Mar 9 2016

Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland

Brent

 

Rock and roll Hall of fame clevelandThe Rock and Roll hall of Fame has become one of Cleveland’s most recognizable landmarks and a must see for out of town visitors. Here is a little information about the history of the Rock hall from the official website:

More than 25 years ago, leaders in the music industry joined together to establish the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Foundation in New York City to celebrate the music and musicians that changed the world. With that, one of the Foundation’s many functions is to recognize the contributions of those who have had a significant impact on the evolution, development and perpetuation of rock and roll by inducting them into the Hall of Fame.

The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum opened its doors in 1995 on the shores of Lake Erie in downtown Cleveland, Ohio. The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum, Inc. is a nonprofit organization that exists to engage, teach and inspire through the power of rock and roll. It carries out this mission through its operation of a world-class museum that collects, preserves, exhibits and interprets this art form and through its library and archives as well as its educational programs.

Officials from Cleveland and the state of Ohio approached the Foundation in 1985 and suggested the construction of a major museum. “We originally planned to purchase a brownstone in New York City in which to house the Hall of Fame, as well as an archive, library and museum,” said Suzan Evans. In November, the city sent a delegation to New York.

“They had these wonderful diagrams for a museum that would be much larger than any town house we had originally thought of,” said Evans. “Our eyebrows were raised, and somebody at the meeting actually passed me a note that said, ‘Pack your bags.’”

As the Foundation considered the offer, several other cities, including New York, Philadelphia, New Orleans, San Francisco, Memphis and Chicago, also made offers. The board members visited each city and were greeted with police escorts, public rallies and marching bands.

The first induction dinner was held at New York’s Waldorf-Astoria Hotel in January 1986. Inductees include Chuck Berry, James Brown, Ray Charles, Sam Cooke, Fats Domino, the Everly Brothers, Buddy Holly, Jerry Lee Lewis, Elvis Presley and Little Richard. Robert Johnson, Jimmie Rodgers and Jimmy Yancey were honored as early influences. The first non-performers honored were producer Sam Phillips and disc jockey Alan Freed. Talent scout/producer John Hammond was recognized with a Lifetime Achievement award.

Meanwhile, Cleveland ranked first in a public poll conducted by USA Today asking where the Hall of Fame should be located. After much competition and many visits to potential sites by Foundation members, Cleveland is chosen as the permanent home for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum in May of 1986.

Following an extensive search throughout 1987, world-renowned architect I.M. Pei was chosen to design the Museum. Pei had a lot of learning to do. “I didn’t know a thing about rock and roll,” he confessed.

Not to be discouraged the board members took Pei on trips to Memphis and New Orleans and to concerts in New York. “We heard a lot of music, and I finally got it: rock and roll is about energy,” said Pei. He accepted the challenge of designing the world’s first museum dedicated to rock and roll.

On June 7, 1993, ground was broken for the Museum in Cleveland. On hand were I.M. Pei and various board members, including Ahmet Ertegun, Suzan Evans and Jann Wenner. Inductees and other artists present at the ceremony included Pete Townshend, Chuck Berry, Billy Joel, Sam Phillips, Ruth Brown, Sam Moore of Sam and Dave, Carl Gardner of the Coasters and Dave Pirner of Soul Asylum.

Townshend made one of the museum’s significant donations on this occasion – the Gibson J-200 guitar used to compose Tommy, including the classic “Pinball Wizard.”

A year later, under a hot summer sun and Ruby, a larger-than-life inflatable from the Rolling Stones’ Steel Wheels tour, the Museum was topped off with the last steel beam in its structure. First-year inductee Jerry Lee Lewis, as well as several Cleveland musicians, performed for a crowd that includes Pei, Wenner, Evans and Ertegun.

On October 13, 1994, Yoko Ono presented a major collection of John Lennon artifacts to the Museum. The collection included lyrics, Lennon’s guitar from the 1965 Beatles concert at Shea Stadium, a pair of eyeglasses and the leather jacket Lennon wore while in Hamburg.

In September of 1995 and after 12 years in the making, the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum opened with a full schedule of events.

On the first day, September 1, the celebration began with a playful parade through the streets of Cleveland, followed by a ribbon-cutting ceremony in front of the Museum. Present for the ceremony were Pei, Ertegun, Wenner, Evans, Ohio Governor George Voinovich, Cleveland Mayor Michael White, Little Richard and Yoko Ono, as well as press from around the world. A gala private dinner attended by board members, celebrities and many Cleveland residents ended the evening in grand style.

