“I think he’d be over the bloody moon,” says legendary bassist Peter Hook, when asked how late Joy Division frontman Ian Curtis would react to Joy Division/New Order’s induction into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. “[Ian’s] big point of reference was always the Doors. ‘We’re going to be as big as the Doors!’ He loved Jim Morrison. So, for us to be in L.A. for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame ceremony, he’d be over the bloody moon.”

Unfortunately, though, while Hook says “wild horses” wouldn’t keep him away from attending, performing, and honoring Curtis’s legacy at the Rock Hall Class of 2026 ceremony, which will take place at Los Angeles’s Peacock Theater on Nov. 14, he confirms that he won’t be celebrating alongside Joy Division’s surviving members. “After what they did to me, I’m afraid it’s unforgivable,” he says flatly.

Hook co-founded Manchester, England’s pioneering post-punk band Joy Division in 1976 with Bernard “Barney” Sumner and Stephen Morris, and in 1980 — mere days after the 23-year-old Curtis’s tragic suicide on the eve of what would have been Joy Division’s first U.S. tour — Hook, Sumner, Morris, and new addition Gillian Gilbert regrouped and carried on as the synthpop outfit New Order, eventually finding even greater success. “One minute it was all there; the next minute, the whole thing was gone and picking up like a Phoenix rising from the ashes,” Hook recalls.

It would be assumed that enduring such a harrowing ordeal would have bonded the band members for life. But following Hook’s acrimonious exit from New Order in 2007, a long-running battle between him and his ex-bandmates (particularly Sumner) culminated in Hook’s lawsuit pertaining ownership of assets. A “full and final settlement” was reached in 2017 regarding Hook’s legal use of the Joy Division and New Order trademarks for his own group, Peter Hook & the Light, who perform songs from both bands’ catalogs. But according to Hook, he and Sumner have not spoken in 15 years. “I think the [broken] bond is probably what hurts the most,” he admits.

Peter Hook & the Light could of course easily handle all Joy Division/New Order performance duties at November’s Rock Hall ceremony. (The Light’s live shows typically run “two hours and 47 minutes; sometimes it goes down at 2:45,” Hook quips — as he refers to the extensive setlist he’s planning for his upcoming 50th-anniversary Manchester Academy concert, which will also include songs from his side bands Revenge, Monaco, and Freebass.) But legally, that won’t likely be possible, so Hook plans to perform with to-be-determined guest stars. “I can’t really tell you who! But I’ll play on my own, if I have to,” he says with a grin.

In the Q&A below that Hook jokingly likens to a “therapy session,” he opens up about what his Rock Hall appearance might look like; how he feels about the Light touring this summer playing Get Ready, the New Order “honeymoon record” that he and Sumner recorded right before band relations unraveled irreparably; his biggest regret regarding Curtis’s death; and how he finally learned to deal with his grief.

LYNDSANITY: Congratulations! Finally, Joy Division and New Order are in the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, after being nominated three times. How are you feeling about this long-overdue honor? Obviously, there’s a lot to process here.

PETER HOOK: Oh, youcan saythat again! [laughs] The interesting thing from my point of view is that when [the first nomination] happened, we’ve always been behind it as Peter Hook & the Light, absolutely 100 percent. And we worked to get in. The first time, the others [in Joy Division/New Order] were a little bit behind it, but the second and third, they hardly mentioned it. So, it’s a bit of a strange, weird feeling — like it’s not going to be weird anyway! It’s been a bit of a tsunami.

Well, that brings me to the billion-dollar question. It seems like you’re on board with the Hall and always have been, so I assume you’re going to be there. But I don’t know about your former bandmates. What’s going to happen? Will you all appear together? Will you reunite?

Oh, no. After what they did to me, I’m afraid it’s unforgivable. They would need Donald Trump and Henry Kissinger together to broker any kind of peace with us. The Hormuz Strait in Manchester is not opening up again, let’s put it that way. I don’t know what [New Order] are doing, in the same way that nobody ever knows. I saw their statement, which I thought was a little bit odd. … I mean, it came from “New Order,” which made me laugh, because am I not part of New Order?

I must admit, I was hoping for a different answer, but if you’d actually told me that a reunion was going to happen, I probably would’ve fallen off my chair.

