Jeff Ament’s Shirt From the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Honored Bands That Have Not Been Inducted
Throughout their career, Pearl Jam have always worn their influences on their sleeve. They took that love to its literal conclusion on Friday when they were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Bassist Jeff Ament wore a t-shirt that honored their favorite bands who have yet to be enshrined.
The shirt was an extension of Ament's acceptance speech where, in addition to thanking "Neil [Young], the Clash, [Led] Zeppelin, the Stooges, Cheap Trick" -- all of whom are in the Hall -- he also gave a shout-out to " bands that aren’t here ... Roxy Music, the Jam, Devo, X, Black Flag, Dead Kennedys, Jane’s Addiction. So many others, all worthy.”
Pearl Jam posted a picture of the shirt on Instagram, and all those acts are there. Unsurprisingly given their encyclopedic knowledge of rock, it's a diverse group, all standing side-by-side and in no discernible order. This includes the Buzzcocks, Slayer, the Cure, the Monkees, Kraftwerk, Kate Bush, the Replacements, Fugazi, Elliott Smith, PJ Harvey, the Black Crowes, New Order, King Diamond, Joe Jackson, Iron Maiden, Minutemen, Harry Nilsson, Minor Threat and the Psychedelic Furs.
Some of the more surprising choices were groups who have sold a ton of records but were never critics' darlings, like Grand Funk Railroad, Motley Crue and Bon Jovi. Ament also added Hipgnosis, the design group that created many '70s rock album covers, Fela Kuti, Weather Report and Chad Channing, the original drummer for Nirvana.
Billy Idol saw that he was mentioned on the shirt and tweeted out his gratitude. "Thank u Jeff Ament of @PearlJam 4 including me in this list of great music 🎶 artists," he wrote.
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