Rock Legends Not in the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame That Should Be
50 Rock Legends Not in the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame That Should Be
- The Rock Hall often overlooks genuine rock legends, focusing more on general music than true rock 'n' roll.
- Many acclaimed solo artists are excluded despite being inducted as part of a group.
- The list highlights 50 influential rock acts that have been unfairly denied Hall of Fame induction.
The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame rarely seems to get things right when it comes to nominations and inductions, as there are dozens of genuine rock legends sitting outside its halls without even a single nomination. According to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, nominations go to “artists who have created music whose originality, impact, and influence has changed the course of rock ‘n’ roll.” The artist must also have released their debut music at least 25 years ago.
However, the selection committee typically forgets it’s a “rock and roll” hall of fame, not a general music one.
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In honor of the artists dishonored by the hall, here’s 50 rock legends not in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame that should be:
It’s worth noting several solo artists featured on this list are in the hall of fame as members of a group, however their respective solo careers were significant enough to warrant inclusion on the list.
50 Rock Legends Not in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame That Should Be
1. Bryan Adams
Eligible since: 2005
Major hits: “Summer of 69,” Heaven,” “Run to You”
Biggest project: Reckless (1984)
2. America
Eligible since: 1997
Major hits: “A Horse with No Name,” “Sister Golden Hair,” “Ventura Highway”
Biggest project: America (1972)
3. Asia
Eligible since: 2007
Major hits: “Heat of the Moment,” “Don’t Cry,” “Only Time Will Tell”
Biggest project: Asia (1982)
4. Badfinger
Eligible Since: 1996
Major hits: “No Matter What,” “Day After Day,” “Come and Get It”
Biggest project: Straight Up (1971)
5. Blackfoot
Eligible since: 2000
Major hits: “Highway Song,” “Train, Train,” “Fly Away”
Biggest project: Strikes (1979)
6. Blue Öyster Cult
Eligible since: 1997
Major hits: “(Don’t Fear) The Reaper,” “Burnin’ for You,” “Godzilla”
Biggest project: Agents of Fortune (1976)
7. Boston
Eligible since: 2001
Major hits: “Amanda,” “Don’t Look Back,” “More Than a Feeling”
Biggest project: Boston (1976)
8. Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young
Eligible since: 1994
Major hits: “Just a Song Before I Go,” “Wasted on the Way,” “Woodstock”
Biggest project: Déjà Vu (1970)
9. Rick Derringer
Eligible since: 1998
Major hits: “Rock and Roll Hoochie Koo,” “Real American,” “Demolition”
Biggest project: All American Boy (1973)
10. Dio
Eligible since: 2008
Major hits: “The Last in Line,” “Rainbow in the Dark,” “Holy Diver”
Biggest project: Holy Diver (1983)
11. Foghat
Eligible since: 1998
Major hits: “Slow Ride,” “Fool for the City,” “I Just Want to Make Love to You”
Biggest project: Fool for the City (1975)
12. Golden Earring
Eligible since: 1991
Major hits: “Radar Love,” “Twighlight Zone,” “When the Lady Smiles”
Biggest project: Moontan (1973)
13. Grand Funk Railroad
Eligible since: 1994
Major hits: “The Loco-Motion,” “We’re An American Band,” “Some Kind of Wonderful”
Biggest project: Closer to Home (1970)
14. The Guess Who
Eligible since: 1991
Major hits: “American Woman,” “These Eyes,” “No Sugar Tonight”
Biggest project: American Woman (1970)
15. Sammy Hagar
Eligible since: 2002
Major hits: “Your Love is Driving Me Crazy,” “I Can’t Drive 55,” “Heavy Metal”
Biggest project: Standing Hampton (1982)
16. Don Henley
Eligible since: 2008
Major hits: “Dirty Laundry,” “Boys of Summer,” “The End of Innocence”
Biggest project: The End of Innocence (1989)
17. Humble Pie
Eligible since: 1995
Major hits: “30 Days in the Hole,” “Hot ‘n’ Nasty,” “I Don’t Need No Doctor”
Biggest project: Smokin’ (1972)
18. James Gang
Eligible since: 1995
Major hits: “Funk #49,” “Walk Away,” “Must Be Love”
Biggest project: James Gang Rides Again (1970)
19. Kansas
Eligible since: 2000
Major hits: “Dust in the Wind,” “Carry On Wayward Son,” “Point of Know Return”
Biggest project: Point of Know Return (1977)
20. Lenny Kravitz
Eligible since: 2015
Major hits: “It Ain’t Over ’til It’s Over,” “Are You Gonna Go My Way,” “Fly Away”
