Prior to 1995, I can't say that Cleveland, Ohio held any great allure for me. Being the home of the Browns and the Indians was not quite sufficient enough for me to ever want to visit the city.
But then came September 1, 1995. It was a Friday. It was mostly cloudy that day, with the temperature reaching only in the mid to high 70's. There was nothing to suggest it was a special day.
Well, with the exception of the 10,000 people who descended on the city for the dedication of the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame:
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| The Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland, Ohio... |
Since then, I've always wanted to visit. During my Covid Road Trip last year, Ron and I came by, but the museum was closed, and wouldn't be reopening while I was in Ohio. So, for yesterday, Ron bought us tickets for a noon entrance.
There are a million things that can be said about the Hall; from the individual contents of the displays to the perceived politics that go into inductions, etc. I could type pages upon pages and still not begin to cover just how impressive a collection of memorabilia this is. Instead, I'm just going to let the photos I took do the talking.
Enjoy...
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The entrance to the main exhibit area...
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| A saxophone and vest which belonged to Isaac Hayes... |
Speaking as a photographer, it was nice to see them include images from some of the most respected names in music photography. The gallery below was that of Baron Wolman who, in 1967, became the first chief photographer for Rolling Stone Magazine.
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| Ron checks out the Wolman gallery... |
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| Wolman's camera of choice, a Nikon F... |
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| A panoramic shot of the Elvis Presley exhibit... |
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| Elvis Presley's custom motorcycle... |
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Part of the Kevin Mazur exhibit. Mazur's been the official induction
ceremony photographer for all but two ceremonies... |
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| Elvis Presley's ridiculously rare 6-string bass/6-string guitar double neck, made by Gibson... |
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| A David Bowie stage outfit... |
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| Love him or hate him, you have to admit: Michael Jackson was a snappy dresser... |
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| Stage outfit and bass guitar belonging to John Entwistle of The Who... |
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| Listen to Steven Tyler... |
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| Tuxedo jacket belonging to B.B. King... |
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| Handwritten lyrics for the song "Life's Been Good" by Joe Walsh... |
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| Custom guitars and drum set made for ZZ Top... |
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| Billy Joel's leather jacket... |
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| A Rolling Stones pinball machine belonging to Keith Richards... |
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| Pink Floyd's "The Wall"... |
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| Rory Gallagher's well worn 1961 Fender Stratocaster... |
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| A Fender Custom Shop Buddy Guy Signature Stratocaster... |
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Once up a time, I would've been more interested in Bo Diddley's
guitar than in Sam Cooke's Hasselblad... |
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| Bill Haley's Gibson Super 400... |
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| An early Elvis Presley stage outfit... |
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| John Entwistle's Danelectro bass and Pete Townshend's Gibson Les Paul Deluxe... |
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| A suit and Martin Guitar belonging to Johnny Cash... |
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| One of Les Paul's Les Pauls. Les favored the low impedance pickups shown... |
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| Ricky Nelson's Martin guitar... |
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| Timothy B. Schmit of The Eagles had the odd hobby of collecting hotel room keys... |
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| Fender Mustang belonging to Nirvana's Kurt Cobain... |
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| Poster advertising The Beatles first gig at "The Casanova Club" in Liverpool in 1961... |
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| Who knew that Jim Morrison of The Doors was a Cub Scout? |
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| Jim Morrison as a Cub Scout in San Diego around 1955... |
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| Before becoming one of the most influential guitarists in history, Jimi Hendrix was something of an artist, and a large collection of his sketches is on display at the Hall of Fame... |
To say the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame is a "must see" is a monumental understatement. Were it not for Ahmet Ertegun, co-founder and President of Atlantic Records, expressing the desire to create such a monument to modern music, we may never have had a Rock & Roll Hall of Fame.
And that would've been a damn shame...
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