If you’d have told me it was going to happen, I would’ve fallen off my chair! [laughs]

Well, obviously the Light could play on their own at the ceremony, but I’m sure there are legal or just political issues that would prevent that from happening. So, what are you envisioning? You’re definitely going to be there, right?

Oh, I’m going to be there. Wild horses wouldn’t keep me away. … I’ve not seen Barney for 15 years. Actually, I saw him walk past me once when I was in a bar and I’d won my side of the court case; he soon scampered off, because I’d won on that occasion. That was the last time I saw him, but I didn’t speak to him. And that’s 15 years. I’ve not seeing Gillian for 15 years. I spoke to Steve about four years ago when we were having another legal conflab. There’s been no social talk. And it is a shame, because the thing is, you don’t get to celebrate anything with anyone. But it’s just what happened. I suppose in a funny way, we’ve all moved on, but I was still really hurt by what they did to me and my family when they took the name, and how they’ve acted since. And even though you’ve made a kind of uneasy peace, shall we say, you are still not going to rush into each other’s arms.

It’s going to be very, very awkward [if the other New Order members attend show up]. But I mean, the thing is, my God, I’m 70. Barney’s 70. Steve’s 67. I mean, we’re all blokes, so we’re not going to be chasing each other around very fast, are we? “Come here, ya bastard!” [laughs] It’d probably be hilarious to witness.

Well, you’d have to play at the ceremony, in some capacity, because there is no one else that plays bass like you. Your bass-playing is so integral to the songs that honestly, when I see the Light perform, they sound more like classic New Order than the real New Order there days.

In a funny way, [New Order] have done me a favor by sounding, in some songs, completely unlike New Order [live], so that I can play it exactly how we did it and be true to the sound that I love. That’s my band. I mean, I was there. Barney’s taste changed and his ideas changed, and while we were together I expressed very much that I didn’t agree with what he was doing to the music. I made a deal with myself when we went back that if I thought there was something wrong, this time I wouldn’t swallow it and go bang my head on the wall and bury myself in drugs and drink. I’d actually f—ing say it. So, I made myself say it. But I remember we were having a [band] discussion once and … someone said, “Listen, why don’t we compromise?” And I went, “OK, let’s compromise,” and Barney was sat there with a weird look on his face and went, “No, I’m waiting for you to compromise!” Um, that’s not how compromise works.

I do think it’s strange that New Order and Joy Division are a joint inductee, not just because I feel both deserve to be in the Hall on their own, but also because — despite sharing three members — they are very different groups. Does the dual-induction bother you?

Well, from my point of view, the songwriting trio in Joy Division were very, very active all the way through New Order as a trio as well. There is a massive thread going through both bands. … I fully and quite categorically state, here and now, that if Ian had been around, he would’ve been singing on [New Order’s] “Blue Monday.” He was a great electronic [music] lover. It was Ian that introduced me to Kraftwerk. He introduced me to Can, Faust, all these Krautrock, dance-rock bands. He was well on board with everything we were doing. I remember we did a song called “The Only Mistake,” which was quite a disco rhythm, and he absolutely loved it. It was his favorite song because of the dance element. He always used to go on: “Oh, ‘The Only Mistake,’ it should be a single!” But it didn’t happen because of… I mean, it’s hard, isn’t it? Because Joy Division finished so suddenly. One minute it was all there; the next minute, the whole thing was gone and picking up like a Phoenix rising from the ashes. It was very, very difficult.

But we were still the same people. Barney, Steve, and I were the same people. The reason we got Gillian in, who actually wasn’t very skilled, was because we didn’t want anyone to change the sound. We didn’t want to bring in an established guitarist like Steve Severin [of Siouxsie and the Banshees], or Keith Levene [of the Clash and PiL], or anybody like that, who would come in and change the sound. We were being very, I suppose, selfish in that regard. So, she was thrown in at the deep end, if you like, with what was three very experienced songwriters.

But I can see the highway going through both, and [the dual nomination] doesn’t bother me. I think the interesting thing that I found when I started playing Joy Division’s music in 2010 [with the Light], I noticed that there was a great divide between Joy Division fans and New Order fans. What used to happen was when I was playing a Joy Division set, all the Joy Division lot would be at the front, and then when I played the New Order set, they’d all go to the bar and the New Order fans would come forward. But now, over my period of playing it, that divide seems to have gone.

