The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame has announced its Class of 2014. According to Rolling Stone, Nirvana, KISS, Peter Gabriel, Cat Stevens, Hall and Oates, and Linda Ronstadt will be inducted during a ceremony held next April.
In addition, The E Street Band will be given the Award for Musical Excellence, while The Beatles manager Brian Epstein and The Rolling Stones manager Andrew Loog Oldgham will both receive the Ahmet Ertegun Award for non-performers.
The Replacements, N.W.A., Chic, The Zombies, Deep Purple, The Meters, and Yes were among the final nominees who failed to make the cut.
In order for an artist to be eligible for the Hall of Fame, their first recording must have been released at least 25 years ago. This year, fans were offered an opportunity to vote, and a collective “fan ballot” was added to the over 600 ballots from artists, historians, and music industry members.
The induction ceremony will take place on April 10th at Brooklyn’s Barclays Center and will be broadcast on HBO in May.
Update: Nirvana members Dave Grohl and Krist Novoselic have responded to their induction with a pair of issued statements:
“For once… I’m speechless. From the basements, to the dingy clubs, to the broken down vans, to… the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. I’d like to thank the committee not only for this induction, but also for recognizing Nirvana for what we were: pure rock and roll. Most of all, thank you to all of the fans that have supported rock and roll throughout the years, and to Kurt and Krist, without whom I would not be here today.”–Dave Grohl
“This is a great honor. Thank you to the people who nominated and voted for us. Thank you most of all to Kurt Cobain. And to everyone who’s kept Rock music going strong for 60 years and counting.”–Krist Novoselic
