The Rock Hall’s Biggest Oversight, According to Tom Morello

2024-11-12

Tom Morello

Tom Morello of Rage Against the Machine is a man of many opinions, and he has one about the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. – Author: Charles Ken, Photo via Anne Erickson

Tom Morello of Rage Against the Machine is a man of many opinions, and he has one about the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Morell is actually a member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame nominating committee, but that doesn’t stop him from having some opinions about the Rock Hall and who they’ve left out over the years.

The Rock Hall, of course, has left out many rock and metal acts. When it comes to metal, they’ve honored artists such as Ozzy Osbourne but have left out a slew of great names. One great addition was when Judas Priest was inducted into the Rock Hall in 2022. But, that leaves another British heavy metal band still needing the honor: Iron Maiden.

Morello thinks Iron Maiden absolutely needs to be inducted. He talked about in during an interview on The Eddie Trunk Podcast.

“I will chew my leg off like a coyote in a trap if I can’t get Iron Maiden in,” Morello stated. That’s a pretty drastic things to say, but you never know what Morello is going to say, so it’s great. “While there are many other deserving acts, Iron Maiden for me is the last most egregious oversight in the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame.”

He added, “Iron Maiden is like the gold standard of metal bands and they’re not in the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. And I know Bruce Dickinson said he doesn’t really care. Well I care as a fan. I care very, very much about it. So I’m gonna do all I can to get, [with] whatever limited influence I have, to get Iron Maiden in the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame.”

So, Morello really wants Iron Maiden to take that honor. There’s a good chance he’ll have some pull in the matter and that one day, Maiden will get in.

So, if Morello is so against the Rock Hall in some ways, why did he join the nominating committee? He explained it to Trunk using a comparison between the Rock Hall and the National Baseball Hall of Fame.

“If you’re a little league player, your dream as a young baseball player is to have such a career that you would end up in the baseball hall of fame. I said, ‘A lot of young rock ‘n’ roll guitar players have no respect for the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. None of their favorite bands are in it,” he said.

He also said that the Rock Hall should be “a place that everyone who loves rock ‘n’ roll aspires to be in because their heroes are there. And you don’t have that right now.” That’s a very kind and true statement.

Hopefully Morello can talk some sense into the Rock Hall in the coming years, because Iron Maiden is well overdue. Time will tell if Maiden gets their due, but either way, they have a lot to be proud of when it comes to their career. They’re legends, and they know it.

Charles Ken
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Posted by Charles Ken | Metal, Music, Rock News

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