REM AND VAN HALEN TO ENTER ROCK HALL

REM and Van Halen will be entering into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame with the NYC induction ceremony in March.

R.E.M. and Van Halen are among this year’s inductees into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame. The museum resides in Cleveland, but the induction ceremony is traditionally held in New York City at the Waldorf-Astoria. Van Halen and R.E.M. will be joined by Grandmaster Flash, Patti Smith and Phil Spector.

R.E.M. laid the groundwork for what constituted melodic and thoughtful modern rock, and singer Michael Stipe said a few years back that people often underestimate his lyrical inspirations.

“I mean you don’t want to call someone an idiot, but it’s like don’t be so simple minded about something like that. Don’t confuse the singer with the song. I’ve said that a gazillion times. Give me some credit as a songwriter. It’s not about me at all. The themes are much more universal than that. I’m not that interesting of a person even as a media figure I’m not that interesting.”

Van Halen has two storied singers, David Lee Roth and Sammy Hagar, and the drama between Eddie and Alex, and the two vocalists continue today. The fiery Roth made the band a household name and in the mid ’80s Eddie and crew tapped the Red Rocker, Sammy Hager for the duties. Hagar told us in an interview some time back about what he thinks his contribution to Van Halen is or was.

“That’s my main contribution, to keep this band together I think. I think if I were to judge it I’d say that’s my best contribution even though the songwriting has changed a lot and you either like it better or you don’t. But without me or someone like me the band would have just dissolved, and Eddie would have went and did something else and Alex would have joined some other band or Ed and Al might have stayed together, I don’t know. But believe me it was a matter of getting these guys to feel like a band again, and they did. And right away like that. We all did.”

At press time there was no word as to whether the Van Halen brothers, Eddie And Alex would be playing with both Sammy Hagar and David Lee Roth for the Hall’s induction ceremony. The Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame induction dinner is set to take place March 12 at the Waldorf-Astoria. Last year’s induction ceremony featured the likes of Lynyrd Skynyrd, Black Sabbath, and Blondie.