Future Rock Hall has announced its prediction of the 2007 Rock Hall nominations. Check it out here.

Let's try to clear up some confusion about when artists are eligible for induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. According to the Rock Hall official website, "Artists become eligible for induction 25 years after the release of their first record." The site lists all of the Hall of Famers under the year they were inducted into the Hall. But the years listed represent the year of the Induction Ceremony, which usually takes place in March of the year following the actual inductions. In December, the artists are voted in when the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Foundation announces the results of their balloting.

For example, let's look at The Beatles, a band the Rock Hall would not wait one second longer than necessary to induct. The Beatles released their first singles in 1962, which made them eligible for the Rock Hall in 1987. In September of 1987, the Rock Hall Foundation nominated them, and three months later in December, they were voted into the Hall. But the induction ceremony didn't take place until 1988—26 years after their first record, and they are considered to be in the class of '88.

So when does R.E.M. get inducted? Assuming they get voted in the first year they are eligible, 2006, they will be a part of the 2007 induction ceremony.

Update: R.E.M. is eligible this year -- they released "Radio Free Europe" in 1981. (Thanks, Martin)

Last year's Rock & Roll Hall of Fame nomination class did not include a single artist who first became eligible in 2005 (by first releasing a record in 1980). Wasn't there someone in last year's class that at least deserved a nomination?

The artists from this year who still have the best chances for future induction are The Replacements, Hüsker Dü, and New Order. All worthy bands, who laid the groundwork for countless artists, but not necessarily the type of platinum-selling artists who are slam-dunks for the Hall (like R.E.M. next year).

The rest of the snubbed class from 1980 can be found here. Who's your favorite from that year? Let us know in the comments.

Update: It appears the class of '81 hasn't been snubbed. It's the class of 1980 that failed to have a representative in last year's nominees. The 2007 Induction Ceremony actually honors the artists who were inducted in 2006. (thanks, Ben)

As we approach the 2007 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame nominations (look for them in mid-September), let's take a look at the current Rock Hall of Famers and see how they got there.

There are 149 artists currently in the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in the "Performer" category. (For the purposes of this analysis let's put aside those inducted as "Early Influences", because they aren't subjected to the same voting scrutiny the peformers go under.) Out of those 149, a full 50% of those were inducted in the very first year they were nominated. These are your First Ballot Hall of Famers. For the most part, these are no-brainers such as the Beatles, the Rolling Stones, Bruce Springsteen, and U2. There are also some less-obvious artists who made it in as first time nominees like Blondie, Isaac Hayes, Percy Sledge, and the Pretenders.

The next group of artists are those who didn't get inducted on their first try, but got in the second time they were nominated, usually the following year. In fairness, many of these artists were initially nominated in 1986, when they simply couldn't induct everyone deserving in the first year of the Hall of Fame, so they were inducted in '87. There are 31 Second Ballot Hall of Famers (21%), a list that includes Billy Joel, Queen, Aerosmith, and Aretha Franklin. Out of this group, it's incredible to see that David Bowie was actually first nominated in 1992, but didn't get in until four years later!

Third Ballot Hall of Famers make up 12% of the Rock Hall and include artists that perhaps the voters had to think twice about. Some notables include Joni Mitchell, Frank Zappa, Ritchie Valens, and AC/DC.

Apparently, 1997 was a house-cleaning year for the Hall of Fame. There are only three Fourth Ballot Hall of Famers, and they were all inducted that year—the Jackson Five, the Rascals, and Buffalo Springfield. Perhaps the competition wasn't great in '97 or maybe the voters just got sick of seeing their names on the ballot every year and decided to cave in.

The Rock Hall voters were obviously unsure about most of the artists who were nominated more than four times. There are 22 artists that fall into this category, which is almost 15% of the Hall. This group includes Little Willie John, Gene Pitney, Ruth Brown, Duane Eddy, Jimmy Reed, and of course Solomon Burke, who got in on his 11th nomination.

It's natural to wonder why these artists were inducted, if the Rock Hall voters didn't feel like they were Hall-worthy 6 or 7 times before. And why did the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Foundation keep nominating them year after year, when other artists like the Deep Purple, Alice Cooper, and KISS never even get a chance to be voted on? Perhaps the Rock Hall just needed 8 years to get used to the idea that a band like Black Sabbath deserved to be in the Hall of Fame right alongside Elvis, Janis, and Prince.

Believe it or not, there are only 33 artists who have ever been nominated for induction, but are not in the Hall. So what are the chances for snubbed artists like Patti Smith, Cat Stevens, and the Stooges? Well, of all the artists who have faced defeat at least once, 70% of them eventually became Hall of Famers, so there chances are quite good. That just proves that the nominating committee, the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Foundation (based in New York City), holds the greatest power and influence over who gets inducted.

The question of rap and the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame may be the most important issue the Hall needs to address in the coming years. Critics of the Hall have been wrestling with this issue but there doesn't seem to be a consensus. Rock fans are also split on whether artists like Eminem and Jay-Z belong in the same conversation with Nirvana and Guns N' Roses, as reflected by the voting on this site.

First, let's tackle the definition of "rock and roll", because many fans get hung up on the idea that artists who don't fit that description don't belong in the Rock Hall. Kurt Loder, the ageless MTV News icon, wrote on the subject in 2002:

What exactly is rock and roll? Having spent many years as a member of the Hall of Fame nominating committee (a position I no longer hold), I can tell you that endless hours have been devoted to this question, and it has never been definitively answered. Some critics — most notably the English writer Charlie Gillett, in his groundbreaking 1970 book, "The Sound of the City" — have argued that rock and roll is, if not "dead," at least historically complete, and now a part of the past.