The Museum officially opened to the public on Saturday, September 2, which kicked off with a ceremony presenting the Ahmet M. Ertegun Exhibition Hall, the Museum’s main exhibit space named in recognition of the founder of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

The evening culminated with a benefit concert at Cleveland Municipal Stadium. An incredible roster of the rock and roll greats performed– Chuck Berry, Bob Dylan, Al Green, Jerry Lee Lewis, Aretha Franklin, Johnny Cash, the Pretenders, John Fogerty, Lou Reed, Iggy Pop, George Clinton, the Kinks, John Mellencamp, Bruce Springsteen, Booker T. and the MGs, Eric Burdon and Martha Reeves.

Since the Museum’s opening, the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum has welcomed nearly eight million visitors from around the world and reaches more than 50,000 students and educators each year through its education programs on site and at great distances.

– Take a moment to find out more about this cool museum: http://www.rockhall.com/

All photos are copyright of  Brent Durken – www.brentdurken.com

To purchase a digital download of this photo for your website or blog please visit: https://www.smugmug.com/gallery/n-zRG6xB/

Purchase a print of this photo: Brent Durken Print Sales

http://brent-durken.pixels.com/


Feb 9 2013

Guitar Mania Cleveland

Brent

Cleveland guitar mania

Today’s Cleveland Photo: GuitarMania Cleveland

From the GuitarMania website:

“GuitarMania® is a Greater Cleveland community public art project that has raised $2 million for its two benefiting charities – United Way of Greater Cleveland and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum’s education programs. The project consists of large, 10-ft-tall Fender® Stratocaster® guitars creatively transformed into works of art by local artists and national celebrities. The guitars are displayed on the city streets of Cleveland for residents and visitors to enjoy from the end of May through October, 2012. Corporations, organizations and individuals sponsor the guitars and select from a variety of local artists to paint, sculpt or decorate them. Celebrity artists also paint and decorate guitars.”

http://www.cleveland.com/guitarmania/

Here’s a Fun Fact:

Did you know that Cleveland was originally spelled “Cleaveland,” named after General Moses Cleaveland. The “a” was dropped so that the name could fit into a newspaper’s masthead. For more cool fact about Cleveland check out the Citiview Cleveland website: http://citiviewcleveland.com/


May 24 2012

ZZ Top Eliminator

Brent

zz top eliminator Rock Hall

 

The ZZ Top Eliminator in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. This hot rod  became a legend by appearing in several rock music videos.

For more info: http://auto.howstuffworks.com/zz-top-eliminator-hot-rod.htm

Today’s Quote: The best car safety device is a rear-view mirror with a cop in it. ~Dudley Moore


Apr 19 2012

Guitar Mania near the Rock Hall

Brent

guitar mania

Guitar Mania Guitar near the Rock Hall in Cleveland:

“Guitar Mania is a Greater Cleveland community public art project that has raised $2 million for its two benefiting charities – United Way of Greater Cleveland and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum’s education programs. The project consists of large, 10-ft-tall FenderStratocaster guitars creatively transformed into works of art by local artists and national celebrities. The guitars are displayed on the city streets of Cleveland for residents and visitors to enjoy from the end of May through October, 2012. Corporations, organizations and individuals sponsor the guitars and select from a variety of local artists to paint, sculpt or decorate them. Celebrity artists also paint and decorate guitars.”

For more info: http://www.cleveland.com/guitarmania/

Today’s Quote: “Rock and roll music, if you like it, if you feel it, you can’t help but move to it. That’s what happens to me. I can’t help it.” – Elvis Presley


Apr 9 2012

Rock and Roll Induction Week in Cleveland

Brent

rock and roll hall of fame

It’s the 2012 Rock Hall induction week in Cleveland! Guns N’ Roses, the Beastie Boys and the Red Hot Chili Peppers; how cool would it be to be there for this?

From Cleveland.com: “The 2012 induction ceremony will take place Saturday, April 14, at Public Auditorium in Cleveland. Guns N’ Roses, the Beastie Boys, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Donovan, Laura Nyro and the Small Faces/Faces will be inducted as performers. Late bluesman Freddie King will be ushered in as an early influence. Among the nonperformer inductees will be Don Kirshner, Tom Dowd, Glyn Johns and Cosimo Matassa.