So, will you be performing at the Hall ceremony with different all-star guests?

I can’t really tell you who! But I’ll play on my own, if I have to. … I was very disappointed because I would’ve had the Smashing Pumpkins, Billy [Corgan] and obviously Jack [Peter’s son, who plays with both the Light and the Pumpkins]. It would’ve been wonderful, but [the Smashing Pumpkins] are playing with bloody Morrissey that day [at the Darker Waves festival in Orange County]! How small a world is that?

Yes, and another Manchester artist, Oasis, will be inducted alongside you in the Class of 2026, so it will be an overall very Mancunian day in Southern California on Nov. 14.

How nuts is that? Oasis played their first-ever gig with Noel [Gallagher] on guitar, supporting Revenge, my old outfit. Liam  [Gallagher] came up to me that night and said, “We’ve changed our name from the Rain and we’ve got our kid on guitar. It’s his first gig tonight.” I went, “Yeah, whatever” — grizzled old rocker that I was then! So, yeah, Oasis played their first-ever gig with me.

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It is indeed a small world! It’s too bad Billy Corgan isn’t available, but have you given any thought to who might sing the Joy Division songs at the Hall ceremony? There are countless artists who have been influenced by Ian Curtis, and some who even sound like him, but there was only one Ian Curtis.

I felt a bit blank about it for a while. And then Jack, my son, said to me, “I’ve done a list.” He showed me his list and I was like, wow.

Who was on that list?

I cannot tell! … But I’ve been very flattered by the names that have been suggested.

Well, let me suggest one possibility. Hear me out: Grace Jones. She covered Joy Division early on, and she’s an icon who should be in the Hall herself.

Grace Jones did [Joy Division’s] first cover version. She paid us, and oh my God, it couldn’t have been better-timed! Her record company actually paid us 20,000 pounds for permission to put out “She’s Lost Control,” which she did with Sly & Robbie, and we’d have [accepted] about 50 quid! We couldn’t believe it; we nearly fell off our chairs again in that moment, that we got offered that amount of money when it would’ve been an honor anyway. And then really amazingly, there’s an A&R man at Polydor called the Captain; he was very well-known, a real character. And he came to me and said, “Hooky, we’re putting out a new Grace Jones collection. Can you do me a 12-inch version of Grace’s ‘She’s lost Control’?” And Potsy [David Potts] and I, as Monaco, did a 12-inch remix of “She’s Lost Control.” I actually got to sing with Grace… and then just as the record was about to come out, [the Captain and Jones] fell out. It’s a fantastical version. It really, really turned out well. I don’t know what the hell happened to it, but it’s never been out. And we did a reggae version as well, which was amazing. … I’ve got a feeling the whole thing’s disappeared somewhere, but we’ve still got the tapes.

Well, there you go! You and Grace Jones can perform “She’s Lost Control” at the Hall.

I must admit, as heroines go, she is up there, Grace. My God, her book was outrageous. I just love her. … You know what? Because you’ve given me the idea, I will put her on my list.

Awesome! But regardless of who takes on the Ian Curtis vocals at the ceremony, I’m curious — how do you think Ian would feel about this honor? The Rock & Roll Hall of Fame didn’t even exist when he was still alive, and mainstream, American-based accolades, especially for a band that was still so young and from Manchester, probably weren’t even on your guys’ radar then. But now that he will be honored for the immense contributions he made to music during his very short time on Earth, how do you think he’d react?

I think he’d be over the bloody moon. Because he used to spend all his time telling us how great we were and what we were going to achieve and where we were going to go. And literally if you wavered at any point, he would grab you by the lapels — he was like that guy in the trenches when you can’t go over the top, going, “Come on, you can do it! Get up there!” He was always that kind of guy, and he was convinced. And it was funny, because his big point of reference was always the Doors. “We’re going to be as big as the Doors!” He loved Jim Morrison. So, for us to be in L.A. for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame ceremony, he’d be over the bloody moon.

I think some people would be surprised to hear that Ian wanted to be a rock star, given his persona and the mythology surrounding him, and also the timing that he died passed right before the big opportunity of Joy Division’s U.S. tour. Many people might assume that he was willfully anti-commercial and didn’t want success or fame.

