While the intention this week was to discuss the latest nominees for the Rock 'n' Roll Hall of Fame, while I was writing, the news of another pop legend had passed away, Neil Sedaka. More on that below.
SO HERE WE GO AGAIN. The nominees for this year's class of the so-called Rock 'n' Roll Hall of Fame came out this week. It's actually a bit late as they usually take place earlier in the month, as part of the "music triumvirate" in February, which also includes the Grammy Awards and the Super Bowl halftime show. I will list the nominees here, and will make some comments, but will try to stay clear of the tired "they aren't rock" comments, since I'm looking at many nostalgic Facebook pages and notice that "fans" have commented the same about many of those artists that got played on rock radio in the 1980's. It seems that every fan of the genre has their own opinion on what constitutes the genre.
Well, I learned in recent years is that they don't necessarily have to play "rock music", but only to embody the spirit of "rock 'n' roll". So without further ado, here are the 2026 nominees for the Hall:
- The Black Crowes
- Jeff Buckley
- Mariah Carey
- Phil Collins
- Melissa Etheridge
- Lauryn Hill
- Billy Idol
- INXS
- Iron Maiden
- Joy Division/New Order
- New Edition
- Oasis
- Pink
- Sade
- Shakira
- Luther Vandross
- Wu-Tang Clan
Of course, there are familiar names that seem to get nominated every year, but also some interesting artists nominated for the first time, or for the first time in quite a while. The first thing I noticed is that once again, artists who were popular before the 1970's were snubbed once again, and all of these came to prominence in the '70's and later, including some around the turn of the millennium, as, because of the "25 year rule" that artists become eligible that length of time after their first record, which now brings the nominations into the early 2000's.
It is a rather diverse list this year (as it has been in recent years), but not all of them belong in the Hall, and it really has nothing to do with the type of music. I'm not going to go down the entire list as I am not really familiar with some of the nominees work but will touch upon the known ones.
The Black Crowes, Mariah Carey, Billy Idol, Iron Maiden, Joy Division/New Order, Oasis were all nominated last year, and Sade's last nom was in 2024. At the time I said "yes" for Mariah, Joy Division/New Order, Sade and Billy Idol, and "no" to The Black Crowes and Oasis. Well, I will give in and say the Crowes should get in this year. And while I think Oasis has qualifications....they led the "Brit-pop" subgenre of the 1990's, I am not a fan of this rather pretentious band of fighting brothers. But if they get in, I wouldn't be surprised.
So, let's concentrate on the newbies. Two of them, Jeff Buckley and Lauryn Hill only released one studio album each. For Buckley, it was 1994's Grace (although he released several EPs and live albums, while Ms. Hill released The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill in 1998, although she was also a member of Hip-Hoppers Fugees. To be honest, I really don't know much about Jeff Buckley, although he made alternative charts with songs like "Last Goodbye" (1994), and a cover of Leonard Cohen's "Hallelujah" which made it to #107 on the Billboard "Bubbling Under" chart in 2007.
As for Lauryn Hill, the one album she released before she called it quits as an artist, released one very likeable track as a single, "Doo Wop (That Thing)", which hit #1 in 1998. I loved the video which was a split-screen time machine of sorts, depicting an inner-city block party in the 1960's versus on in the 1990's, and the song was in retro soul mode (that would have fit in perfectly with my current chart). She was with the Fugees before that, with several songs that made either the Hot 100 or the Airplay chart (as during that time, songs not released as singles couldn't appear on the big chart). Despite her brief solo career, she was a big advocate in advancing civil rights.
My gut feeling, is that Ms. Hill should get in, while Buckley wait a bit as many other worthy artists should get in.
Next is Phil Collins, who pretty much ruled the 1980's, as both a solo performer and as a member of Genesis which was pretty much a prog outfit during much of the seventies, before moving more in a pop-rock direction the following decade. He definitely has the resume, so I will say "yes".
Australia's INXS has been a favorite band since they emerged in the early 1980's, and they have some very classic tracks. Its frontman, the late Michael Hutchence, was a big part of its success, which peaked with 1987's Kick. The albums after that we very good too, but sadly, Hutchence's death in 1997 put the end to the band's output. What is interesting was that the band in the mid-2000's was part of a reality show, Rockstar, which was a competition to find a new lead singer to replace Hutchence. 2005's "Pretty Vegas" returned them to the Billboard top 40 for a final time, with J.D. Fortune, having won the competition, on lead vocals.
