Nirvana, Linda Ronstadt, Peter Gabriel, Hall and Oates, and The Replacements have been named as first-time nominees for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
The organizations full list was announced on Wednesday and 16 artists were named. Also up for nomination are YES, Link Wray and The Zombies.
Hall of Fame nominees are chosen by 600 voters and induction announcements occur in December with an official ceremony held next April in New York. The induction will be aired live on HBO.
Nirvana , nominated in its first year of eligibility, and almost exactly 20 years after Kurt Cobain’s suicide, will likely be nominated into the hall of fame on the first go around.
Linda Ronstadt received her first nomination just a short time after discovering that she has Parkinson’s disease. Ronstadt has long been a fan favorite and the organization passing her over has angered fans.
The band Rush scored a big win for prog rock groups this year which explains the nomination of YES on the list.
Other nominees have graced the list in the past but have failed to make the final cut. Those artists include KISS, LL Cool J , N.W.A., Cat Stevens, Deep Purple, The Meters, The Paul Butterfield Blues Band and Chic. KISS, LL Cool J, and Stevens have all been nominated multiple times with no success.
Chic has been nominated eight times since 2003 but has been overlooked when actual nominations have been handed out. This could be the bands year after co-founder Nile Rodgers collaborated with Daft Punk.
With popular choices like Hall and Oats and Nirvana nominated this year the race for induction will most definitely be a hard fought battle.
Who do you think from the list of nominees deserves to be inducted into the Hall of Fame? Are there any qualifying groups missing from the list that you would have included?