I mean, it’s a dream, isn’t it? Anybody who says, “I don’t want success” probably means they don’t want the problems that come with success. But the rest of it, I have to say, is pretty good. I mean, I’ve suffered from the problems that come with success, which is usually excess. Success and excess are very, very close together. But God, moaning musicians, how many do you know? They all moan about everything, don’t they? It’s sort of endemic. If they play to big crowds, they want to play to small crowds. If they play to small crowds, they want to play to big crowds.

But Ian was adamant, whether it was just his way of perking us up — which worked every time. It’s always the contradiction there, that we couldn’t do it enough for him. We couldn’t perk him up enough to make him want to stay around, which is quite an odd thing to admit: that he kept us up, but we couldn’t keep him up for whatever reason. But there’s been a few suggestions for Ian [from the Rock Hall], which are nice and could work out well.

Was the fact that Ian has such belief in the band a big motivating factor in the decision to continue as New Order, instead of just throwing in the towel? I have always been so surprised about how quickly you regrouped and soldiered on.

Do you want me to tell you the story?

Of course.

OK. We went to the inquest on a Thursday in Macclesfield, the inquest with the coroner, and it was horrible. [Ian’s widow Deborah Curtis’s parents] spoke, and it was heartbreaking. It was terrible. It was awful. And [Joy Division’s manager] Rob Gretton, after the end of it, went, “Come on, let’s go for a drink.” So, we went for a drink to a pub and we had something to eat and we were all sat there, and everyone was very quiet, obviously. And Rob Gretton said, “I’ve not asked, but what are you lot going to do? ” And we went, “What do you mean?” And he went, “Well, are you going to go back to work, or are you going to carry on?” We sort of looked at each other, me, Barney, and Steve, and just went, “Well, should we carry on?” And they went, “Yeah.”

So, we made a date to go in on Monday to the rehearsal room, which was really weird because Ian wasn’t there. It was the first time we’d been back. And we got there at the usual time, 10 o’clock, started playing, and never looked back. And weirdly, Thursday was the inquest, and on the Sunday afternoon, the house where I was living, we had no furniture. I used to go and sit on the floor in the back bedroom of this house with no furniture and play. And I actually wrote the six-string bassline to “Dreams Never End” that Sunday afternoon. So, when I went in on Monday, when we started again, the first song that we started with was “Dreams Never End” — which was suppose was quite apt, really. And that was it.

The interesting thing about that was that, because we were so focused on carrying on, we didn’t really get hit with the grief. Now, when you’re older, you realize the importance of grief. When you’re younger, you’d do anything to avoid it at any cost. And you’re allowed to avoid it as well. One of my biggest regrets in life is the fact that I didn’t go and say goodbye to Ian Curtis.

Do you mean at his funeral?

No. You can go and see the body. And I didn’t go. Neither me nor Barney went, because we stood there and I said, “Well, I don’t want to see him dead.” But everybody else went. I don’t know if Steve or Gillian went, but [Factory Records co-founder] Tony [Wilson] went and Rob went. Me and Barney never went, and I regretted it. … If someone had said to me, “Get your ass in there, that’s your mate, and go and say goodbye!” … I wish somebody had done that. Because for me, saying goodbye to someone you love is quite an important thing. I’ve never missed an opportunity since, but I always regret missing that. I don’t know if Barney does or not, but it was just us two that didn’t go. I went to see Rob, and went to see Tony [when Gretton and Wilson respectively died in 1999 and 2007]. I’ve said goodbye to a lot of people. It’s a bit like being surrounded by ghosts, to be honest with you. But I think they’d all be delighted [about the Rock Hall induction]. Tony in particular would be thrilled. Rob would just go, “It should have been years ago!”

You said regrouping so quickly as New Order was a way to not necessarily process your grief, but avoid your grief. Was there a moment later, even if it was decades later, where you did finally come to terms with your grief?

Well, you have to come to terms with it, because you’ve got to carry on, haven’t you? I mean, it’s a great world. We’re doing our best to destroy it, but it is a great world and there’s so many wonderful things that you can do. It is awful when you can’t [do anything]. I was clinically depressed at one point, and it was an awful, awful, awful thing. And whatever happens to me since that, I’ve always said the same thing: that I would never go down that particular rabbit hole again. I’m very lucky that my family look after me, so I wouldn’t have to.