One more interesting note is P!nk's nomination. I like her music; two of her songs hit #1 on my blog, and she overcame "overmanaging" by label suits to do her own thing. While labeled as a pop artist, she definitely had a rock sensibility to her, when left to her own devices. It's gratifying to see her in, as much of the time, I felt she didn't get too much respect when it came to female pop stars, as the likes by Lady Gaga, Katy Perry and the like seemed to eclipse her. So I would vote her in.
I'm not going to comment on the others, but many of them are worthy to get in, such as Melissa Etheridge, Iron Maiden, and the late Luther Vandross, the latter of which might have a good chance to get in, thanks to the recent Kendrick Lamar featuring SZA song "Luther" which won Record of the Year at the Grammys.
I do definitely want to question one nomination, that being New Edition, the Boston R&B boy band assembled by writer/producer Maurice Starr. On the surface, their rather bubblegum sound really doesn't qualify them for the Hall, after all, Starr also created New Kids on the Block, and I'm sure it would be blasphemous if they got into the Hall, much less nominated. However, it's not a precedent as The Jackson 5 are in, and the group was modeled after them; their name meant a "new edition" of the Jackson brothers, and their early songs had the style of those brothers. The members of New Edition had successful solo careers, it launched Bobby Brown, Johnny Gill, Ralph Tresvant, and the trio of Bell Biv Devoe. Their success in turn, led to successful boy bands such as Boyz II Men, and several others later in the 1990's. While my gut feeling is to pass on them, it should be interesting to watch.
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| Pop singer-songwriter legend Neil Sedaka passed away this week at the age of 86. |
NO MORE 'LAUGHTER': As I was writing this, we got the sad news that pop legend Neil Sedaka, who scored several hits both in the late 50's/early 60's, then made a big comeback in the mid-70s but who also was a prolific song writer, scored hit for other acts, passed away on February 27. "The Diary" was his first top 20 hit in 1958, but over the next several years, had several others: "Oh Carol!" was written for his friend, fellow songwriter Carole King (who answered that with her own "Oh Neil!", and whom he briefly dated in high school); "Stairway to Heaven" (not the Led Zeppelin song); "Calendar Girl"; "Happy Birthday Sweet Sixteen"; and his #1 song "Breaking Up is Hard to Do".
But like many of his contemporaries, the onslaught of the British Invasion all but wiped him off the charts, only scoring a few low charters on the Hot 100 during much of the sixties. But during that time, he became one of the principles of the "Brill Building", a unit in New York City that consisted of several noted songwriters churning out hits for others. And Sedaka definitely made his presence felt during that era: Along with sometimes-collaborator Howard Greenfield, he penned songs like "Working on a Groovy Thing", a hit for Patti Drew, The Fifth Dimension, and more recently a beach music hit for The Catalinas; several hits for Connie Francis including "Stupid Cupid" and "Where the Boys Are", his mid-60's output included songs he wrote for The Cyrkle and Frankie Valli.
However, he made a significant comeback in the mid-70's, starting with "Laughter in the Rain", which became his second #1 hit and first since 1962, which he signed with Rocket Records, the label run by red-hot-at-the-time Elton John. A year later, he hit #1 again with "Bad Blood", which featured Elton as well. But while his songs were pop in nature, he had some social commentary as well: "The Immigrant" (which nowadays is very salient what with the ICE controversy, about allowing those from other countries into the United Station, was a top 30 hit and dedicated to John Lennon, who was facing deportation problems at the time. A slowed-down re-recording of his hit "Breaking Up is Hard To Do", returned to the top 10 as well.
Other artists during that time also had hits with his music. ABBA scored internationally with "Ring Ring", but The Captain and Tennille had huge hits here with his "Love Will Keep Us Together", "Lonely Night (Angel Face)" and "You Never Done It Like That". The Carpenters had a top 20 hit with his "Solitare" but a falling out occurred when he had opened for Karen and Richard, on their tour, and got more of an audience response than the Carpenters got, thus he was forced off their tour.
By the late 70's and 80's, he faded once again but still scored on the Adult Contemporary charts with songs like "Alone at Last", and "Should've Never Let You Go" which was a duet with his daughter Dara. When the hits dried up for good, Sedaka remained active in the music business performing at various festivals. He has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, and the Long Island Music Hall of Fame. But consistent with what I wrote above, he still hasn't been inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in spite of all his credentials. He appeared as a judge in 2003 on one episode of season two of American Idol; that season's runner-up, Clay Aiken, performed "Solitaire" which was one of his mother's favorite songs growing up, while the third-place finisher that station, Kimberly Locke, performed "Where the Boys Are".
