Poll: Is the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame too eclectic?

A good friend of mine who’s a chef at the local restaurant I frequent, hates the fact that the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame includes acts like Donna Summer.

How does a disco queen like her belong in the hall, he muses, when there were others not included.
This years nominees include Green Day, Nine Inch Nails, the Smiths, NWA, Kraftwerk, Chic, the Spinners, Joan Jett and the Blackhearts among others.

Every year a list comes out and every year there’s a debate over why such and such is being nominated and why some other group hasn’t.

There’s also the lingering debate over why pop music acts, like Chic and the Spinners, are nominated.

Rock n Roll as a genre of music came about in the 50s. I’m sure I don’t need to give you a history of its inception other than to say that it was the revolutionary anthem of its time.

It carried over into the 60s, 70s, and 80s, but as times went on, the flavor and spirit of the genre took on a more decidedly commercial tone – and branched out in many different directions.

Perhaps the nomenclature is all wrong. Perhaps the Hall should be renamed the "Pop Music Hall of Fame" since that’s what it engenders – namely pop music.

And yes, some of the nominated acts have rough edges - and many, if not most of the recently nominated acts don’t embody the spirit of the original rock and rollers.

So should it be as eclectic as it is? Should it embrace r&b acts like the Spinners, pop artists like Hall and Oates from last year; and rap artists like NWA.

If “rock n roll” was the melding of disparate music styles back during its inception – why shouldn’t the hall embrace those same disparate styles today?

And since we’re on the subject, are there any notable acts missing from the Hall? (Chicago anyone?)