I almost cried on the treadmill. Not because I was in pain--they were potential tears of joy. Thank goodness for the sweat towel.
So, I caught the middle of the 2007 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony yesterday. Zack de La Rocha was giving a speech, and after a friend and I had a lively discussion about Rage vs. Audioslave, I tuned in. He was nervously introducing Patti Smith. (Trivia: Why did Zack introduce Patti?) She slowly, also nervously, accepted and thanked all her family and friends. She told two stories that just killed me. One was about her husband telling her that she would be inducted into the Hall of Fame someday. He told her to accept it, act like a lady, and not use too many curse words. Her speech ran so long that they had to cut her off with some piano tinklings. She sang "Because the Night", which I never appreciated until then, and I think the Hall of Fame committee decided to cut her a break. She really had more speech to give. Before her second song, she paid tribute to her deceased mother, who LOVED Patti's music. Just hours before her death, Patti's mother asked her if she had gotten into the Hall of Fame yet. Patti told her she hadn't. Her mother told her that it would happen, and she wouldn't be there, but asked Patti to sing her favorite song. The song she liked to vaccuum to. And Patti launched into the electrifying "Rock 'n' Roll N*%$er". I am totally going to play that song the next time I have to vaccuum.
Now, name a member of the original line up of Van Halen. Now name another. And another. Do you know the last one? Eddie and Alex, David Lee Roth, those are gimmes, the only reason I know Michael Anthony's name is because I was raised on MTV, and "Hot for Teacher" was in heavy rotation in the early 80's. During Patti's speech, The camera panned the audience. Is that you, Michael Anthony? There's the unmisktakeable Sammy Hagar. Surely if Van Halen is being inducted today, the other boys would be shown soon. Who am I kidding? They probably had a fist fight backstage right before the show started. Velvet Revolver (fittingly) introduced the tumultuous band, and out came Sammy, Michael, and... nobody else. I guess Eddie is drying up at home, and who knows about David and Alex.
Well, Sammy said some very sweet stuff about Eddie. He also pointed out the tight harmonies that make Van Halen's unmistakeable sound. Sammy said it never would have sounded that way without Michael Anthony. All I have to say is, that after all the bad behavior at awards shows, the one who never seemed to talk any shit, was Michael Anthony. And in my opinion, this is the award that counts. And he was the one who finally got the spotlight on the big day. Yay, underdog. And although the Hall of Fame committee didn't recognize him award-wise, Michael gave props to Gary Cherone for his participation. What a good guy.
Oh, and, 1984 is still easily one of my top ten favorite albums.