Sedaka signed with Razor and Tie Records in 2007, his first recording contract in twenty years; he also performed at Lincoln Center that year. In the 2010's he was again associated with reality competition as Mary Sarah performed "Where the Boys Are" on season 10 of The Voice. 2016 brought him appearing at a concert at Florida's The Villages and released an acoustic album that year I Do It For Applause. During COVID-19, he released a series of free mini-concerts via his social media outlets. In 2022, he finally retired from songwriting and performing.
Neil Sedaka passed away on February 27, 2026, he was 86.
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| Taylor Swift has her 14th #1 song on the Billboard Hot 100 with "Opalite" |
GETTING BACK TO THE CHARTS: In what seems to be a strange phenomenon these days, we have our fifth number one on the Billboard Hot 100 in as many weeks as Taylor Swift's "Opalite" ascends to the number one spot this week. After "I Just Might" had its second week at the top on January 31, it was replaced, in succession by Harry Styles' "Aperture", Ella Langley's "Choosin' Texas", Bad Bunny's "DTMF", and now "Opalite". It's Taylor's second number one from her latest album The Life of a Showgirl. It's also her 14th number one song overall, which puts her in a three-way tie for third place, behind The Beatles' 20, and Mariah Carey's 19. Taylor is now tied with Michael Jackson and Rihanna. Even more impressive is that eight of these songs hit the top this decade.
It's becoming increasingly rare for an album to yield more than one #1 song from it. While, with any song available for streaming and not just "official singles", it might mean that many songs could hit the top, the pattern for albums by major artists are that most, if not all, the songs, hit the charts at the same time, before slowly (or rapidly, as the case may be) descending, thus only the song that hits the top first (in this case, "The Fate of Ophelia"), is the only one to hit #1 at all. "Opalite" had debuted at #2 (behind "Ophelia") when it first entered (as well as the entire top 12), but this is the track that remained in contention since, even after "Ophelia" ended its ten week run. "Opalite" also re-enters my chart at #95; it originally peaked at #64 in a seven-week run late last year.
Ella Langley's "Choosin' Texas", a former number one that dropped to 4 last week, rebounds to #2, while Olivia Dean's "Man I Need" which has been hovering in the top 3 in recent weeks, drops a notch from 2 to 3. Bad Bunny's "DTMF", last week's #1, drops to 4, but he still has two songs in the top 10. Bruno Mars' "I Just Might", a former #1 that was at 10 last week, moves back to #6. Of course, "Ordinary" (#5) and "Golden" (#7) are still there; time to move on, guys!
SNS 100: It's back to my chart where there's a new #1, that being Brooke Combe's "How Can I Tell You (To Love Me More)". The song, which is in the vintage "Northern Soul" genre in Brooke's native U.K. (she hails from Scotland), advances from 2 this week, but she now also has three songs in the top 20, including the Impact winner with "This Town" (21-14) and "A-Game" (23-17), songs from her first two albums. Rick Strickland and Lesa Hudson's "Every Road", number one for the past three weeks, drops to #2. Bruno Mars' "I Just Might" holds at #3 with a bullet, and finally one of my hometown friends posted about an upcoming concert by him this summer; that should bode well for future advances. Deb Browning and Michael Fite's "Getaway Car" is still strong at #4, while Starbuck's "Robusto" advances 7-5. The only new entry in the top 10 is the latest from Sylvia Johns Ritchie, "No Place Like New Orleans".
It's in the second ten that there's a lot of movement. Aside from the two Brooke Combe tracks, MT Jones' "I Don't Understand" (22-15), and Jennifer Licko's "Meet Me at the Shag Pad" (27-18) storm into this region. That action forces down The Pozers' "The Separation" and Orbis Max's "Not Getting Back with You", despite retaining bullets; the latter drops out of the top 20 as a result. Last week's Top Debut is this week's Mover, that being Sombr's "Homewrecker" (62-31).
DEBUTS: Several entries of note. I think the best way to my chart is to cover one of my all-time favorites. First there was North Tower's version of Lighthouse's "Pretty Lady", then last week, we had Rikas covering ELO's "Last Train to London". This week, it's The Half-Cubes' "Whenever You're on My Mind" coming in at #69. This is a cover of a sorely underrated gem by Marshall Crenshaw in 1983. While the song landed in my year-end top ten that year, it couldn't break into the Hot 100, only "bubbling under".
