The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame has just announced its class of 2014 inductees. Of the sixteen names chosen in October as nominees, Nirvana, Peter Gabriel, KISS, Hall and Oates, Cat Stevens and Linda Ronstadt were the artists who made the final cut.
Also scheduled to be honored at the April 10th induction ceremony is The E Street Band, who will be given an Award for Musical Excellence. Additionally, former Beatles manager Brian Epstein and former Rolling Stones manager / producer Andrew Loog Oldham will both receive the Ahmet Ertegun Award for non-performers.
Rock and Roll Hall of Fame President and CEO Joel Peresman spoke to Rolling Stone about Nirvana, who were inducted in their first year of eligibility: "That's really no surprise to me. People see the relevancy of that band. We're just getting into the creative of the show, so I don't know what's going to happen with that performance. They have to figure it out."
Rolling Stone also got reactions from many of the inducted artists:
Dave Grohl:
"For once... I'm speechless. From the basements, to the dingy clubs, to the broken down vans, to... the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. I'd like to thank the committee not only for this induction, but also for recognizing Nirvana for what we were: pure rock and roll. Most of all, thank you to all of the fans that have supported rock and roll throughout the years, and to Kurt and Krist, without whom I would not be here today."
Krist Novoselic:
"This is a great honor. Thank you to the people who nominated and voted for us. Thank you most of all to Kurt Cobain. And to everyone who's kept Rock music going strong for 60 years and counting."
Peter Gabriel:
"This time I will definitely go . I'm very grateful to have gotten in again. It's a huge honor since it's for your whole body of work and not just a specific project... I'll probably perform, but if I do 'In Your Eyes' it'll take 10 minutes and that might be all the time I have."
Daryl Hall:
"It was a bit of a surprise to me. I've always been sort of on the other side of the fence with the old guard and the powers that be... This whole new generation of people are looking at me and John [Oates] in a different way."
Yusef Islam (AKA Cat Stevens):
"It will certainly bring happiness to a lot of my loyal fans. And fulfillment to all those who have long-campaigned for it, not to mention how kinda embarrassingly good it makes me feel too. The sleepy Peace Train is beginning to chug its way slowly uphill, again."
The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremony will be held April 10th in Brooklyn's Barclays Center, and will be the first to allow the general public to buy tickets to the event. Those go on sale in January. Below, watch a video of 2013's inductees jamming on Cream's version of Robert Johnson's "Cross Road Blues" during the 2013 ceremony:
Via: Rolling Stone, Pitchfork
