Nominees Set for 2004 Rock Hall of Fame
.c The Associated Press

NEW YORK (AP) - Former Beatle George Harrison, Prince, John Mellencamp and Jackson Browne are among the nominees on the 2004 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame ballot.

Harrison, who died of cancer in November 2001, is already in the rock hall as a member of the Beatles. Former bandmates John Lennon and Paul McCartney preceded him for their solo work.

Previous nominees back for another try include the Sex Pistols, Black Sabbath, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Gram Parsons and Patti Smith. Other nominees include The Dells, The ``5'' Royales, Bob Seger, the Stooges, Traffic and ZZ Top.

Ballots were mailed this week to voting members of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, which is located in Cleveland.

Funk-rocker Prince has led a diverse career topped by his ``Purple Rain'' soundtrack, heartland rocker Mellencamp had a string of hits after dropping the middle name ``Cougar'' and songwriter Browne was a prominent member of the 1970s Los Angeles singer-songwriter scene.

Artists are eligible to be inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame after at least 25 years have passed since their first record was released. The inductees likely will be announced in December.

On the Net: http://www.rockhall.com/

09/12/03 17:33 EDT
Copyright 2003 The Associated Press. The information contained in the AP news report may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or otherwise distributed without the prior written authority of The Associated Press. All active hyperlinks have been inserted by AOL.

how many can get in at a time?


i've never really understood why they nominate and then vote on them. it seems rather pointless. they're all going to get in at some point or another, or they wouldn't have been nominated in the first place.

AaronMaximus said:

- Yes...how many?
Prince is a very strong name in this list. It would be nice if he got inductee

I think he deserves it; however I read that only a few inductees make it in on their first nomination. Stay tuned.

Hey, I was first to submit this exact same story on Friday, and it didn't wind up on the home page, but this one did. What gives?

Well it will be interesting to see if P's fight with WB will have an impact on his induction, which should be shoe in. The MPLS sound he introduced became a staple of 80's and 90's music, and his fusion of funk and roll was unprecedented.

GustavoRibas said:

of the new batch, he's one of the strongest. but i have a feeling the Sex Pistols, Harrison, the Stooges, Black Sabbath and Patti Smith have a better shot of getting in this year.

then again, didn't the Police get in last year?

I should hope that he's a shoo-in. He's played nice with the Hall before, inducting George Clinton in '97, so he may not blow it off (but would anyone be surprised if he did?)

For all the phony values and politics that prop it up, the RR Hall of Fame inductees are a pretty good batch overall. Then again, there's no way in hell the Sex Pistols shouldn't have gotten in last year -- I think they're just terrified of what a genuine rebel/iconoclast (Johnny Rotten, of course) would say once he got up on stage...

is P really old enough for this??

AaronMaximus said:

- Yes, it´s true...specially Black Sabbath, SP and George Harrison. I think Prince is stronger than Patti and Stooges

I don't know. If you're talking about influence, I think Prince is just as strong as SP, Black Sabbath, or George Harrison- it's just a different audience he's influencing. And as for amount of quality hit songs, Prince almost has more than these three combined. I think he's the strongest of this year's batch. And I'm not saying that just because I'm a fan.

jtgillia said:

You have to remember, this has very little to do with influence, and more to do with image as a legend of music.

George Harrison is a shoo-in, I think, especially because of the fact that he is now deceased.

The Sex Pistols have a serious following, and I think also stand a great chance.

I strongly believe Lynyrd Skynyrd and Bob Seger deserve to be inducted as well.

Ask your average person what they think about with Prince, and their answer will probably be "Kiss". It's sad, but his image seems to be that of a popstar who had a handful of hits in the 80s, and that's why I think his chances are not good.

But I hope he makes it.

It's about time!!!