Customer Reviews

Rock & Roll Hall of Fame

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Made the 9 hour drive to be at this show. The whole thing was on HBO as well. Too much is missing from this CD set. The show was over 6 hours long and many of the best artists are not featured here at all.

In general, I like this live 2-CD set celebrating the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. I also agree with other reviewers that disc #1 is the better of the two discs, highlighted by the Sam Cooke, James Brown, Aretha Franklin and P-Funk/Larry Graham selections. The CD could hve used more Aretha Franklin, in my opinion, if more tracks were available.

This review is not about the selection process (which I do not favor); it is not about who has been inducted and who has not (good grief, we all have disagreements there), nor is it about why the RnRHoF+M is in Cleveland (two leading answers...Allan Freed and offering more money than NY or LA).

It is about the music contained on the two CDs.

First, the quality of the recordings is excellent as are the great majority of the performances. Jerry lee Lewis' turn is absolutely timeless; it could have been recorded at anytime in his career. The same can be said for the - to my mind - utterly marvelous sequence of Iggy Pop, Lou Reed and Soul Asylum showing just how each generation is chronologically linked.

At the other end of the spectrum, Johnny Cash's performance was flat and off-key, while John Fogerty seemed to be going through the motions.

Second, the choice of performances to be included was odd to say the least. Where, for example, was the British Invasion??? Eric Burdon was there as was the original Kinks. Did we hear either? We did not even get to hear the really well-done acoustic tribute to The Beatles and John Lennon from Jon Bon Jovi and Richie Sambora. And where were Chuck Berry and Little Richard? I could go on, but let's just say that I had to wonder if a) there were financial problems in gaining publisher or performer permissions; b) if some folks hated their performances or c) Mr. Wenner et al were already embarked on their biased revisionist approach to the history of rock `n' roll. Put simply a lot of good music that arguably was more pertinent to the story of rock - like Motown - seems to have been omitted or passed over.

Anyway...a two rating.

I loved disc one and only liked disc two. Loved the compilation of classic rock and soul hits. Inclusion of Sam Cooke's civil rights song Change is Gonna Come and James Brown's classic It's a Man's World are the icing on the cake. You get the concert feel with crowd noise and high energy version of rock classics. Wasn't as nuts about the second disc mostly because there's only so much you can do with songs you've heard a thousand times over on the radio--golden oldies that are growing moldy. But even disc two had a few songs that were definitely worth listening to.

My better half has been talking about his missing video of the Concert for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame for years. I decided to try to find the music and found these CDs. What a great surprise on Christmas morning! We thoroughly enjoyed listening to them later that same morning. Phenomenal sound quality, I am very pleased with this purchase....if you close your eyes, its like being at the concert!

I've never liked the idea of a Rock and Roll Hall of Fame; it seems to me that institutionalizing the music and setting up some kind of semi-official Rock Aristocracy defeats much of the spirit and thrill of the music. It also seems to be yet another excuse for a lot of Rolling Stone nerd-critics to try and attach their names to those of their musical heroes.

And, with few exceptions, this album proves how misguided this whole concept was. The inclusion of Melissa Ethridge is annoying but predictable; the fact that she gets more tunes on this 2-CD package than Springsteen, Dylan, Johnny Cash or any other artist is beyond belief. It would be understandable if she did something special but she is dull as dishwater, screaming "Hello Cleveland!" (that's a deep sentiment repeated ad nauseum by almost every singer on this CD) before screeching "Can you remember the fine days when Rock and Roll...wore a drrrrrrress?!?!?!" Kind of an odd sentiment coming from a woman who refuses to wear dresses, but that's neither here nor there, the important thing to keep in mind is that Etheridge can't sing and has an extremely hard time finding the melodies of the three classic tunes she tackles. The Ronettes and Supremes were due more homage than this.

Disc 1 is rescued, temporarily, by Al Green, the most underrated singer of his generation, who turns in gorgeous renditions of "Tired of Being Alone" and "A Change is Gonna Come," but Chrissie Hynde does her very best to break the mood by screaming the name of every Cleveland suburb at the top of her lungs before phoning in a lackluster mumbling of "My City Was Gone."

