Bon Jovi, Neil Diamond, Alice Cooper top list of Rock Hall nominees
The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame is nothing if not eclectic.
Look no further than this year’s list of first-time nominees for induction for proof: ‘80s heavyweights Bon Jovi, the original shock rocker Alice Cooper, Scottish folkie Donovan, New Orleans jazz king Dr. John, the poetic troubadour Tom Waits and the legendary Neil Diamond.
Return nominees -- hip-hop pioneers Beastie Boys and LL Cool J, disco-era legends Chic and Donna Summer, R&B singers Darlene Love, Joe Tex and Chuck Willis, rockers J. Geils Band, and singer-songwriter Laura Nyro – add to the wide-ranging list announced this morning.
“We believe our nominating committee has put forth a list of artists that truly represent the wide variety of music that defines rock and roll,” said Joel Peresman, President and CEO of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Foundation.
About 500 voters will select a slate of five-to-seven artists from this year’s nominees to be inducted into the hall on March 14, 2011 at the Waldorf Astoria in Manhattan. The ceremony will be broadcast live on Fuse.
To be eligible, artists had to release their first recording at least 25 years ago, in 1985 or earlier, meaning Diamond, Mr. “Sweet Caroline” himself, has been eligible for nearly 20 years and Cooper has been eligible for 16 years.
“It's hard to fathom possibly being in the same club as artists who inspired us originally, like the Beatles, the Stones, the Beach Boys, the Who, the Yardbirds, and Chuck Berry, and to be nominated the same year as legendary artists like my personal favorite songwriter of all time, Laura Nyro, as well as Donovan, who sang on our ‘Billion Dollar Babies’ record, and our good friends in Bon Jovi, is a great feeling,” Cooper said in a statement.
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