Madonna says thanks but won't sing, Ventures rock the house with `Walk -- Don't Run': 2008 Rock Hall inductions
by John Soeder/Plain Dealer Pop Music Critic
Monday March 10, 2008, 10:50 PM


(AP Photo/Jason DeCrow)

NEW YORK -- Madonna and Leonard Cohen were ushered into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame during a black-tie dinner Monday night, but they didn't sing for their supper. Among the other performers enshrined were the Dave Clark Five, John Mellencamp and the Ventures.

Ironically, the only freshly minted Hall of Famers actually set to perform during the 23rd annual induction ceremony at the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel were Mellencamp and the Ventures.

Did Black Sabbath start an unfortunate trend when the band declined to play two years ago, leaving Metallica to bash out "Iron Man" instead? Maybe, judging from the surrogate entertainment at this year's gala.

Madonna and Cohen made acceptance speeches, although it fell to stand-ins to regale us with a few songs on behalf of the reluctant pop superstar and the moody singer-songwriter.

The Material Girl was inducted by Justin Timberlake. "With all due respect to the city of Cleveland, even that place sounds slightly erotic knowing Madonna is going to be entering the hall," Timberlake said. "For longer than I can remember . . . Madonna has been causing a stir, usually well-timed for the release of her latest album."

At the podium, Madonna was by turns humble, philosophical and self-deprecating.

"I've always been fortunate to have people around me who believed in me," she said.

"Life, like art, is a collaboration. I did not get here on my own. And why would I want to?" She fondly recalled everyone from her former ballet teacher to ex-bandmates. She even thanked her critics.

"They pushed me to be better," Madonna said.

Six-time Rock Hall nominees Iggy Pop & the Stooges were recruited to do a couple of Madonna hits because . . . um . . . well, they're originally from Michigan, just like Madonna, OK? A shirtless Pop & Co. tore through "Burning Up" from Madonna's self-titled 1983 debut and "Ray of Light," the title track of her 1998 album.

"Between recording commitments, pre-promotion for her upcoming album and family commitments, there wasn't enough time for her to prepare a proper performance," Madonna's longtime publicist, Liz Rosenberg, informed The Plain Dealer via e-mail.

Madonna "does not, as we know, do things halfway," Rosenberg wrote. "I'd love for her to grab her guitar and just rock out, but that's not our girl."


(AP Photo/Jason DeCrow)

Cohen was introduced by a fairly gushing Lou Reed. "We're so lucky to be alive at the same time Leonard Cohen is," Reed said. Cohen had a bemused expression as he clutched his Rock Hall statuette.

"This is a very unlikely occasion for me," he said. "It's not a distinction I coveted."

His signature ballad, "Hallelujah," was tenderly crooned by Damien Rice.

An e-mail query to Ed Sanders, a spokesman for Cohen, yielded no explanation as to why Cohen opted not to perform.

"I really couldn't say why!" Sanders replied, leaving us to wonder if he didn't know why, period, or if he did know why but wasn't at liberty to say. He declined to elaborate.

John Fogerty sang the praises of twang-loving instrumentalists the Ventures. Inducted were Bob Bogle (guitar, bass), Nokie Edwards (guitar, bass), Gerry McGee (guitar), Don Wilson (guitar) and the late Mel Taylor (drums). The band earned a standing ovation for playing its greatest hits, "Walk -- Don't Run" and the immortal "Hawaii Five-O" theme.


(AP Photo/Jason DeCrow)

Harmonica-playing bluesman Little Walter was enshrined posthumously in the Rock Hall's sidemen division. Singer-guitarist Ben Harper and harmonica player James Cotton jammed on a medley of Little Walter's "Juke" and "My Babe."

Philadelphia International Records founders Kenny Gamble and Leon Huff joined the ranks of the nonperformer inductees. In their honor, Patti LaBelle and Jerry Butler belted out roof-raising versions of "If You Don't Know Me by Now" and "Only the Strong Survive," respectively.

As of 10:30 p.m., the Dave Clark Five and Mellencamp had not been inducted.

At least the Dave Clark Five could legitimately be excused for not playing. Singer-keyboardist Mike Smith died of pneumonia Feb. 28. Sax player Denny Payton died of cancer in 2006.

Tom Hanks was to do the honors for the British Invasion group, represented by surviving members Clark (drums), Rick Huxley (guitar) and Lenny Davidson (guitar). Billy Joel was to induct heartland rocker Mellencamp, poet laureate of small towns and chili dogs.

A voting body of 600 music-biz insiders and previous inductees chose the Rock Hall's Class of 2008. //Inductees are not compensated for performing, which could be a sticking point for some artists. Travel and lodging expenses are covered by the Rock Hall, but honorees foot the bill for any performance-related expenses, such as rehearsal space rental.

The policy hasn't deprived previous ceremonies of unforgettable moments, including historic reunions by Cream, Talking Heads and the Police. On the other extreme, the inductions have been skipped altogether in years past by a few honorees, including the no-show Sex Pistols in 2006.

In a phone interview last week, Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Foundation President and CEO Joel Peresman said he would prefer to have incoming Hall of Famers perform, if possible.

"If they can't, they can't," Peresman said. "I mean, you're dealing with quirky people."

The inductions come to Cleveland next year, in late March or early April. Organizers plan to spread the festivities over three days, culminating with a Saturday-night gala at The Q, Cleveland State University's Wolstein Center or Public Hall.

For more stuff, go 2 this thread: http://prince.org/msg/8/263511

Source.

Oh yeah, and post anything about the Rock&Roll Hall of Fame Awards in here.