Did your battle with depression help you better emphasize or understand with Ian did what he did when he’d been in his own dark place?

Oh, wow. Well, [my depression was due to] a nasty divorce. It was very, very depressing, though. I suppose depression gives you an understanding into what effect it can have on you physically and mentally. But suicides are different, aren’t they? We just lost a friend two years ago, and he did that thing where they give all the possessions away. And Ian did that, but I never found out until, oh my God, 25 years after he died, or maybe even longer. I saw Ian on a Friday night. He killed himself on Saturday night. My friend, who went to see him on Saturday afternoon, said Ian was trying to give away all his possessions. But he never told me that until 25 years later. … I didn’t know Ian was giving his stuff away, because I would’ve gone, “Whoa, we need to keep an eye on him.” So yeah, it was weird in that respect. But [my depression] wasn’t pleasant, and I’m very aware of the symptoms now. Didn’t Winston Churchill call it the “Black Dog”? Sometimes I can see the black dog in the corner of my eye — and that’s where it has to stay. So, I do look after myself and have to be careful. It’s the same thing with alcoholism and drug addiction. You are aware of it, so you have to be careful.

I think it’s great that you’re talking about this and that people are more aware, because in the ‘70s and ‘80s when Ian was struggling, no one was talking about mental health at all. It has really only become a topic of open discussion in recent years.

Yes. So, are you available next week at this time for another therapy session? [laughs]

Any time you need my help, I would be happy to.

We didn’t talk about your rates!

I will do it pro bono! But seriously, I think it’s important to talk about this stuff.

It is important. And in many ways it actually helps when somebody you know and love is going through it. Life is a learning process.

Peter Hook & the Light are touring in August and September, and the timing is interesting, because the album you’re focusing on is Get Ready. That was New Order’s comeback after an eight-year recording hiatus, and you’ve described it as a “honeymoon record” made while you and Bernard were getting along, before everything fell apart again. Since Get Ready was basically the beginning of the end for you and New Order, does it feel bittersweet to revisit that material now?

Bittersweet? It’s been bittersweet for a long time. It really has. I mean, it’s funny for me because the only thing that got me through the court case was playing the music and doing the gigs, because that gave me the lift to be able to carry on fighting for what I thought was right. It’s interesting with Get Ready: I didn’t know this, but it was our best-selling album in America. It sold more than Republic, and more than Technique. … Barney and I did it more or less alone, and I think that there was a lot of using each other’s strengths; that was the “honeymoon” side of it. It was like being in Joy Division again. … I must admit, it’s been my favorite LP to play [with the Light], and I didn’t expect that.

I consider the saga of New Order to be one of the greatest comeback stories in rock — right up there with AC/DC and the B-52s, who also both survived losses that many bands would not be able to recover from. That’s why I feel it’s bittersweet that New Order won’t reunite at the Hall. You went through something that very few people can imagine. There’s got to be some kind of bond still there.

I think the bond is probably what hurts the most. … But it’s OK. It’s good. So, I’ll see you same time next week? [laughs]

Sure, if you need another “therapy session”! But if not, I look forward to seeing you at the Class of 2026 ceremony. I am very happy for you, and for your ex-bandmates as well, and I’m happy to know that Ian would have been excited about this.

Yes, I must go and see him, actually. I’ve not seen him for a while, so I must go and see him.

Do you mean visit Ian’s grave?

Yeah. I’ve been meaning to, and I must do it. Maybe I’ll tell you what he says.

The above Q&A originally ran on Gold Derby, and has been edited for brevity and clarity. Watch Peter Hook’s full interview in the video at the top of this page.

But which other ’80s artists deserve a nod? Who should be in the Class of 2027? That’s an eternal question, of course, so today I am re-running this vintage Totally ’80s podcast episode featuring an expert panel of special guests, Rock & Roll Hall of Fame inductees Lol Tolhurst of the Cure (Class of 2019) and Gina Schock of the Go-Go’s (Class of 2021). Like the Go-Go’s’ T-shirt says, “It’s about fucking time!”

It’s a good week to be Billy Idol. Not only is his acclaimed documentary, Billy Idol Should Be Dead, finally getting a theatrical release, but he was also just nominated for the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame’s Class of 2026. And unlike like his grumpy punk peers the Sex Pistols, who boycotted their 2006 Hall ceremony, Idol is genuinely excited about the honor.

