Meet The Nominees Vol. 5
Joy Division/New Order
It’s not unprecedented for the Hall to combine two different bands that share many of the same members into one nomination; see the Small Faces/Faces induction from several years ago. In this instance, we have two very deserving bands that may benefit from a combo nomo. New Order in particular has long been a band ranking very high on my personal list of most overlooked artists.
Joy Division could very well have been the premier post-punk band from the late 70s. Huge in England, they had yet to make much of a mark in the United States. Tragically, lead singer Ian Curtis committed suicide on the eve of their initial American tour. Despite those sad circumstances their story was not yet done.
Surviving members Bernard Sumner, Peter Hook and Stephen Morris formed a new band with the addition of Gillian Gilbert and the promotion of Sumner to lead singer. New Order’s first big hit, Blue Monday, quickly became a club classic and one of the landmark tracks of the mid 80s. The next several years produced a parade of some of the major hits that dominated college and alternative radio. The following fact is what really made them stand out. Most bands of that era were either guitar bands or synth bands. New Order proved that you can be both.
They stuck around long enough to benefit from the post-Nirvana alternative explosion on American radio. 3 of the 4 core band members reunited several years back and have been a reliably successful live band in England. With such a strong ballot this year, it looks to be a tough battle to get elected, but it would make me so happy to see it happen.
If elected, would they perform at the ceremony? I believe so. As mentioned, they’re fairly active on the other side of the pond. Additionally, Peter Hook has long had a contentious relationship with his former band members. He has said in interviews that he hopes an induction could serve as an olive branch. Fingers crossed.
Biggest Billboard Hot 100 hit - Joy Division never had an American hit. For New Order it’s True Faith.
My personal favorite - For Joy Division I’ll go with Love Will Tear Us Apart. My New Order choice is Regret.
On a side note, there are a bunch of YouTube videos that are supposedly of rock singers riding roller coasters. They are silly and childish but I have to admit that some of them make me laugh. The Ian Curtis selection is a good one.
Possible Side Category Inductee - The Carter Family
As one of the foundational artists in country music, The Carter Family figure to be an ideal candidate for Early Influence recognition. Along with the already-inducted Jimmie Rodgers, they were among the very first country acts that became recording artists and national stars. Their crystal clear harmonies laid the groundwork for countless vocal groups that have followed in their wake. In addition, Mother Maybelle Carter was an influential guitar player.
The key question surrounding a potential induction would be if it’s limited to the initial trio of Maybelle, A.P., and Sara, or if it would be fitting to also include the assorted Carter children that joined later on, which would posthumously place June Carter Cash in the Hall along with some of her sisters and cousins.
Yet Another Week In Dystopia
We had yet another mass shooting, this time at Michigan State University, predictably followed by meaningless platitudes and the realization that nothing will change. The horror is magnified because this time there were multiple students on campus that had lived through previous mass shooting events. This isn’t the first time we’ve heard a story like that, further evidence of how routine this has become. There is a rot in our society and it continues to get worse with a lack of will among those in charge which makes a solution seem increasingly out of reach.
Which brings us to East Palestine. There have few more damaging words in our time than “deregulation.” Time and again disasters occur that could have been easily prevented had there been more oversight. We constantly hear complaints about supposed job-killing regulations, but little response from those same people when lack of regulations contribute to sickening or even killing large numbers of people. This one really hits hard because the safety concerns surrounding aging tracks were one of the issues rail workers brought up when they recently threatened to strike and look what happened here. In addition, officials are assuring the public that the air and water are safe, but the fact that thousands of dead fish have been found in surrounding waterways is not very reassuring, nor is the fact that many local residents are complaining of headaches and skin rashes. This is exactly why there is so much distrust from the public, a prevalent attitude which proved to be terribly damaging during the pandemic.
Jimmy Carter
News came out this weekend that President Carter has entered home hospice care. The simple take on his legacy has long been great man, poor President, which is a bit unfair. A more accurate reading is that he was an ineffective President, despite the fact that he had the benefit of favorable margins in both houses of Congress that were much larger than we’ve seen in our current era. The difficulty he had came down to the fact that he was not only a Washington outsider, but one with a notable moralistic streak. He entered the White House with few friends and he wasn’t able to nurture the necessary relationships he needed to further his agenda.
