Most Shafted by the Rock N Roll Hall of Fame

This is a list of bands that should be in the rock & roll hall of fame, but haven't been inducted for some reason or another.

Note: a band is eligible for induction 25 years after the release of their first album.
The Top Ten
1 Journey Journey is an American arena rock band that formed in San Francisco in 1973, composed of former members of Santana and Frumious Bandersnatch.

With all the hits like Wheel In The Sky, Lovin' Touchin' Squeezin', Any Way You Want It, Don't Stop Believin', Faithfully, Be Good To Yourself, among others. They should be in the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame! This is a disgrace! I mean 1978-1986 was a golden era for them. Only great albums! While my favorite is Who's Crying Now? I love most of the songs they make. I can't believe they haven't been inducted.

They have to be there in the next few years. My fear is that steve perry and steve smith and greg rolli wont be there.

Journey is the greatest band ever. I don't understand why they are not in the Rock N Hall of Fame! Steve Perry has the most soulful voice and vocal range of any lead singer. I hope I'm lucky enough to meet him one day. Stefanie Nichols

2 Iron Maiden Iron Maiden are an English Heavy Metal band formed in Leyton, East London, in 1975 by bassist and primary songwriter Steve Harris. The most critically acclaimed period for the band was from 1983-1989. With vocalist Bruce Dickinson, bassist Steve Harris, lead guitarist Dave Murray, rhythm guitarist Adrian... read more

Even Metallica were affected by Iron Maiden, Iron Maiden is heavy metal, without them, heavy metal wouldn't exist, simple, they should be in rock n' roll hall of fame because they are the best!

Snubbed once again in 2021, who the hell runs this thing?

The fact that Green Day, Foo Fighters, Radiohead, Pearl Jam, and Jay-Z have gotten there before Maiden and Priest is a joke. No wonder Bruce hates it.

Why there are not in this list and moreover why they are not in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame is beyond me...

3 Judas Priest Judas Priest are a British heavy metal band that formed in Birmingham, England, in 1969. They are often referred to as one of the greatest metal bands of all time, and are even commonly called “The Metal Gods”, after one of the songs on their 1980 album “British Steel”... read more

- One of the most diverse metal bands.
- One of the most influential too.
- Rob Halford is arguably one of the greatest singers of all time, let alone in metal.

How are they not in yet?

They 100% deserved to be in the hall of fame.

4 Pantera Pantera was an American heavy metal band formed in 1981 by guitarist Dimebag Darrell and drummer Vinnie Paul. The band started out as a glam metal act in the 1980s with little success. After discarding their original lead vocalist and enlisting Phil Anselmo, the band signed a major record deal with... read more
5 Motley Crue Mötley Crüe is an American metal band formed in Los Angeles, California on January 17, 1981. The group was founded by bassist Nikki Sixx and drummer Tommy Lee, lead vocalist Vince Neil and lead guitarist Mick Mars.

Should be #1. HOF is a joke until they're voted in.

They were THE band of the 80s to go see live. Certainly not the best technicians, but is that really what rock and roll is about? It's also about the legendary exploits of excess. Drugs, women, trouble and arrogance. Few if any could match their rap sheet. That's why they are the best.

No wonder they're breaking up after this tour. Can't get into the hall of fame. This should be a no brainer.

If Def Leppard gets inducted, then surely these guys do soon.

6 Motorhead Motörhead were an English heavy metal band formed in June 1975 by bassist, singer, and songwriter Ian Fraser "Lemmy" Kilmister, who was the sole constant member; guitarist and songwriter Larry Wallis; and drummer Lucas Fox. The band's harsh vocals and fast paced tempos helped inspire speed metal and... read more
7 Yes Yes is an English progressive rock band formed in 1968 by bassist Chris Squire and singer Jon Anderson. They first achieved success in the 1970s with a progressive, art and symphonic style of rock music. Their best known song is their 1971 hit "Roundabout" off of their album Fragile.

This list is quite good but there are so many more too! Going by this list and in this order:
Probably Yes, Genesis, Journey, Heart, Iron Maiden, The Moody Blues, Judas Priest, Jethro Tull (not my favourite but a lot of other people's favorite! ).
Two bands that I would put into the top 10 because of the band member's deaths and because I don't think they could get there after these deaths would be Boston & Cars.
Honour Mention to Motörhead.