“I was part of Ozzy Osbourne’s induction [in 2024], and I really enjoyed it. It was a great night,” the punk icon says, flashing his famous lip-curled smile. “There was like, Dionne Warwick sitting over there, and then Dua Lipa over there. You’ve got this vast expanse of people who’ve been in music for a very long time or are just starting out, and I’m somewhere in the middle So, it’d be fantastic [to be inducted].”

Idol was shortlisted for the Rock Hall in 2025 and passed over, but this year — following the release of both Billy Idol Should Be Dead and Dream Into It, his first full-length album in over a decade — his chances are looking much brighter. The film in particular makes a compelling case for his 50-year legacy, demonstrating how he was at the forefront of two key cultural movements on both sides of the pond: the first wave of punk in 1970s Britain (initially as a member of a tabloid-famous gang of Pistols fans called the Bromley Contingent, then as the frontman of pioneering punk group Generation X), and what became known as pop’s “Second British Invasion” in America in the 1980s.

“We wanted our own look, our own music,” Idol says of both eras. “It’s like, what was our generation going to do? We saw what the people in the ‘60s did, so what’s our reply? That’s a big part of what we thought punk was about.” As punk morphed into new wave, Idol once again optimistically looked the future. “We were on a mission, really. People like me, Madonna, Prince, we were on a mission to make the ‘80s great. We kept being told by the people from the ‘60s and ‘70s: ‘The ‘80s suck!’ That’s what we were being told. So, we were like, ‘No. We’re gonna f***ing show you!’”

Idol had recently teamed with frequent Giorgio Moroder collaborator Keith Forsey and KISS manager Bill Aucoin, and “was already thinking about where I could take the energy of what I’d done in punk,” when he fatefully moved to New York in 1981 — the same year that MTV debuted. Upon his arrival, he amusingly wrangled with another member of his management team over his Anglocentric fashion sense. “He tried showing me Rick Springfield’s Working Class Dog imagery, saying, ‘This is what goes over in America,’” Idol laughs. [Fun fact: Springfield's “Jessie’s Girl was No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 the week MTV debuted.] “But I said, ‘I’m not brushing my hair down and becoming David Cassidy for anyone! This is really me, and this is what I love. I don’t think I’m going to change a thing.’”

Idol later famously threatened to give his stolen Rebel Yell master tapes to his heroin dealer if his U.S. record label didn’t let him use the album cover photo he wanted, so when it came to his persona and brand, he clearly never compromised. “Something I always felt David Bowie or Lou Reed or Iggy Pop would tell you is, ‘Find out who you are, and be it,’” he explains. And of course, Idol was right — as were Bowie, Reed, Pop, and perhaps especially Aucoin.

“Bill had tipped me off to this 24-hour TV music channel that was coming, and he said, ‘You’re going to be perfect for it.’ And I was really lucky,” Idol recalls of the timing. “Because when I came to America, I had no idea what was going to happen. When I thought about the music that was on top of the [U.S.] charts then, there were a lot of pop-rock bands doing these very high-harmony songs — REO Speedwagon and people like that. How could I fit into that? But I had to restart my career. I couldn’t stay in England. If I’d stay in England, I would’ve just ended up propping up a bar, because everything goes through England really fast and you’re considered ‘over’ pretty quickly. So, I had to do it.”

And so, while other punks dismissed making music videos as “selling out,” Idol fully committed to the medium (so much so that he literally nearly blinded himself when his contact lenses became fused to his corneas during the three-day shoot for “Eyes Without a Face”). He signed up as the peroxided posterboy for the cable network’s early “I Want My MTV!” campaign, and eventually became an MTV pioneer — enlisting Texas Chainsaw Massacre filmmaker Tobe Hooper to direct his first big clip, “Dancing With Myself,” and creating all of his video concepts.

“For me, video was the extension of the music. The initial wave of punk was over, so it seemed like a natural thing to me,” Idol recalls. “I liked putting imagery with my songs, and it was all coming from me. Like with ‘White Wedding,’ the graveyard set and everything, I’d seen a Boris Karloff film from the ‘30s where he was playing a priest or something, on this kind of blackened altar with all these white crosses behind him, and I just thought, ‘Let’s do that! Let’s do it in color!’ I was just enjoying it.”

