GREG LAKE On Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame - "How Good Is This Museum?"
April 7, 2013, 11 years ago
Legendary musician Greg Lake is a founding member of two of the most important bands of the progressive rock genre; KING CRIMSON and EMERSON, LAKER AND PALMER. But he's never even been nominated for the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame, let alone inducted. In a new interview, the singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist talks about the Hall of Fame and its longstanding disinclination to recognize progressive rock.
"I kind of understand a bit about this. Progressive music did become awfully pretentious, and it disappeared up its own ass in a lot of ways," Lake tells Ultimate Classic Rock. "And from that point of view I can understand the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame saying, 'No, it's not really rock and roll.' It's not the rock and roll that they wanted to have in their museum, perhaps."
Lake laughs at the mention that he should be a double inductee. "I mean, look, I never even think about it," he says. "But I think it is strange, because it wasn't like a tiny little niche thing that went by without notice. It had a big impact. Groups like ELP were playing stadiums. Not clubs, stadiums! You know? Come on, it's not something you can overlook: 'Oh, I didn't notice that.'
He adds, "If you leave out a whole chunk of the history of rock and roll music, then you've got to say, 'Well, how good is this museum?'"
Lake recently released 'Songs of a Lifetime,' a live album taken from his one-man show in which he re-interprets music from his entire career.
Read the entire interview here.