Yes was one of the most adventerous and inspirational bands who at the height of their popularity took substantial musical risks. They were musical pioneers influencing countless bands and individuals.

8 Meat Loaf Michael Lee Aday, better known by his stage name Meat Loaf, was an American musician, singer, songwriter, record producer, and actor. He was noted for his powerful, wide-ranging operatic voice and theatrical live shows. His debut album, "Bat Out of Hell", is still one of the top-selling albums ever... read more

Meat Loaf and Jim Steinman totally deserve to be in the Hall of Fame. Bat Out of Hell is a top 5 rock album of all-time and the style they have is like nothing else. They sold some 43 million copies during an era when disco was the trend, then sis it again with Bat 2 at the height of Grunge.

That one album alone...Paradise by the Dashboard light alone...Need I go on!

This man deserves it more than most.

9 Dire Straits Dire Straits were a British rock band formed in 1977 by Mark Knopfler, his younger brother David Knopfler, John Illsley, and Pick Withers.

Many of these bands deserved it. Yet they add Madonna in the hall of fame. She isn't even rock. Shame.

They truly deserve to be in it, even if they are already in there.

10 Megadeth Megadeth is an American thrash metal band from Los Angeles, California. Megadeth was formed in 1983 by guitarist Dave Mustaine and bassist David Ellefson, shortly after Mustaine was fired from Metallica. They have released 15 studio albums to date, and have gone through many lineup changes, with Dave... read more

Dave wasn't invited in with Metallica when he wrote some songs!

The Contenders
11 Chicago Chicago is an American rock band formed in 1967 in Chicago, Illinois, calling themselves the Chicago Transit Authority in 1968 before shortening the name in 1969. The self-described “rock and roll band with horns” began writing politically charged rock music, and later moved to a softer sound, generating... read more

Great band. Very talented musicians. Brought the horns out as featured instruments.

The original group should inducted! Ground breaking sound.

Inexcusable they haven't been inducted.

12 Kiss Kiss, often styled as KISS, was an American rock band formed in New York City in 1973. The original members were Paul Stanley (vocals, rhythm guitar), Gene Simmons (vocals, bass guitar), Ace Frehley (lead guitar, vocals), and Peter Criss (drums, vocals)... read more

Said one nominating committee member: "Kiss is not a great band." Well, what does he know?

These guys should of already been inducted a Long time ago!

These guys played a huge role in the glam metal scene and definitely should be in the rock and roll of fame right now.

by the way, a7x can't be in the hall of fame because their fist record isn't 25 years old yet.

13 Bryan Adams Bryan Guy Adams is a Canadian singer, songwriter, record producer, guitarist, photographer, philanthropist and activist.

BA is a great rocker and has had an influence on me personally growing up in the 80s. I've seen him in concert about 10 times, and even most recently he sounded as good as ever. He has made great rock and roll songs that haven't gotten "popular" because of the pop shift 80s to 90s. He still sells out shows WORLD WIDE. It's a shame Hall hold it against him that he's had huge hits with several movie love ballads, but Bryan ROCKS. Hall is stupid and the class of 2019 is embarrassing. Radiohead? The Cure? Roxy Music?! The Zombies with 2 songs? GIMME A BREAK! 1

14 Social Distortion Social Distortion is an American punk rock band formed in 1978 in Fullerton, California. The band currently consists of Mike Ness, Jonny Wickersham, Brent Harding, David Hidalgo, Jr., and David Kalish.

Possibly the single most influential band to emerge from the 80s Southern California punk scene. They have managed to achieve a level of commercial success that make them recognizable to the masses while continuing to be relevant. They've transcended punk and evolved into an American rock and roll treasure with appeal far beyond the punk genre. 30+ years in the business and they continue to reach new fans and inspire kids to make music. There are already rock hall of famers who will cite Social Distortion as an influence. That number will almost certainly grow as 90s alt and punk bands are inducted who were heavily influenced by Mike Ness and Social D. They are hugely influential but receive very little recognition for their contributions to rock and roll and that's a shame. Their nomination at the very least is long overdue.

15 Soundgarden Soundgarden was an American grunge/alternative metal band formed in Seattle, Washington, in 1984 by singer and rhythm guitarist Chris Cornell, lead guitarist Kim Thayil, and bassist Hiro Yamamoto. Chris Cornell died on May 17th, 2017.

