NEW YORK – There’s nothing quite like a family feud to spice up a Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremony.
It has happened in the past – most notably between the battling bandmates of Creedence Clearwater Revival in 1993 – and it happened again this week when things got ugly between the past and present members of Blondie during an otherwise celebratory occasion marking the 21st annual induction dinner at The Waldorf-Astoria.
Highlights from the event will air on VHI at 9 p.m. Tuesday.
Besides Blondie, the inductees included Black Sabbath, Miles Davis, Lynyrd Skynyrd and The Sex Pistols, though the latter group – one of the most overrated in rock history – chose to skip the ceremonies completely. A&M Records founders’ Herb Alpert and Jerry Moss were inducted in the “non-performer” category.
While there were several musical highlights, most notably when Metallica turned in tumultuous versions of Black Sabbath’s “Hole in the Sky” and “Iron Man,” the most interesting action occurred during the acceptance speeches by the members of one of rock’s first chart-topping new wave acts, Blondie.
Former Blondie guitarist Frank Infante and bass player Nigel Harrison ripped fellow original members Debbie Harry, Chris Stein and Clem Burke.
“Thanks for not writing Nigel, Gary (Valentine) and me out of rock ‘n’ roll history,” Infante said in a speech dripping in sarcasm.
Infante proceeded to ask Harry if they could join the lead singer, Stein and Burke’s latter-day version of Blondie to play for the audience.
A seemingly shaken Harry said “Can’t you see my band is up there?”
Infante replied: “Your band? I thought Blondie was being inducted.”
Ouch. Needless to say, Harry, Stein and Burke went on with the show with their current lineup, turning in pulsating versions of their early hits “Heart of Glass,” “Rapture” and a particularly ferocious “Call Me.”
Speaking to the media afterward, Stein said that Infante and Harrison effectively wrote themselves out of the group’s history when they sued the band over rights to the Blondie name several years back.
Despite that very public Blondie blowup and the Sex Pistols’ kiss off of the Hall – which was delivered via an expletive-filled posting on the punk rockers’ website – the night was not without its more musically satisfying moments.
The show started with a salute to the late soul great Wilson Pickett, with Hall-of-Famer Solomon Burke and E Street Band saxophonist Clarence Clemons accompanying hotshot newcomers Marc Broussard and Leela James on a Pickett medley that included “634-5789,” “Mustang Sally,” and “Land of 1000 Dances.”
Herbie Hancock inducted the late jazz trumpeter Miles Davis into the hall, and led a group of jazz greats through a Davis medley sparked by “In a Silent Way.”
Black Sabbath’s induction seemed long overdue. And while Sabbath singer Ozzy Osbourne appeared genuinely moved after being praised by Metallica, he lamented that his group had been nominated for the Hall seven previous times and it took them until the eighth time to finally make the grade. It was one of the rare occasions when the Hall’s voters have seen fit to place a heavy metal act into the Cleveland shrine, leaving progressive rock as one of the few significant musical movements of the past 50 years to still be completely ignored.
In other words, don’t look for Yes, Genesis, King Crimson or Jethro Tull to be enshrined anytime soon.
Lynyrd Skynyrd’s induction featured no disharmony among the large throng of band and family members who gathered to accept the award, which was presented by Kid Rock. It was an emotional occasion for the Southern rockers who lost three of their members – including founding father Ronnie Van Zant – in a 1977 plane crash. With his brother Johnny Van Zant on lead vocals the still very active band turned in tried and true versions of their biggest hits “Sweet Home Alabama,” and “Free Bird.”
The evening closed with a musical salute to New Orleans, with a big band led by Elvis Costello and Allen Toussaint, along with Buckwheat Zydeco, Robbie Robertson, the Wild Magnolias and others playing “Who’s Gonna Help Brother Get Further?” “Walking to New Orleans” and “Iko Iko.”
JL END O’HARE
(Kevin O’Hare is music writer for The Republican of Springfield, Mass. He can be contacted at kohare(at)repub.com.)
Comments are no longer available on this story