FEATURE:
Kate Bush and the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame
IN THIS PHOTO: Kate Bush in 1993 during the filming of the short film, The Line, the Cross and the Curve/PHOTO CREDIT: Guido Harari
Will It Be Third Time Lucky for the Iconic Artist?
___________
AT the time…
IN THIS PHOTO: Kate Bush in 1985
of writing this (5th February), the standings for this year’s Rock & Roll Hall of Fame sees Kate Bush in the bottom five. The voting is open until 29th April. She appeared in the longlist last year and missed out. Whilst it is great she is reappearing so quickly – one feels the way her music has been shared and adored this past year accounts for that -, one feels she might not be inducted into the prestigious Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. This year sees a mix of new inclusions and previously-nominated in the running. This NME article explains more:
“Eminem, Kate Bush, Beck, Eurythmics, Duran Duran, Dolly Parton, Lionel Richie, Rage Against The Machine, A Tribe Called Quest, Carly Simon, Judas Priest, Fela Kuti, New York Dolls, Dionne Warwick, MC5, DEVO and Pat Benatar have made the nominees list.
A body of more than 1,000 artists, industry members and historians will help decide which five acts out of the 17 will progress into the final round of induction consideration. Fans also have the chance to contribute to the selection process by voting every day here or at the museum in Cleveland, Ohio.
Five acts will then be tallied among the other ballots to ultimately decide the Class of 2022.
This year marks the first time that Eminem has become eligible for a nomination. The Rock Hall’s rule is that an act must have released their first commercial recording 25 years earlier than the year of the nomination.
Eminem joins Beck, Duran Duran, Lionel Richie, A Tribe Called Quest, Carly Simon and Dolly Parton in being a first-time Rock Hall nominees this year, although several of those acts have been eligible before 2022.
As Billboard notes, this is the sixth nomination for Detroit rockers MC5 and the fourth nod for Rage Against The Machine. Kate Bush, Judas Priest, New York Dolls, Eurythmics and Devo have all now been nominated three times.
It’s the second nod for Dionne Warwick and the late Fela Kuti after being nominated in 2021. It’s also Pat Benatar’s second nomination, after first appearing on the 2020 ballot.
Advertisement
The Rock & Roll Class of 2022 is revealed in May. A date and location for the ceremony itself has yet to be announced but the event will happen sometime this autumn.
IN THIS PHOTO: Lionel Richie/PHOTO CREDIT: Alan Silfen
Foo Fighters, Jay-Z and Tina Turner all featured in the 2021 cohort of inductees alongside The Go-Go’s, Carole King and Todd Rundgren in the Performers category. Kraftwerk, Gil Scott-Heron and Charley Patton, meanwhile, each received the Early Influence Award.
However, Rage Against The Machine and Iron Maiden – who were confirmed to be in the Rock Hall’s Class Of 2021 last February – were not included in the final list, prompting renewed conversation around the ceremony’s lack of heavy metal acts.
“It’s an interesting one, because we do [celebrate metal],” Harris told Audacy Music during an interview. “We celebrate all forms of rock’n’roll… We nominated Maiden, Judas Priest have been nominated, we put Def Leppard in.”
Harris explained that “over 80 per cent of [nominees] eventually do get inducted” into the Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame.
“So it’s really a question of: let’s keep nominating them, let’s get ’em on the ballot, and let’s get it out to the voting body,” Harris continued. “This ballot had 16 artists on it. They just can’t all go in”.
Although there is a long way to go until voting closes, it would be a shame to think that, once more, the worthy Kate Bush is nominated and fails to get into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. She is obviously not going to travel to the U.S. and attend a ceremony later in the year. It would be credit and acceptance of an artist whose relevance and importance in music is established and growing. I think one of the problems is that U.S. critics and sources have never really embraced Bush. She has a large fanbase in the country and she has inspired so many artists there, yet there is that divide between the press and public. One cannot say the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame is solely about Rock artists and a narrow soundscape. The longlist this year sees Pop and Country artists sit alongside artists from various corners of music. One of the most influential artists ever, Kate Bush is someone who is celebrated and yet underrated. She has won awards through her career, and yet she should be more prized. I have spent a lot of time discussing how Kate Bush has been overlooked when it comes to some proper honours and awards.
I think that Bush does deserve a place in the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. She has had a career that has lasted over four decades. There is such a wave of support behind her that, whilst it is humbling and heartwarming, maybe that will not translate into a place in the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. One feels Dolly Parton will earn a place this year. That is deserved - though I wonder why Parton is doing so well in the votes whereas Kate Bush is not. Both have had extraordinary careers, but I would argue Bush’s contribution to music is even greater than Parton’s. Whatever comes about after voting closes in April, it may be another year Kate Bush has missed out. It does beg the question as to why she does not rack up huge votes. Whilst the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame gets votes from all around the world, I think most of the votes will come from America. Not that awards and exclusive music clubs are everything. One can see the huge love there is for Kate Bush. It would be nice it she was provided an honour, given the fact her music and work garners so much admiration and scurrility. Three nominations for entry into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame may lead to a third denial, as baffling as that sounds! We can only hope that 2023 is the year when the public vote her into…
THE Rock & Roll Hall of Fame.