Did We Run Out of Early Influences Already?

As with the Non-Performers/Ertegun Award, the Hall seems to have lost steam in giving out the Early Influences Award.

It was given every year, from the inaugural year— 1986— to 2000.

Then, not for nine years, until 2009. It can be understood if, during that time, people just assumed that anyone worth receiving it already had.

But then, they started giving it again… every three years, for some reason: 2009, 2012, 2015, 2018…

In fairness, it is potentially possible to run out of people who one can say both lived before rock music was a “thing” and also contributed to its development. Reasonably speaking, they would have had to be active between 1920 (the early days of blues and jazz) and 1950, probably in the US… and have not just performed, but likely recorded and been broadcast somewhat widely.

Still, it’s hard to fathom that-- even with those narrow parameters-- only 33 people qualify.

Rock pulls from so many other genres, and in so many ways. Rock is not just about the music— it’s about stage presence, dance moves, costuming, vocal inflections, and that rock attitude and energy that electrify.

Certainly, we can look across a three-decade span in one of the most musically fertile places in world history and come up with someone every year to who contributed to rock music.

I have an idea. The Hall began inductions in 1986, and as of this post's first posting, it has inducted the class of 2020. That’s 34 years of inductions. And, as of 2020, there are 33 Early Influencers.

So let’s call that “close enough for jazz” and just say that the Hall has inducted, at least on average, one Early Influence per year.

How’s about, then, going forward, they induct one more Early Influence every year, to keep the average going… until they really run out.

https://www.cleveland.com/life-and-culture/erry-2018/11/53debedacc4690/rock-roll-hall-of-fame-20-earl.html

Update: in 2022, they Inducted music preservationist Elizabeth Cotten, who like Pete Seeger kept the old songs alive by always singing them. 

In 2023, Link Wray, an early rocker, was inducted as an Earl Influence after multiple nominations.