Stooges, Eagles Nominated for Rock and Roll Hall of Fame
Nearly a quarter-century after Iggy Pop proclaimed himself a “street-walking cheetah with a heart full of napalm,” he and the proto-punk Stooges may soon find themselves strutting into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame and Museum.
The Stooges are apparently on the list of 15 potential Hall of Fame inductees, which also includes the Eagles, Fleetwood Mac, Billy Joel and Santana, among others. Although the nominees have not yet been officially announced, news of possible members of the Hall’s Class of 1998 has been leaked by one or more of its 800-plus voters, who are rock critics, music historians and industry professionals, according to an employee who answered the phone at the Hall of Fame foundation’s New York City office.
“We at the Hall have not announced anything yet, and in this case that announcement won’t be made until October,” said the employee. “But the news is already out there.” An as yet undetermined number of inductees will be selected based upon the number of votes each artist receives and the margin between vote totals.
The other artists on the list are: the Mamas and the Papas, Dusty Springfield, R&B shouter Joe Tex, pin-up popsmith Gene Pitney, doo-wop group the Moonglows, “Runaway” singer Del Shannon, soul man Solomon Burke, New Orleans rocker Lloyd Price, rockabilly star Gene Vincent and Earth, Wind and Fire. The Stooges and several other of the acts had been nominated in previous years.
At this point, though, the list is still unofficial. Hall of Fame spokeswoman Elizabeth Freund said she hasn’t been notified yet about this year’s nominees.
Earlier this year, during ceremonies held for the first time in the Hall’s home city of Cleveland, nine artists and influential music industry professionals were elected. They were: Parliament-Funkadelic; the Bee Gees; Crosby, Stills & Nash; Buffalo Springfield; the Jackson Five; Joni Mitchell; the (Young) Rascals; gospel singer Mahalia Jackson; bluegrass pioneer Bill Monroe; and King Records founder Syd Nathan, who helped launch James Brown’s career.