After that things pick up for quite a while. Johnny Cash, Aretha Franklin, James Brown, John Fogarty all deserved more space on Disc 1, and Jerry Lee Lewis rocks on Disc 2. Springsteen's "Shake Rattle & Roll" is surpisingly slow and doesn't display the Boss's usual energy, but he understands what he's doing, something that can't be said for every act on this CD.

Once The Killer and The Boss leave the stage, the show collapses. Natalie Merchant, Jackson Browne, Bruce Hornsby and especially the Allman Brothers all phone it in, stumbling through dull performances of songs it makes no sense for them to sing. Browne's version of Bob Marley's great "Redemption Song" is downright shameful, and it is embarassing to listen to Slash trying to remember the guitar parts to Hendrix' "Red House."

Most annoying of all are the constant reminders that the show is in Cleveland, Cleveland rocks, this is for Cleveland and, over and over and over, "Hello Cleveland!!!" Outside the city limits, WHO CARES?!? For whatever reason, the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame has decided that Cleveland is the center of the universe...which probably goes a long way towards explaining why this album, and the Hall itself, have been ignored everywhere outside of Ohio.

The Hall may have been a good idea, and the concept of this CD--a group of Rock giants covering classic Rock tunes in front of a live audience--is a good idea. Unfortunately, the reality of the Hall and the CD fall far short of the dream.

Fantastic concert, especially John Mellencamp's version of ROCK IN THE USA is not to be missed, great energy. Jerry Lee Lewis, the Late great Johnny Cash, Aretha Franklin, Al Green, the list goes on, the CD is worth a listen.

But when is this concert going to be on DVD?? It is long overdue! What's the story, put the concert on DVD already for everyone to see. I was overseas serving my country when the concert was broadcast, so I missed out, help us out who missed the concert!

Incredible brace of artists here, and I'd imagine the greatest tracks to be George Clinton/P Funk with Larry Graham doing the Sly & Family Stone songs. But I can not and WILL not "appreciate," or for THAT matter, "tolerate" anything that claims....Cleveland - ANYTHING! Rock and Roll was born in Memphis Tennessee, and just because some lame disc jockey ripped off the Black People, and applied one of their euphenisms to bename the incredible music rising northward from its birthplace down South...gimme a break. When something akin to a (giggle) "Rock and Roll Hall Of Fame" comes from Memphis, THEN I'll be interested. But Cleveland? Forget it - I live here now, and, trust me, Cleveland does NOT "rock," despite what I Hunter would have you believe...

THIS RECORDING IS ONLY A SMALL PART OF THE EXPERIENCE OF THE OPENING OF THE HALL OF FAME. A LOT OF ARTIST THAT PERFORMED THERE WERE NOT INCLUDED ON THIS CD. MAYBE ANOTHER VOLUME WILL FOLLOW WITH ERIC BURDON, BON JOVI, CHUCK BERRY, HEART, LITTLE RICHARD.... THERE WERE SO MANY IN THE 7 HOUR CONCERT, THAT A SINGLE CD COULD NOT COVER THAT CONCERT. IT WILL BE A COLLECTORS ITEM FOR THE AVID ROCK N ROLL FAN. I WAS THERE, AND I'LL NEVER FORGET IT AND IF YOU MISSED IT, YOU'LL NEVER GET THE CHANCE AGAIN EXCEPT TO HEAR US 65,000 FANS SCREAMING ON THE CD.

What artists deserve to be in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame but have been overlooked for whatever reason?
Here are the top 20 according to an internet poll:
1. Pete Townshend (solo)
2. Peter Gabriel (solo)
3. Van Halen
4. Lynard Skynard
5. Genesis
6. Alice Cooper
7. Moody Blues
8. Iron Maiden
9. Rush
10. Foreigner
11. Chicago
12. John Mellencamp
13. Steve Miller
14. Doobie Brothers
15. The Cars
16. Dire Straits
17. Blondie
18. Yes
19. Thin Lizzy
20. Styx
[...]