Ignored Pioneers

The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame is back at it again, currently trying to decide if Randy Newman is more rockin' than Kraftwerk or Chic. Oooh, what about the Captain and Tenille?
The hall could easily avoid a lot of criticism by changing their name to the more accurate, Pop Music Hall of Fame. Instead, they clutch onto their misnomer and show us annually how little they know about rock music. Face it guys, you are all about the most popular music, whether you think it sounds cool or not. The hall knows damn well they will be inducting Christina Aguilera long before Arthur Lee and Love are ever considered. They don't dig The Sonics, like me and you, they don't get it.
Here are some more caricatures of the ignored, some of rock's founding fathers who have been left out of the hall for over 25 years now. I guess they figured they had all their bases covered with the induction of Jelly Roll Morton?

Arthur "Big Boy" Crudup
1905-1974
Arthur's 1947 release of "That's All Right" was Elvis' first record for Sun in July of 1954. Elvis also recorded Crudup compositions, "My Baby Left Me" and "So Glad You're Mine". Unfortunately, Crudup's royalties were not collected in his lifetime.



Mr. Blues, Wynonie Harris
1915-1969
Wynonie hit #1 in the R and B charts with "Good Rockin' Tonight" in June of 1948. "Bloodshot Eyes", "Good Morning, Judge", "Down Boy Down", "Blow Your Brains Out" and many more great songs done before Elvis was King.



Roy Brown
1925-1981
The composer and first recording of "Good Rockin' Tonight" in September of 1947. Chosen as Elvis' second release for Sun Records in September of 1954. Roy finally did hit the #1 spot with "Hard Luck Blues" in 1950. Hard luck was right though, soon after Roy was blackballed for trying to collect his royalties from King Records.



Amos Milburn
1927-1980
Amos had a #1 R and B hit with "Chicken Shack Boogie" in December of 1948 and a #2  with "One Scotch, One Bourbon, One Beer" in 1953. The Rolling Stones covered Amos' 1946 tune, "Down The Road Apiece" on 1965's The Rolling Stones, Now! LP.  

Roy Hall
1922-1984
Roy's "Whole Lotta Shakin' Going On" was released by Decca in September 1955. Roy's after-hours club in Nashville, The Music Box, was where a under-age Jerry Lee Lewis played piano 'til dawn. "Three Alley Cats" from 1956 is my favorite.



More to come...