It seems like the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame will never fully avoid controversy.
At Friday night's ceremony for this year's inductees, Steve Miller complained about the organizers of the event, the induction process in general, and how he couldn't get more than two tickets without paying $10,000 a pop.
Meanwhile, Gene Simmons opined that rap groups — this year, that would be N.W.A. — have no place in the Hall of Fame.
But those bumps in the road didn't seem to stop an otherwise enjoyable night at the Barclay's Center in Brooklyn as Miller, N.W.A., Chicago, Deep Purple and Cheap Trick were inducted.
Stephen Battaglio writes about TV and Media for the Los Angeles Times, and he was at the ceremony. He joined us on The Frame to talk about the controversies and the importance of having N.W.A. join the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
Interview Highlights:
There were some controversies at the induction ceremony, so what was the general mood of the evening like? One headline described it as "marred by bad blood." Was that overly dramatic, or was that really the vibe?
That's a little bit over the top. It was really a great show for the fans. You had bands there with tremendously recognizable hits that made you light up as soon as you heard the first few notes — Deep Purple's "Hush," Chicago's "Saturday in the Park," Steve Miller's "Fly Like an Eagle"... these are records that several generations have grown up with.
To hear them performed live was exciting, and the crowd was really charged up and they really enjoyed it. As for the backstage machinations, you sort of felt a little of it from the stage, but I think a lot of it came out more afterwards because we needed a story.
[laughs] Well, Steve Miller helped with that. Backstage, he complained about the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, its induction process, and that he didn't get enough free tickets to the show. What was going on there?
He said he got two tickets as an inductee, and then every other ticket after that was going to cost him $10,000 [each]. Really, I think the issue is that he's a first-time inductee, but he's a guy that's been in the music business for 50 years. He's obviously been overlooked and he's 72 or 73 years old, and you tend to get cranky at that age. So it seemed like a confluence of a lot of issues for him that came out in his backstage rant.
He was maybe speaking more for himself than other people of the evening, so maybe he was the lone dissenter at an otherwise nice night?
If you saw the members of Chicago up there, thanking their wives of 49 years and things like that, it was very un-rock and roll, very sentimental, and kind of moving. I don't think there was any rancor that marred the evening in any way. And also, I think the fact that N.W.A. was there — unfortunately, they didn't perform — really brought a currency to the event that I don't think it would've otherwise had.
During N.W.A.'s acceptance speech, Dr. Dre said: "This is proof to all the kids out there, growing up in places similar to Compton, that anything is possible." That was part of N.W.A. addressing whether or not they were "rock and rollers." What was that issue about, and who were they responding to on that front?
Gene Simmons, a provocateur who can never get enough attention, suggested that hip-hop and rap didn't belong in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Ice Cube very eloquently talked about how they certainly did belong there, and he explained why — rock and roll is an attitude, rock and roll is an expression of rebellion, no matter what you're rebelling against. That's what's defined rock and roll from the beginning, so I think they really won that argument hands-down.