John Mellencamp tore shit up as i thought he would, Billy Joels speech for him was the show-stopper and a million times better than that "ego trippin" Justin Timberlake was doing. All in All i like the the show alot, Madonna'ss speech was cool, Mellencamp rocked because he is one of the best ever, and all the performers were really good, not big on Iggy Pop though. Great to see JOAN JETT playing in the Dave Clark tribute, BUT HOW ABOUT inducting her already!!

lastdecember said:

I skimmed through Joan's performance, she was great. And I agree, induct her already! And Iggy and Patti too and Jerry Butler, who also performed, lol.

Congratulations,Madonna

I knew I forgot something.

Thanks.

I'll record the one repeating today at noon.

first of all whats Madonna has got to thank ONJ for letting her dethroan livvy & become the queen of pp..right

next year i reckon Eric Clapton will pay tribuite to stevie ray Vaughan (If SRV gets inducted)

next year will be a better rocking ceremony

Rock and Roll Hall Of Fame inducts Madonna

(The New York Times)


Leave it to Madonna to make the right gesture.For her induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame,she didn't worry about whether her career as a pop hitmaker,image maker,sex symbol and provocateuse qualified her as an important figure in any narrowly defined genre of rock and roll.She just brought on an unquestioned rocker-Iggy Pop,the blunt,anarchic and durable songwriter and performer who's a fellow Michigan-born musician-to sing punk-chorded versions of her hits "Burning Up" and "Ray Of Light".He was shirtless,hyperactive and backed by the Stooges,who along with him have been nominated but snubbed by the Hall of Fame.

It was Madonna's night.She was introduced by the multimillion-selling pop singer Justin Timberlake,who collaborated on her upcoming album 'Hard Candy'.He said that while they were working together,he had come to the studio one day feeling ill,and Madonna had suggested a shot of vitamin B12.She didn't call a doctor,he said.She took a Zip-Loc bag of B12 syringes from her designer bag,said "Drop 'em",gave him the shot,and added "Nice top shelf".Mr.Timberlake said,"That was one of the greatest days of my life".

Madonna,calling herself a "control freak",immediately corrected him."I said 'Pull your pants down,' she asserted,before starting one of the longest speeches given at any Hall of Fame ceremony.Among the people she thanked were naysayers: "The ones that said I was talentless,that I was chubby,that I couldn't sing,that I was a one-hit wonder," she said."They pushed me to be better,and I am grateful for their resistance".

I have my own Rock n Roll Hall of Fame...it's called my CD collection. Only RnRHoF I need, thank you very much.

Leonard Cohen is sooo cool.

Cinnie said:

He is indeed.

Cheek said:

She's starting to resemble a waxwork isn't she? I saw a clip of the ceremony on TV this morning and she is gonna rival MJ pretty soon for scariness.

midnightmover said:

I have to say that I think she looks bloody awful. Her arms have always been unattractive to me. I know some people think her arms are toned and nice looking, but I find them to be very manly. Sure, she's in great shape, but I have never found her to be overly attractive. She does look good in many professional photos, but don't we all?!

Empress said:

I'm pretty sure you and me aren't the only ones who've noticed that, but no-one in the media will dare to point it out.

Well, I posted this in the Madonna thread, but cha know, it deserves to be here, too. It's just too priceless.



This picture is disturbing on SO Many levels. It's clear that Madge has gone overboard with the PS, since she now resembles a wax figure. And, it seems, she is only a few years away from having Iggy Pop's body. Iggy, meanwhile, seems to be catching a whiff as Justin and Madge try to contain their laughter (not like you could tell from Madge's face as it's so frozen, though). To top it all off, everyone's outfit is fug.

VoicesCarry said:

Too funny and too true. I thought I was the only one who could see that Madonna doesn't look right.

When did Madonna become Rock & Roll? Pop music, without a doubt but R&R...

Slave2daGroove said:

Isn't Rock n Roll the general term that covers all American Pop Music of the past 50 some odd years?

It's the Apocalypse!

Iggy Pop. Singing a Madonna Song. At the Rock And Roll Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony.

---

LOL, Awards don't mean a thing...

ehuffnsd said:

It is the Apocalypse...and I feel fine.

I hope there are videos of Iggy Pop's performance somewhere on the web.

I would love to watch that

Cinnie said:

LOL, me too...me too...

http://www.youtube.com/wa...iqQavekEH0

This rocks!

I just love the fact that Iggy is always running around shirtless no matter where he is.

Alasseon said:

IGGY was an embarrassment...

John Cougar tore shit up!
Well, at least with the AUTHORITY SONG...

I dug the Stooges performance a lot but I'm not suprised it didn't play so well in these parts.

But it was the most balls-out ROCKING thing on that stage all night.

Otherwise, what a snoozer. Gamble & Huff are brilliant & deserve the award but were a poor choice to open the proceedings which really should start with a bang. The Ventures, well, they still play those songs purty good but they're not the liveliest bunch you can imagine. Little Walter was a genius but we didn't really get to hear him; Ben Harper with James Cotton wasn't bad but again, understated. Leonard Cohen is the opposite of hot rock action & would have been a downer no matter what the lineup was. So that left Madge, Mellencamp and the DC5. Cougie was all right, and he did do "Authority" which was the only one I could look forward to hearing, but it was nothing you won't see on his next tour, or his last one. And the DC5 tribute just didn't sound quite right for some reason despite fine performances from Joan Jett & Fogerty on a couple of really good songs.

The Stooges were turned up too loud, playing songs they barely knew, were out there twisting, frugging and pressing the tuxedoed flesh, and dropped something so unexpected it was comical...and they made it work.

I give em an A.

Cinnie said:

He's fucking crazy and I love him for that!

midnightmover said:

She looks very awful, I just can't stop lol-ing when I look at the pics!