends John Illsley and Pick Withers formed Dire Straits in London in 1977. Influenced by jazz, folk and blues, the band found success right away with the 1978 single, "Sultans of Swing" which reached the top-ten in the U.S. and Britain but had their biggest hit in 1985 with their fifth album, "Brothers In Arms". This record reached number one internationally, winning two Grammy Awards and selling over thirty million copies thanks to the popular songs, "Walk of Life" and "Money For Nothing".
THE MOODY BLUES
Although this band from Birmingham, England first came to prominence as a r&b based outfit in the mid '60's, the Moody Blues has become best known as an esoteric rock band. Adding a rich, symphonic sound to their high-concept rock albums, this influential group found worldwide success with their music and managed to hit the pop charts with the songs, "Go Now", "Your Wildest Dreams", "I'm Just a Singer (In a Rock and Roll Band)" and "Nights in White Satin". The Moody Blues have sold seventy million records throughout their fifty year career.
NINA SIMONE
This legendary vocalist first wanted to become a concert pianist but after being denied entry at a prestigious school due to her race, Eunice Waymon changed her name to "Nina Simone" (so to not to disgrace her family) and began her career as a singer. Using a mixture of the blues, jazz, soul, pop and classical music to express herself, Simone became a renowned live performer and recording artist. She wrote much of her music, particularly during the civil rights movement like "Mississippi Goddam", "Four Women" and "To Be Young, Gifted and Black". But Simone was also a unique interpreter of songs, reworking musical standards and making them all her own. Some of her most popular are "I Loves You, Porgy", "Wild Is The Wind", "My Baby Just Cares for Me" and "Feeling Good".
SISTER ROSETTA THARPE
It is said that Rosetta Nubin was only four years old when she began singing and playing guitar as part of her family's traveling evangelical troupe. By the time she was nineteen, she had ended her first marriage but took a variation of her former husband's surname to become professionally known as "Sister Rosetta Tharpe" and was a popular act throughout the 1930's and '40's performing for both spiritual and secular audiences. She is referred to as "The Godmother of rock and roll" as she was one of the first to use a distorted electric guitar in her pop-gospel music and inspired many future early rock musicians. Later in the '60's, Tharpe toured Europe and would help influence the British blues movement there.
No comments:
Post a Comment