The band, following up its cover of Crabby Appleton's "Go Back", which moves up to #6 this week, has, for the most part, a faithful cover, with a little more rocking that Crenshaw's original, what is lost in sentimentally of the original is made up of rockin' guitar work. Last year, I had the original on repeat for a while, so it's time to do the same with this. The song is on the indie chart, so that should give it some impetus.
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| The Main Event Band debuts with "I Shiver", with lead vocals by Al Woodruff |
Next is the return of beach outfit The Main Event Band, with "I Shiver". The band, which usually features Sharon Woodruff on lead vocals, this time out features her husband and band leader Al Woodruff. The song is also a cover, originally done by The Robert Cray Band in 1993. Very bluesy and somewhat of a departure for the Event-ers, but as the title suggests, I do shiver a bit when I heard this. I had been a fan of Robert Cray in the 1980's ("Smoking Gun" landed in my year-end top 10 for 1987), but I had moved on from that type of music by the time this was originally released. Al Woodruff's voice definitely does justice, not only to the song, but to Cray. With this one, "Pretty Lady", "Getaway Car" and others, the beach bands do a great job of uncovering forgotten gems. This should return the band to the top ten, and possibly the top, where the #1 "Love Makes the World Go Round", and the #2 "Poor Side of Town" landed in 2023 and '22, respectively. A winner.
Cannons are back, and although the Michelle Joy-led L.A. band misfired with the recent "All I Need", their latest, "Starlight" is a definitely return to form. Alt-pop sensibility and a steady beat, aid Ms. Joy's understated vocals, in a catchy beat. This one should put the trio back in the upper reaches of both SNS and the alternative chart. It debuts at #80.
Brandi Carlile's last single, "Returning to Myself" spent one week on SNS....at #100, no less, but like Cannons, she is back strong with her latest, "Human", at #91. This is a sentimental, heartfelt mid-tempo ballad, and an introspective one at that. It's in the singer-songwriter lane but a very listenable pop song, that should score here.
Rounding out the debuts are by three bands that have had success on my blog. Metric, which scored my year-end #1 in 2009 with "Help I'm Alive", return with "Victim of Luck". Acts from Toronto have been doing well lately here, and this one is pure alt-pop and what you'd expect from the quartet.....The Temper Trap, which scored in 2010 with "Fader" should top their recent "Lucky Dimes" with "Giving Up Air", a moderately-paced excursion, rather dreamy with a steady thumping beat...slow to start, but gets going mid-song.....and finally New Jersey rock outfit Bleachers return with "You and Forever", and this comes across as a grand anthem-like song, and could score as it's already on alternative playlists.
Scenes ‘n’ Soundwaves 100 Playlist
February 22, 2026
|
This Week |
Last Week |
ARTIST-Title |
Weeks on List |
|
1 |
2 |
NUMBER ONE:  "How Can I Tell You? (To Love Me More)" (Single Release) |
6 |
|
2 |
1 |
13 |
|
|
3 |
3 |
6 |
|
|
4 |
4 |
18 |
|
|
5 |
7 |
7 |
|
|
6 |
8 |
13 |
|
|
7 |
9 |
6 |
|
|
8 |
5 |
23 |
|
|
9 |
10 |
7 |
|
