I predict X will be elected in 2015!

Posted by Brandon Kline on Saturday, 04/20/2013 @ 17:15pm

And let's not forget Ray Manzarek's contribution to the LA punk scene with his production work on Los Angeles, Wild Gift, Under the Big Black Sun and More Fun in the New World.

Posted by DarinRG on Monday, 05/20/2013 @ 19:21pm

X still suffers from the same problem they had back in the day -- the music industry missed the boat on the entire LA punk scene and flat out refused to play any of it. Instead they went for AC/DC, Rush, Van Halen and a slew of British bands like the Clash, Police, Pretenders and a big whatever of new wave stuff. And look how long it took Rush to get in!!! Insane, considering Rush's legacy - but then, the industry hated Rush for years. X is one of the greatest American bands ever, yet the music industry NEVER recognized them, so what are the chances of them getting an apology now?

X sang - "Will the last American band to get played on the radio please bring the flag? Please bring the flag!"

Then, "what about Black Flag, what about the Circle Jerks?"

Nothing has changed since the early 1980s for X. Green Day will be in the HOF years and years before the industry remembers X even existed, and the industry will think they will be giving a nod to punk when Green Day gets their little statue things. Same shame as it always was.

Posted by JDM on Tuesday, 05/28/2013 @ 04:37am

X still suffers from the same problem they had back in the day -- the music industry missed the boat on the entire LA punk scene and flat out refused to play any of it. Instead they went for AC/DC, Rush, Van Halen and a slew of British bands like the Clash, Police, Pretenders and a big whatever of new wave stuff. And look how long it took Rush to get in!!! Insane, considering Rush's legacy - but then, the industry hated Rush for years. X is one of the greatest American bands ever, yet the music industry NEVER recognized them, so what are the chances of them getting an apology now?

X sang - "Will the last American band to get played on the radio please bring the flag? Please bring the flag!"

Then, "what about Black Flag, what about the Circle Jerks?"

Nothing has changed since the early 1980s for X. Green Day will be in the HOF years and years before the industry remembers X even existed, and the industry will think they will be giving a nod to punk when Green Day gets their little statue things. Same shame as it always was.



Posted by JDM on Tuesday, 05.28.13 @ 04:37am
--------------------------------------------------
Agreed.

Some of the bands you list Are worthy of induction. However, if I'm taking your Rush comments correctly, then you knew what a travesty it was that they weren't elected earlier. I assume you feel that way about at least two or three of the others you listed.

You are completely right about missing L.A. You might see a bit of a breakthrough, though. There' going to be a slow but steady realization that a lot of the 80's hasn't been recognized in the next few yrs. I personally believe that the surviving members of Nirvana will call out the Hall in regards to Sonic Youth, the Pixies, or both of them. It might be an initial necessary breakthrough. Don't forget, Pearl Jam was famous for covering the Dead Boys "Sonic Reducer", from right around the period that X was at it's peak.

The Hall has pretty much blown it in terms of electing 80's bands during the period they were first eligible. A lot of these groups should've been inducted two or three yrs. ago, when the 80's were still front & center for upcoming classes. That's the Hall's fault there. It's going to take a 90's boomerang effect to get the job done now, though it's still possible. I have a feeling you will see X inducted. It may just take another two or three yrs. to get there.

Posted by Cheesecrop on Tuesday, 05/28/2013 @ 06:20am

JDM, all those bands you listed above (AC/DC, Rush, Police, Clash, etc.) are pretty damn good bands, Green Day too.

Could be they were just better than X.

Posted by Paul in KY on Tuesday, 05/28/2013 @ 07:39am

nah man,no way is Green Day better.

Posted by GFW on Tuesday, 05/28/2013 @ 08:05am

Always liked X. But I don't see a basis for them getting inducted. Then again, I didn't see Laura Nyro either.

Posted by astrodog on Wednesday, 05/29/2013 @ 19:15pm

Heh, heh. X is/was a great band (I like the version with Billy Zoom). But they never really got past L.A. And I'm sure most of the comments about them being snubbed are by people who live or lived in L.A. People from L.A. are in their own world where everything revolves around L.A. And for the most part, X never made it out of that ghetto. Consequently, X isn't going to get the notariaty they need to be inducted.

Posted by Zee Rox on Friday, 06/21/2013 @ 17:08pm

The defining band of a seminal scene. If the Sex Pistols and the Ramones are in, X deserves to be in.

Posted by pu5erfish on Thursday, 01/16/2014 @ 19:01pm

X really deserves nomination for RRHOF. Listening to X,they have a way of getting into your skin & staying there for years. Just a great LA punk band. Exene & Johnny Doe rocked in late 70's early 80's & still do in the present day.

It will help X that Debbie Harry & Blondie were inducted as well as other bands of the era. They might be able to give X a voice when it comes to selection & nomination time.