The inductions here will be preceded by nine days of tie-in events, including the grand opening of the Rock Hall’s library and archives on Cuyahoga Community College’s Metropolitan Campus, the launch of a major new exhibition and a free “Concert for Cleveland.” Details for those events will be announced later, along with celebrity presenters for the inductions. This will be the third induction ceremony in the Rock Hall’s hometown.”

For more info:

http://rockhall.com/event/2012-inductions/

http://www.cleveland.com/rockhall/

 


Mar 29 2012

Cleveland Fallen Firefighters Memorial

Brent

Cleveland Firefighters Memorial

The Cleveland Fire Fighters IAFF Local 93 has posted the following info on their website: “The new Cleveland Fallen Firefighters Memorial was made to honor those firefighters who made the ultimate sacrifice. The new memorial is more representational of firefighting and is located in one of the most visible sites in Cleveland.

It is at the corner of Erieside Ave and Lerner Way at 362 Erieside, between Cleveland Browns Stadium, the Science Center, and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. It is our goal to keep alive the memory and sacrifice of these brave men, and in doing so will honor past, present and future fire fighters.

The Cleveland Fallen Fire Fighters Memorial was dedicated on June15th, 2007”.

 

For more info: http://iafflocal93.org/memorial.htm

 

Today’s Quote: “A hero has faced it all: he need not be undefeated, but he must be undaunted”. – Andrew Bernstein


Feb 3 2012

Cleveland Skyline

Brent

best Cleveland skyline

Today’s photo is a reworked version of a panoramic shot of the Cleveland skyline I took last summer. It’s one of my favorites because it includes Cleveland Browns Stadium, the Terminal Tower, Key Bank Building, 200 Public Square (BP Building), the William G Mather, the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, the Great Lakes Science Center and Voinovich Park. Have a great weekend and enjoy the weather.

Today’s Quote:  Art is the only way to run away without leaving home. – Twyla Tharp


Jan 18 2012

North Coast Harbor

Brent

North Coast Harbor

Today’s Photo: North Coast Harbor

Today’s photo is of North Coast Harbor and it was taken from the top of the Terminal Tower on a cool fall evening. North Coast Harbor is home to the Great Lakes Science Center, Voinovich Park, The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, Cleveland Browns Stadium, a massive old iron ore ship named the William G Mather, and much more.

Today’s Quote: “Don’t be afraid to give up the good to go for the great” – John D. Rockefeller


Jan 16 2012

2012 Rock Hall Induction in Cleveland

Brent

rock and roll hall of fame

Today’s Photo: 2012 Rock Hall Induction in Cleveland

The 2012 Rock Hall induction is in Cleveland! Guns N’ Roses, the Beastie Boys and the Red Hot Chili Peppers; how cool would it be to be there for this?

From Cleveland.com: “The 2012 induction ceremony will take place Saturday, April 14, at Public Auditorium in Cleveland. Guns N’ Roses, the Beastie Boys, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Donovan, Laura Nyro and the Small Faces/Faces will be inducted as performers. Late bluesman Freddie King will be ushered in as an early influence. Among the nonperformer inductees will be Don Kirshner, Tom Dowd, Glyn Johns and Cosimo Matassa.

The inductions here will be preceded by nine days of tie-in events, including the grand opening of the Rock Hall’s library and archives on Cuyahoga Community College’s Metropolitan Campus, the launch of a major new exhibition and a free “Concert for Cleveland.” Details for those events will be announced later, along with celebrity presenters for the inductions.

This will be the third induction ceremony in the Rock Hall’s hometown.”

http://www.cleveland.com/music/index.ssf/2011/12/2012_rock_and_roll_hall_of_fam.html

Today’s Quote:

“I think music in itself is healing. It’s an explosive expression of humanity. It’s something we are all touched by. No matter what culture we’re from, everyone loves music” – Billy Joel


Nov 7 2011

Rock Hall Resting Place

Brent

Rock and roll hall of fame

Today’s Photo: Rock Hall Resting Place

This photo was taken on a warm evening while walking in Cleveland’s North Coast Harbor. The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame can be seen at
the end of the walkway.

Today’s Quote:

“You are not only responsible for what you say, but also for what you do not say.”- Martin Luther