Categories
Music

Only 8 more years until Tiffany and Debbie Gibson are eligible!

Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Names 2003 Inductees
NEW YORK (Reuters) – Australia’s heavy-metal rockers AC/DC along with three British groups — Elvis Costello and the Attractions, The Police and The Clash — climbed to the ranks of rock’s pantheon after being named the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame’s 2003 inductees, organizers said on Thursday.
They were joined by The Righteous Brothers, Bill Medley and Bobby Hatfield, whose 1965 chart-topping hit “You’ve Lost That Lovin’ Feeling” helped define what came to be called “blue-eyed soul” during that decade.
“These inductees represent many influential genres of rock, including 60s soul, heavy metal and 1970s English punk,” said executive director Suzan Evans in a statement.
The Hall of Fame’s 18th annual induction ceremony will be held in New York on March 10 and as in recent years, it will likely reunite bands that parted ways several years ago, sometimes acrimoniously.
The Police, The Clash and Costello followed in the footsteps of The Ramones and Talking Heads, who last year became the first punk and new wave bands to break into the Hall of Fame. Artists become eligible for induction 25 years after the release of their first record.
Sting, the solo artist who was bassist and lead singer for The Police, told his web site Sting.com: “I am very proud of the legacy of The Police. We were a damn good band and it still holds up.”
The Police fused punk with reggae grooves and intricate arrangements to gain global popularity. With Andy Summers on guitar and Stewart Copeland on drums, The Police’s rise culminated with the 1983 album “Synchronicity” which featured the hit song “Every Breath You Take.” The trio broke up in 1985.
The anti-establishment Clash rose to prominence at the dawn of the punk era, lashing out against war, racism and the sorry state of the British economy to gain global fame with hits like “Rock the Casbah” before splitting in 1982.
Critically respected, Costello drew from the energy of punk with his first solo album “My Aim Is True” in 1977 before joining with the Attractions, made up of keyboardist Steve Nieve, bassist Bruce Thomas and drummer Pete Thomas, until the mid-1980s. Since Costello has jumped music genres from jazz to a collaboration with Burt Bacharach.
The hard-charging guitars of Angus and Malcom Young combined with the growl of AC/DC lead singer Brian Johnson to power the band’s aggressive sound with anthems such as “You Shook Me All Night Long” in 1980.