Wish X received more mainstream radio play over the years & critical acclaim from the media. Like many of the posters here,I hope X finds a way in RRHOF. Earned it. KING

Posted by KING on Wednesday, 01/29/2014 @ 20:45pm

Eventually, they will.

Posted by BulmaPunkRocker on Sunday, 07/6/2014 @ 23:31pm

Joan Jett was kind enough to thank X in her acceptance speech at the HOF. It is a criminal injustice that such a creative, intelligent and talented band has not been honored.

Posted by Tim on Friday, 06/5/2015 @ 19:44pm

So I bought the first two and last two albums by X, and one thing has been consistent in my listening: Exene's harmony vocals sound slightly off, yet not quite off-key. Can anybody identify the harmonic structure she uses in a lot of X songs? I'm wondering if she's singing a seventh above John's lead vocals.

Favorite song from the four albums: "Surprise, Surprise", which will piss off a lot of the hardcore X fans, as it's from See How We Are. Kind of wished she had stayed in a major tonality with her vocals on that track though. They might have been able to achieve that commercial success that Billy Zoom was looking for if she had, and if they'd promoted that track more.

Posted by Philip, on Saturday, 09/26/2015 @ 22:26pm

I wanted to post a reminder of the genius of the Moody Blues and how they impacted Prog Rock. I took this from Wikipedia..they summed it up really well:
Procession" is a 1971 song by The Moody Blues, and it is the opening track on their album Every Good Boy Deserves Favour. It is their only song to have been co-written by all five members of the band.

For the most part, "Procession" is an instrumental song, with the exception of its three spoken words: "desolation", "creation", and "communication". These words, as well as other words ending in "-ation" also appear on the album track "One More Time to Live."

"Procession" basically describes the history of music from the beginning of time up to the present. It begins with synthesized electronic sounds, which is then followed by the sound effects of wind, rain and thunder. This part represents "desolation" and "creation." At the end of this part, the piano (played by Mike Pinder) plays the notes E-G-B-D-F, which stands for the album's title Every Good Boy Deserves Favour, which is a phrase to help musicians remember the notes on the treble clef.

The song continues with the sound of prehistoric drums, and all of the band members (including Edge) chanting "Aum" in a prehistoric style. This represents the idea of "communication."

The song then goes on to describes different development in music. This begins with a flute and sitar duet, played by Ray Thomas and Justin Hayward, respectively. This is followed by a flute and mellotron duet, played by Thomas and Mike Pinder, respectively. Pinder then plays a short harpsichord solo, and a synthesizer solo. The song then ends with an electric guitar and bass guitar duet, played by Hayward and John Lodge, respectively.
Take a few minutes and really listen to this again.. in your mind put yourself back to 1971. This band influenced Prog. rock for the rest of time...including Yes,Rush and probably ELO and other artists...
I remember the summer of 1975 when I got two extra speakers and a "Good" set of ear phones...A gift from my parents so I could play "my music" in quiet..little did they know...
The Moodies need to be inducted into the RRHOF for 2016... I want to see all five of the core play together once more in a jam..perhaps with ELO or with Ian Anderson(Tull). The MB toured with the Beatles in the early days, so Ringo and Paul can join in the fun! The harmony with Duran Duran would make magic. Mike came to a MB show this year and he and Ray worked with John on his new release. I want them to play again before it is too late.. I hate when to NOM COMM miss a chance as in Joe Cocker and Ben E King...very sad..

Posted by Sue on Saturday, 09/26/2015 @ 23:06pm

X is probably the best "punk" band to ever grace my petty ears. They provide the poetic sustenance I need, with fast, hard, chordal rock and roll. This is a definite necessity for the rock hall.

Posted by jdog on Tuesday, 12/15/2015 @ 14:30pm

One badass band.

Posted by Paul in KY on Wednesday, 12/16/2015 @ 07:11am

This band are the essential 'Godfathers' of the American Punk/New Wave scene.

Lauded and produced by none other than Ray Manzerek of the Doors, this band has been the key influence of rock n roll inductees Nirvana, Pearl Jam, and Green Day. All in the hall, all, who owe their passions and success to the Rock & Roll Originals, and still the best, X !

Posted by TGreen on Tuesday, 12/22/2015 @ 14:37pm

X and Bob Mould are probably the two most influential and serious omissions from the RRHOF. Without them you don't get bands like Green Day, etc.

Posted by Amir on Wednesday, 04/20/2016 @ 16:58pm

X is the next artist spotlighted in my 'Rock Hall Contenders.'

https://audiovisualrepository.squarespace.com/blog/rockhallcontendersxtheband

Posted by Nick on Sunday, 12/22/2019 @ 14:24pm

X is the next artist spotlighted in my 'Rock Hall Contenders' series. Below is the link:

https://audiovisualrepository.squarespace.com/blog/rockhallcontendersxtheband

Posted by Nick on Sunday, 12/22/2019 @ 14:25pm

Great writeup, Nick! Enjoyed reading it & learned alot about X. Think they are one of the greatest American punk bands & (IMO) deserve induction.