Biggest project: Are You Gonna Go My Way (1993)
21. Huey Lewis and the News
Eligible since: 2006
Major hits: “The Power of Love,” “I Want a New Drug,” “Stuck with You”
Biggest project: Sports (1983)
22. Jethro Tull
Eligible since: 1993
Major hits: “Aqualung,” “Living in the Past,” “The Witch’s Promise”
Biggest project: Aqualung (1971)
23. Living Colour
Eligible since: 2014
Major hits: “Cult of Personality,” “Glamour Boys,” “Open Letter (To a Landlord)”
Biggest project: Vivid (1988)
24. Meat Loaf
Eligible since: 1997
Major hits: “Two Out of Three Ain’t Bad,” “Paradise by the Dashboard Light,” “I’d Do Anything for Love (But I Won’t Do That)”
Biggest project: Bat Out of Hell (1977)
25. Molly Hatchet
Eligible since: 2004
Major hits: “Flirtin’ with Disaster,” “Satisfied Man,” “Let the Good Times Roll”
Biggest project: Flirtin’ with Disaster (1979)
26. The Monkees
Eligible since: 1992
Major hits: “”Daydream Believer,” “I’m a Believer,” “Last Train to Clarksville”
Biggest project: More of the Monkees (1967)
27. Montrose
Eligible since: 1999
Major hits: “Rock Candy,” “Bad Motor Scooter,” “Space Station #5”
Biggest project: Montrose (1973)
28. Mötley Crüe
Eligible since: 2007
Major hits: “Dr. Feelgood,” “Without You,” “Girls, Girls, Girls”
Biggest project: Dr. Feelgood (1989)
29. Motörhead
Eligible since: 2003
Major hits: “Ace of Spades,” “Motörhead,” “Bomber“
Biggest project: Ace of Spades (1980)
30. Nazareth
Eligible since: 1997
Major hits: “Love Hurts,” “Hair of the Dog,” “Holiday”
Biggest project: Hair of the Dog (1975)
31. Robert Plant
Eligible since: 2008
Major hits: “Sea of Love,” “Tall Cool One,” “Little by Little”
Biggest project: Now and Zen (1988)
32. Poison
Eligible since: 2012
Major hits: “Every Rose Has Its Thorn,” “Unskinny Bop,” “Something to Believe In
Biggest project: Open Up and Say… Ahh! (1988)
33. Rainbow
Eligible since: 2001
Major hits: “Stone Cold,” “Street of Dreams,” “Since You Been Gone”
Biggest project: Straight Between the Eyes (1982)
34. Ratt
Eligible since: 2009
Major hits: “Round and Round,” “Lay It Down,” “Dance”
Biggest project: Out of the Cellar (1984)
35. REO Speedwagon
Eligible since: 1997
Major hits: “Can’t Fight This Feeling,” “Take It On the Run,” “Keep On Loving You”
Biggest project: Hi Infidelity (1980)
36. David Lee Roth
Eligible since: 2011
Major hits: “California Girls,” “Just Like Paradise,” “Yankee Rose”
Biggest project: Skyscraper (1988)
37. Joe Satriani
Eligible since: 2012
Major Hits: “Surfing with the Alien,” “Always with Me,” Satch Boogie”
Biggest project: Surfing with the Alien (1987)
38. Scorpions
Eligible since: 1998
Major hits: “Wind of Change,” “Rock You Like a Hurricane,” “Still Loving You”
Biggest project: Love at First Sting (1984)
39. Slade
Eligible since: 1995
Major hits: “Merry Xmas Everybody,” “Far Far Away,” “Cum On Feel the Noize”
Biggest project: Slayed? (1972)
40. The Smiths
Eligible since: 2009
Major hits: “How Soon Is Now?,” “There Is a Light That Never Goes Out,” “This Charming Man”
Biggest project: The Queen Is Dead (1986)
41. Billy Squier
Eligible since: 2005
Major hits: “Rock Me Tonite,” “The Stroke,” “Everybody Wants You”
Biggest project: Don’t Say No (1981)
42. Steppenwolf
Eligible since: 1994
Major hits: “Born to Be Wild,” “Magic Carpet Ride,” “Rock Me”
Biggest project: The Second (1968)
43. Styx
Eligible since: 1998
Major hits: “Babe,” “Mr. Roboto,” “The Best of Times”
Biggest project: The Grand Illusion (1977)
44. Supertramp
Eligible since: 1995
Major hits: “The Logical Song,” “Goodbye Stranger,” “Breakfast in America”
Biggest project: Breakfast in America (1979)
45. Survivor
Eligible since: 2005
Major hits: “Eye of the Tiger,” “Burning Heart,” “I Can’t Hold Back”
Biggest project: Eye of the Tiger (1982)
46. Thin Lizzy
Eligible since: 1996
Major hits: “The Boys Are Back in Town,” “Cowboy Song,” “Whiskey in the Jar”
Biggest project: Jailbreak (1976)
47. Toto
Eligible since: 2004
Major hits: “Africa,” “Rosanna,” “Hold the Line”
Biggest project: Toto IV (1982)
48. Twisted Sister
Eligible since: 2008
Major hits: “We’re Not Gonna Take It,” “I Wanna Rock,” “Leader of the Pack”
Biggest project: Stay Hungry (1984)
49. Joe Walsh
Eligible since: 1998
Major hits: “Life’s Been Good,” “Rocky Mountain Way,” “All Night Long”
Biggest project: But Seriously, Folks… (1978)
50. 38 Special
Eligible since: 2003
Major hits: “If I’d Be the One,” “Caught Up in You,” “Hold On Loosely”
Biggest project: Special Forces (1982)
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