|
10 |
11 |
5 |
|
|
11 |
12 |
5 |
|
|
12 |
15 |
4 |
|
|
13 |
6 |
15 |
|
|
14 |
21 |
TOP 20 IMPACT OF THE WEEK:  Album: Dancing at the Edge of the World |
3 |
|
15 |
22 |
4 |
|
|
16 |
26 |
3 |
|
|
17 |
23 |
3 |
|
|
18 |
27 |
4 |
|
|
19 |
17 |
8 |
|
|
20 |
18 |
7 |
|
|
21 |
20 |
8 |
|
|
22 |
32 |
4 |
|
|
23 |
37 |
3 |
|
|
24 |
40 |
3 |
|
|
25 |
13 |
16 |
|
|
26 |
14 |
15 |
|
|
27 |
33 |
6 |
|
|
28 |
43 |
3 |
|
|
29 |
16 |
14 |
|
|
30 |
39 |
7 |
|
|
31 |
62 |
MOVER OF THE WEEK:  (Single Release) |
2 |
|
32 |
38 |
6 |
|
|
33 |
24 |
18 |
|
|
34 |
35 |
21 |
|
|
35 |
44 |
7 |
|
|
36 |
19 |
13 |
|
|
37 |
25 |
14 |
|
|
38 |
56 |
3 |
|
|
39 |
48 |
4 |
|
|
40 |
29 |
16 |
|
|
41 |
28 |
14 |
|
|
42 |
31 |
17 |
|
|
43 |
36 |
22 |
|
|
44 |
53 |
4 |
|
|
45 |
47 |
6 |
|
|
46 |
52 |
5 |
|
|
47 |
60 |
5 |
|
|
48 |
50 |
7 |
|
|
49 |
30 |
14 |
|
|
50 |
64 |
3 |
|
|
51 |
34 |
13 |
|
|
52 |
45 |
7 |
|
|
53 |
55 |
4 |
|
|
54 |
57 |
6 |
|
|
55 |
46 |
19 |
|
|
56 |
58 |
7 |
|
|
57 |
63 |
5 |
|
|
58 |
66 |
5 |
|
|
59 |
67 |
11 |
|
|
60 |
71 |
4 |
|
|
61 |
77 |
2 |
|
|
62 |
41 |
14 |
|
|
63 |
69 |
6 |
|
|
64 |
42 |
12 |
|
|
65 |
51 |
14 |
|
|
66 |
68 |
7 |
|
|
67 |
75 |
3 |
|
|
68 |
82 |
2 |
|
|
69 |
--- |
TOP DEBUT:  Album: Found Pearls Pop Treasures Vol 2 |
1 |
|
70 |
72 |
6 |
|
|
71 |
49 |
7 |
|
|
72 |
--- |
1 |
|
|
73 |
65 |
7 |
|
|
74 |
70 |
27 |
|
|
75 |
76 |
3 |
|
|
76 |
54 |
17 |
|
|
77 |
84 |
2 |
|
|
78 |
81 |
3 |
|
|
79 |
90 |
Rev. Bubba D.
Liverance and the Cornhole Prophets - Wish You Were Here |
2 |
|
80 |
--- |
1 |
|
|
81 |
86 |
2 |
|
|
82 |
88 |
2 |
|
|
83 |
59 |
12 |
|
|
84 |
61 |
17 |
|
|
85 |
80 |
3 |
|
|
86 |
85 |
5 |
|
|
87 |
94 |
2 |
|
|
88 |
74 |
6 |
|
|
89 |
73 |
6 |
|
|
90 |
89 |
5 |
|
|
91 |
--- |
1 |
|
|
92 |
96 |
2 |
|
|
93 |
83 |
The
Tams - My True Love● |
30 |
|
94 |
--- |
1 |
|
|
95 |
REENTRY |
8 |
|
|
96 |
--- |
1 |
|
|
97 |
--- |
1 |
|
|
98 |
78 |
13 |
|
|
99 |
79 |
20 |
|
|
100 |
95 |
33 |
Murmurs:
Phoebe Ryan - Something to Hope For
C. Lynne Smith - Taking the Long Way (Album)
Milky Chance - Camouflage
Jutes - It Takes Two
Ella Langley - Be Her
Vegas With Randolph - Let's Fool Around
Lykke Li - Lucky Again
Beck - True Love Will Find You in the End/Be Here Now
Djo - Delete Ya
Juliet Callahan - Pieces of My Heart
Orbis Max - Don't Lose Me Now
The Mac Daddy's Band - TBD
Courtney Barnett - Site Unseen
Randy Clay Band - We Came to Dance
Murmurs: Songs which are in the queue for future adds onto the Scenes ‘n’ Soundwaves 100 Playlist.
|
|
Songs
with the greatest increase in favorite points over the prior week
●Songs garnering 25 plays
on Spotify (“Scrobbles”) according to Last.Fm (effective October 2024) ▲ Songs garnering 50 plays.
Songs
on the SNS 100 are included on the following public Spotify playlists
Scenes
‘n’ Soundwaves Top 40: Contains songs in positions 1-40 on the SNS
100
Scenes
41-100 and Newbies Songs in Positions 41-100 on the SNS 100 plus
new additions
Scenes
Recurrents: Songs which had been in
the top 20 and/or songs on the chart 25 weeks or more, that have dropped off
the SNS 100.
(Rob Sheldon
is a music fan who has followed music trends the past 60 years, and covers new
and classic music, specializing in pop, rock, alternative, beach, soul and
country genres). He can be contacted
at rsheldonx4804@gmail.com