Posted by Paul in KY on Monday, 12/23/2019 @ 06:00am

Thanks Paul!

Posted by Nick on Monday, 12/23/2019 @ 13:59pm

Nick,
Great job on the article on X. I finally got a chance to read it, and I have been a fan of the band since the late 70's. I got into them a lot more in 1983 when More Fun In the New World was getting some play, and I am pretty sure there were a few videos getting played on MTV at the time. I believe there is a "True Love Pt. 2" video, and the other could have been, "The New World". Anyway they toured the U.S. in support of that record, and we happened to catch the show in Dec. '83 at a club/bar on Ft. Lauderdale beach called Summers On The Beach. This was a fantastic show, general admission of course, with the stage in the center of the club, close enough to be a few feet from the band. Very memorable, and I have followed them more closely ever since. Although they did break up for nearly 10 years, then reuniting in the mid 2000's, and touring, I saw them again in the House Of Blues in Orlando, and then more recently 2 years ago on the 40th Anniversary Tour. All Great shows..
X is unusual for a Punk band, but yet very original, with their Country/Rockabilly type influences. I always felt that Exene's and John Doe's harmonizing vocals were like the punk version of June Carter and Johnny Cash's vocals together. Recently I read a quote stating a lyric from a song off of More Fun In the New World,in protest of the lack of American punk getting any radio airplay, "Will the last American band to get played on the radio, Please bring the Flag". This is from the great song, "I Must Not Think Bad Thoughts", one of my favorites By X. Their lyrics are one of the reasons I find them so interesting, a lot of it derived from Exene's poetry, and John Doe's songwriting.
X also appeared on David Letterman in 1983, performing, "Breathless", and "Hot House". And they performed at Farm Aid in 1985 as well.
Once again, Nick, Thanks for the article, so I thought I would add a little perspective on the subject..

Posted by Will N. on Tuesday, 12/24/2019 @ 01:27am

Thank you for the kind words Will N. and I'm glad you enjoyed the piece. That Letterman interview and performance is fantastic on so many levels. It's worth revisiting if you haven't watched it recently.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NOdMYZa3dA4

Posted by Nick on Tuesday, 12/24/2019 @ 02:03am

X has just released a new album today, April 22, titled " Alphabetland", with all of the original members, Exene, John Doe, Billy Zoom, and DJ Bonebrake, and it is pretty damn good. I am listening to it right now, at the moment. It has some great songs so far, with the title cut, "Water and Wine", "Strange Life", "Delta 88 Nightmare", "Star Chambered", and "Angel On the Road", so far, sounding like classic X in their prime. Pretty impressive and appears to be clocking in at under 30 minutes, with 11 cuts..

Posted by Will N. on Wednesday, 04/22/2020 @ 22:25pm

Will check it out, Will. Thanks for posting that! X is such a great band. I have seen John Doe solo. That is it for X. Would love to see them in concert!

Posted by Paul in KY on Thursday, 04/23/2020 @ 07:49am

Hey Paul, Yeah, I read an article yesterday concerning the release of the new album, featured in the Los Angeles Times titled, "The World's a Mess, and X is Back". They do mention in the article that they planned to tour later in the year in support of the new album. Most likely starting in the Fall sometime..

Posted by Will N. on Thursday, 04/23/2020 @ 19:27pm

Didn't this group have one hit with a song called "Dear God"? I learned that from a VH-1 list that was 100 songs from one-hit wonders.

Posted by Brian Schonour on Wednesday, 10/13/2021 @ 17:55pm

Dear God is by XTC one of the greatest bands ever. Totally different and British band who started in the same era.

Posted by David W Richman on Tuesday, 02/8/2022 @ 13:41pm

X is a true original. No One else sounds like them. The have some friends from that same era and that same city, namely the Blasters and Los Lobos , both of whom also should be considered.

Posted by Thomas Kiernan on Tuesday, 08/9/2022 @ 11:23am

X just finished a masterful set at the Pacific Amphitheater in Costa Mesa CA. Get them in the RRHOF now. Reasons as numerous as their original songs and delightful arrangements. American originals.

Posted by Steve Parker on Sunday, 08/14/2022 @ 22:39pm

X should have been inducted years ago. They are constantly working!

Posted by Lori on Thursday, 12/29/2022 @ 16:45pm

It is more likely as of now that X will never be nominated. Sonic Youth, Pixies, the Replacements are all more famous and have more legacy than X and they are very hard to be inducted. So I am pessimistic about the potential chance of X.

Posted by power on Sunday, 10/29/2023 @ 22:01pm