I think it's time Soundgarden got in.

They've been the second major grunge band to form after Green River in the 1980s, of course getting it big in the 90s while Kurt Cobain and his band made grunge music popular. Except Soundgarden has an excellent singer and loads of excellent songwriting. Should've honestly been the second of the big 4 grunge bands to have made it in, but they went with Pearl Jam next.

Despite the fact that RNRHOF shows clear favouritism Alternative bands, it would be nice to see these guys get inducted.

16 Ronnie James Dio Ronnie James Dio (born Ronald James Padavona; July 10, 1942 – May 16, 2010) was an American heavy metal singer, songwriter and musician. He fronted and/or founded numerous groups including Elf, Rainbow, Black Sabbath, Dio and Heaven & Hell. He is credited with popularizing the "metal horns" hand gesture... read more
17 Slayer Slayer was an American thrash metal band from Huntington Park, California, formed in 1981 by guitarists Jeff Hanneman and Kerry King. They rose to fame with their 1986 album Reign in Blood, and is credited as one of the big four of thrash metal bands, the others being Metallica, Megadeth, and Anthrax... read more
18 Def Leppard Def Leppard are an English hard rock band formed in 1977 in Sheffield as part of the new wave of British heavy metal movement.

I don't care if these guys haven't been the same since Steve Clark died, they should be inducted!

19 Jethro Tull Jethro Tull are a British rock group, formed in Luton, Bedfordshire, in December 1967. Initially playing blues rock, the band soon developed its sound to incorporate elements of British folk music and hard rock to forge a progressive rock signature.

Sir Ian Anderson is a genius. Tull have for over 40 years been commercially successful with 50+ million record sales, over 1,000 live concerts, 25+ albums and have a truly unique style that is continuously innovative and brilliant. Shame on the Hall of Fame for their most glaring oversight.

20 John Denver Henry John Deutschendorf Jr., known professionally as John Denver, was an American singer-songwriter, actor, activist and humanitarian, whose greatest commercial success was as a solo singer, starting in the 1970s.

This is crazy that this guy hasn't been inducted. He always said he was put down for having music that fit many genres. The fact that he continues to be shut out of the RRHF proves the prejudice still continues.. in the old days I found his records filed in truck and roll or folk music more often than country. He even went out on his own after being asked to create a total county album. Anyone remember that?

When I first heard "Take me home...", I did not know his name but his music & voice touched my soul... and still does. I hope that soon the Hall of Fame will recognize that his music touch's one so deep that it leaves them changed for the better.

21 The Doobie Brothers The Doobie Brothers is an American rock band from San Jose, California. The group has sold more than 40 million albums worldwide.

Michael McDonald seems more concerned with collaberating & promoting other artists. But that's all the more reason that he should be in there.

How can they not be in it? Have these idiots never heard Michael McDonald?

22 Bon Jovi Bon Jovi is a hard rock/pop rock band formed in 1983, which had a streak of successful albums in the late 1980s. The band originally consisted of lead vocalist Jon Bon Jovi, guitarist Ritchie Sambora (left in 2013), bassist Alec John Such (left in 1994), keyboard David Bryan, and drummer Tico Torres... read more

They should definitely be in. They have great shows and great music.

Why doesn' this website register votes?

23 Tommy James & The Shondells

Classic rock compositions, great singer--and the Shondells are better musicians than people give them credit for. I think they got classified as "bubblegum" early and never got the respect they deserved. Would rather listen to a Tommy James song than anything by The Doors (and the James song probably rocked harder too).

You can't listen to any of the best classic rock stations without hearing their incredible music! It's wrong they're not in the rock and roll hall of fame

A late 60s and early 70s tour de force. Between 68 and 1970 outsold everyone,including the Beatles. Psychedelic Rock that set the stage for mid 70's probably rock.

24 Hall & Oates Daryl Hall and John Oates, known more commonly as Hall & Oates, are an American musical duo from Philadelphia.

Inspired countless bands and really created a unique genre of music

25 The Cars The Cars were an American rock band that emerged from the new wave scene in the late 1970s. The band originated in Boston, Massachusetts in 1976, with singer, rhythm guitarist and songwriter Ric Ocasek, singer and bassist Benjamin Orr, lead guitarist Elliot Easton, keyboardist Greg Hawkes and drummer... read more
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