March Madness is upon us again, as is the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremony. Music Times, wishing like everyone else that we could be watching basketball instead, has once again found a way to combine the two into our Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Bracket Challenge. Last year's competition saw Peter Gabriel overcome KISS in the championship.
The actual inductees may have already been chosen, but we find the process a little...encompassing. Sure, it's great that many performers across a range of genres get accepted into the Hall, but wouldn't it be a much more blockbuster affair if the nominees had to battle it out, tournament style?
With that in mind, we've arranged this year's 15 nominees into seeds (one lucky performer gets a bye) based on popularity among modern audiences, and then set them up in a bracket for you, the outspoken reader, to vote upon. At this time next week, we'll count up the votes in each matchup to decide who moves onto Elite 8.
Today vote on the "Rock" regional and then come back tomorrow for the "Roll" regional. If you think we shafted your favorite act on seed choice...prove us wrong with your vote.
01) Lou Reed (BYE)
There were several popular acts this year but few combined Lou Reed's combination of recognizability as a member of the Velvet Underground and as a solo performer, with his honest influence as a songwriter and rock 'n' roll experimentalist. Fellow nominee Nine Inch Nails would hardly be the act it is today with Reed's work as a solo performer. On a more cynical note, Reed's death within the last year probably brings in the sentimental votes as well. He can rest easy until the next round.
04) Joan Jett and The Blackhearts vs. 05) Bill Withers
It looks like we're out to a quick clash of musical cultures in the battle between the closest seeds. Many listeners only know a few tracks from each performer—"I Love Rock 'n' Roll" and "Bad Reputation" from Jett....versus "Lean On Me" and "Just The Two of Us" from Withers—but danged if those singles haven't lasted through the years. Two more things might be working in Jett's favor during this competition: She last released an album during 2013 with Unvarnished, while Withers hasn't dropped a new collection since 1985's Watching You Watching Me (and this is also Withers' first time being nominated for the Hall). We know only one thing is going to decide this battle however: Do you lean rock 'n' roll or R&B?
03) Sting vs. 06) Chic These two acts are about as opposite as can be when it comes to being nominated for the Hall of Fame: Sting is here with his first nomination, while Chic is among the most-nominated acts of all time...this being the band's tenth nod. The reason why we still seeded the disco icons relatively far back is because of how little respect rock fans have given the band's genre of choice in the past. One would think that last year or this year would have finally opened the door for the group...after all, leader and guitarist Nile Rodgers rose to new prominence thanks to his work with Daft Punk on the pair's Random Access Memories. Don't think Sting doesn't have experience just because this is his first solo nomination: The bassist has already been inducted as a member of The Police. Now he aims to pull a Rick Pitino and win the tournament with two different teams.
02) Nine Inch Nails vs 07) The Spinners
Nine Inch Nails is one of two upstarts that earned a nomination during their first year of eligibility (Green Day is the other). Trent Reznor, the man behind the monster, has certainly built a case for himself as an inductee, not only for his popularization of the industrial genre but also for, in recent years, his strides in changing the marketing of records, such as the format of pay-tiers he used for the release of Ghosts I-IV during 2008 (along with its relatively "surprise" drop, a trend that the industry just caught up with during 2013). The Spinners certainly don't have recognition of the youth on its side, but it does have history: The R&B group has been touring for more than 60 years now, with founding member Henry Fambrough still at the helm. The group is best known for its 1970 single "It's A Shame," a song co-written by Stevie Wonder.
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