2004-12-14 - 10:37 a.m. The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame has announced its 2005 inductees. While this means about as much to me as the Grammys, I am moved to comment. Why can't I be happy for the Pretenders? They--the 1979 lineup anyway--are deeply wedged in my heart, I revere them to the point of idolatry, and yet the band has sucked since the third album. That's 20 years of sucking, after one of the greatest debut albums in history (and a damn great follow-up album). So maybe there's a separate prize they could win, like "most potential" or "you almost pulled it off!" or "hey, ya know, we love you, but..." Now U2 is a band I like a whole lot less, but I think they deserve to be in the (meaningless and fictional) Hall of Fame, because they have never stopped trying. They've had their hits and misses, we all agree that Bono is a self-righteous doofus, but they keep on keepin' on and they've made an incredible impact on pop culture. And Seymour Stein totally deserves the accolades. Bush monkeys! thoughts? (7 comments so far) previous - next blog archive contact