We’ve gone through multiple generations of political figures who are largely religious hypocrites. They make a point of ostentatiously declaring how Christian they are, while at the same time legislating and/or living their lives in a manner diametrically opposed to Christ’s teachings. Carter has been a man who walked the walk as well as he talked the talk. In addition, he attempted to appeal to our better angels more frequently than any President in my lifetime. He also tried to deal with the public as straight as he could. What became known as the malaise speech is a perfect example. He was giving Americans the honest truth, but unfortunately that’s not what the electorate wants. They would rather be reassured that all is well. It’s symbolic that one of Reagan’s earliest actions was to remove the solar panels that Carter had installed at the White House. Imagine how different things would be now if we had made a stronger commitment to green energy 40+ years ago.
Regardless of how one feels about him as a President, he has arguably been the greatest ex-President in history as well as possibly the most outstanding human being to have held the office. No think tank job, no high paying speaker gigs, he devoted his life to making the world a better place. Habitat For Humanity in particular has been a life-changing organization for those it has benefited. Criticizing his term in office is fair game, criticizing the man & his life says a lot more about you than it does about him.
California & Texas
Lots of points of discussion arose with the news that Dianne Feinstein will not seek another term in the Senate. Most notably, she was dangerously close to damaging her considerable legacy by staying too long. If something terrible had happened during the 50-50 Senate split, does anyone doubt that Mitch McConnell wouldn’t have taken advantage of a temporary GOP majority and tried pulling some shenanigans? Thankfully, the RBG scenario was avoided here as now there is at least a one seat buffer if the worst case scenario occurs. As it is, this still puts Gavin Newsom in a difficult position. Feinstein’s term still has almost two years to go. If illness or worse prevents her from serving out, how can Newsom possibly choose a replacement with several prominent Dems already throwing their names into the ‘24 Senate race? Anyone that he would appoint would have a major head start when it comes to securing that seat for a full term.
The scramble for that seat figures to be very heated, especially considering that California’s junior Senator Alex Padilla is only 49. Any California politician must recognize that this will likely be their only chance to win a spot in the Senate.
Which leads to the Ted Cruz mystery. Like clockwork every two years Democrats express their hopes that Texas is shading purple only to have their hopes dashed. Texas is still very red, and shows no signs of changing anytime soon. Yet I can’t for the life of me understand Cruz’s electoral success. A state that large must be overflowing with ambitious Republicans who would love that seat. Knowing how much he’s hated, I can’t believe there’s no one in his own party willing to take him on. Simply printing up flyers and bumper stickers that read “I am not Ted Cruz” sure sounds like a winning strategy to me.
One Step Closer To Springfield
On Friday, the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame announced the list of finalists from the North American and Women’s Committees for enshrinement this year. As always, it’s a star studded list. Recent election cycles indicate that as many as 8 or 9 of this year’s 12 finalists will make it in this time around. The names that jump out who appear to be certain inductees are Pau Gasol, Dirk Nowitzki, Gregg Popovich, and Dwayne Wade, followed closely by Becky Hammon and Tony Parker.
I’m a little torn over the Naismith induction process. I generally enjoy seeing people receive such honors, and since it’s the basketball hall and not the NBA hall, that means that inductees are cherry picked from a wide variety of population groups. As an example, this year’s list includes a junior college coach as well as a Division III coach. In addition, when the official announcement is made on Final Four weekend, there will be additional selections from other committees - Veterans, International, Contributors, and Women’s Veterans. That means each year’s class is huge. Have classes gotten too large, thus making the honor less special than it could be? That’s an idea worth debating.
For the record, the additional 6 finalists announced Friday are Jennifer Azzi, Gene Bess, Gary Blair, David Hixon, Gene Keady, and Marian Washington.
HOF Plaque Cap Update
And speaking of Halls of Fame, last week we were given the most anticipated piece of info from any induction year - the cap that will appear on each inductee’s plaque. For several years the Hall has made the final decision, although they do take player input into account. Fred McGriff will go with a cap sans logo, and Scott Rolen will be enshrined as a St. Louis Cardinal. I’m largely cool with both selections. Either Toronto or Atlanta would have been a fine choice for McGriff; the fact that he won a World Series as a Brave could have been a tipping point, but otherwise his career value for either franchise was roughly equal so I understand the hesitancy in wanting to choose one over the other. And IMHO Rolen had significantly more value in St. Louis than he did in any of his other stops, so that is the correct choice.
Closing Thoughts
Tomorrow is Fat Tuesday and I can’t think of a better way to celebrate Marci Gras than to share and subscribe to this newsletter. Thanks for reading and let the good times roll!