If "rock and roll" as a genre is dead, that helps explain how bands like Black Sabbath (heavy metal), the Bee Gees (disco/soul) and the Ramones (punk) can get inducted without sounding like Chuck Berry. The list of subgenres in the Hall under the "rock" umbrella is incredibly diverse and has clearly expanded outside the strict definition of "rock and roll". So why should the Rock Hall draw the line at rap and hip hop?

The Rock Hall's primary function is "to recognize the contributions of those who have had a significant impact on the evolution, development and perpetuation of rock and roll." There is no question that hip hop has heavily influenced today's rock artists -- Red Hot Chili Peppers, Rage Against the Machine, and countless others combine rap and rock seamlessly. Turntables and sampling have their roots in early rap, but are now ubiquitous in popular music. You can't understand popular music from the last 20 years without hip hop. That needs to be documented in the Hall of Fame.

The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Foundation (who nominates the artists) has shown a recent willingness to open their doors to rap by nominating Grandmaster Flash & the Furious Five in 2005 and 2006, though they didn't receive enough votes to get inducted. The Rock Hall Museum has also hosted speakers like Chuck D and held exhibits devoted to hip hop. After all, the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame is also an active museum and they want to expand their visitors to hip hop fans.

This question will certainly be answered definitively in the next couple of years when rappers like the Beastie Boys, Run DMC, LL Cool J, and Public Enemy all become eligible for induction.

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There are legions of fans out there who are upset that their favorite band hasn't been inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame yet. Fans of artists such as Alice Cooper, Judas Priest, Journey, and even "Weird" Al Yankovic have all started petitions and websites urging the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Foundation to induct them. But does it actually do any good? This anecdote from a former Rock Hall board member is discouraging:

During my second year on the committee, I received a petition signed by 5000 fans of the Moody Blues requesting that the group be considered for nomination. Personally I am not much of a fan, and neither, apparently, was anyone else on the committee (at least no one who would admit it). Still, I felt they were a legitimate contender for the nomination and that it was my duty to present the petition since so many people had taken a lot of time to put it together. I plunked it down on the conference table to a great roar of laughter from the assembled bigshots.

Jon Landau, Springsteen's manager, asked me if I personally was a fan of theirs. 'Not really,' I said. 'End of discussion,' he said.

On the other hand, I saw how Atlantic Records artists were routinely placed into nomination with no discussion at all, due to the large concentration of Atlantic executives on the committee. I saw how so-called critical favorites were placed into nomination while artists that were massively popular in their time were brushed off. I saw how certain pioneering artists of the 50s and early 60s were shunned because there needed to be more name power on the list, resulting in 70s superstars getting in before the people who made it possible for them. Some of those pioneers still aren't in today — but Queen is.

I was finally kicked off the committee after writing a guest editorial for Billboard in which I criticized the Hall for its insider ways.

Almost ten years later nothing has changed.

But not all hope is lost. There's a new Rock Hall Foundation head, Joel Peresman, who recently said, "I think it would be interesting to have the fans participate [in the induction ceremony] somehow," so he may be open new ideas about the induction process.

In the meantime, if you're a huge fan of Neil Sedaka, the Cowsills, Donny Osmond, or countless other artists, it's good to know that there are other people out there who share your passion.

This week, soldiers in the KISS Army descended upon Cleveland to protest the fact that Kiss has been excluded from the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. With all of the attention around the event, Terry Stewart, the new Rock Hall President and CEO, weighed in on KISS' chances for future induction:

"They're worthy of induction," Stewart said. "They've influenced many other artists. They've also extended their band into almost a lifestyle, through merchandising."

So why hasn't KISS been enshrined?

"It's not a slight," Stewart said.

"The process is rigorous and methodical."

Worthy inductees eventually are honored, just not always quickly enough for fans or the musicians themselves, Stewart said.

This is unbelievable news for KISS fans who have felt that Kiss should have been inducted years ago. With Terry Stewart on the nominating committee, Kiss has an insider who has now gone on the record for supporting their nomination. Stewart will still have to contend with Dave Marsh who is firmly entrenched in the anti-Kiss camp (assuming Marsh hasn't been recently removed from the committee as part of the shake-up). Marsh has said, "Kiss is not a great band, Kiss was never a great band, Kiss never will be a great band, and I have done my share to keep them off the ballot." Marsh is widely regarded as one of the most influential nominating committee members, so it will be interesting to see if Stewart can shake things up.

That headline is a little misleading if you read the item (scroll down to the last story), but here is the money quote:

The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Foundation is no place for the light of heart, that's for sure. The latest scandal involves 20-year chief Suzan Evans, the loyal administrator who despite much criticism has carried out Jann Wenner's whims without fail.

Now Evans has been rudely disposed by Wenner and replaced by an executive from Clear Channel Communications. So much for loyalty. But then again, Wenner is famous for hiring and firing magazine editors all the time. It's a wonder he took this long to dump Evans.

"Jann Wenner is a terrible person," says a foundation insider. "Suzan is very upset."

This contradicts the reports that came out when the transition was announced in June when Terry Stewart, the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum president and CEO, said, "Suzan basically was ready to move on."

It's unclear how this will impact the future direction of the Hall of Fame, because as long as Jann Wenner is involved, it's hard to imagine things changing drastically overnight, since the Rock Hall is his baby.