Looking back on the launch of his solo career, Idol admits, “I didn’t know if I was going to go mega. I had no idea if people were going to connect to my music, until I went to a pub on the west side [of New York] in 1981, after I’d been in America a couple of months. I found a load of people dancing to ‘Dancing With Myself,’ and I started to realize, ‘Ohhh, it’s this big dance song on this new wave dance chart!’ And I went, ‘Man, this answers a load of questions. I don’t have to change a lot of stuff. I don’t have to find this ‘new Billy Idol.’ I just have to be the Billy I’ve always been, really.’ And that’s what I’ve been doing ever since.”

One of Idol’s most iconic videos, shot at the height of his solo stardom, was the David Fincher-directed, VMA-winning “Cradle of Love.” But Fincher had to film Idol from the waist up (and turn Idol into a pop-art painting) because the rocker had nearly lost his leg in a serious motorcycle accident three months earlier and was still unable to walk at the time. This was just one of his several near-death experiences chronicled in the aptly titled Billy Idol Should Be Dead, but it was the one that finally scared him straight. “I was lucky. I only have minimal kind of problems. I’m not too bad. But when you hit the concrete, it leaves its mark — psychological scars and physical scars. I think the accident gave me both,” Idol muses.

Idol says was “a bit of a drug addict” at the time of the 1990 accident, which inspired his 2021 comeback single “Bitter Taste.” But after he was hospitalized for a month and underwent seven surgeries, the crash turned out to be just the wake-up call he needed. “I had to really think about my future, where I was going,” he explains. “It was a bit of a watershed time for me. I had to change my life, had to think about things. I mean, I was kind of destroying myself, really. And I had young children as well at that time. I was thinking, ‘What am I saying to them by continuing to be a drug addict and nearly having an accident that seriously hurt me and possibly could have killed me?’ … I needed to get ahold of myself. I was going to kill myself, or I was going to go crazy, or be locked up forever. The motorcycle accident was a good sign of: ‘You’ve got to stop.’”

We won’t know until April if Idol will make it into this year’s Rock & Roll Hall of Fame class, but regardless, he never stopped believing in the power of music, and his legacy as one of rock ‘n’ roll ’s true survivors is well-established. “I never worried about [accolades] too much, because I was making the music I wanted to make, and it was all really about that,” he insists. “But if I did get in, I would get the chance to say thank you to the fans. Because that’s who’s really kept me here.”

This story originally ran on Gold Derby. Watch Billy Idol’s interview with composer J. Ralph about his documentary’s theme song, “Dying to Live,” below:

Update Nov. 3: Writing on his Instagram page, Paul Rodgers has announced that while he had hoped to be able to travel to Los Angeles for Bad Company’s Rock & Roll Hall of Fame induction on Nov. 8, his health now sadly precludes him from attending.

When it was announced that arena-rock supergroup Bad Company would be inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, fans had many questions.

Who would induct the band at the ceremony? What songs would they play? Would lead singer Paul Rodgers, who experienced 13 strokes between 2016 and 2019 that temporarily rendered him unable to sing or even speak, be able to perform? How did guitarist Mick Ralphs, who died just two months after the Hall’s Class of 2025 announcement, feel about Bad Company’s long-overdue induction? And, speaking of long-overdue, what took the Hall so long to recognize Bad Company — a band that sold 40 million records worldwide, charted four top 10 albums, and had such influence that their new tribute LP features everyone from Slash and Def Leppard to Halestorm, the Pretty Reckless, the Struts, and even country star HARDY?

Speaking from his New York home — just one week after traveling to England for Ralphs’s memorial, and one week before he travels to Los Angeles to rehearse for the Rock Hall ceremony (and, almost as excitingly, dines with all of the Class of 2025 inductees at Spago) – Bad Company drummer Simon Kirke answers all of these questions and more.

Kirke also discusses his disappointment that his previous band with Rodgers, Free, has yet to be inducted; how Bad Company became the first signing to Led Zeppelin’s Swan Song label and how notorious music manager Peter Grant discovered them; his on-and-off, 40-year battle with substance abuse and the near-death experience that finally scared him straight; his forthcoming rock musical about addiction; and what to expect from his acceptance speech and performance at the Rock Hall ceremony, which will take place Nov. 8 at L.A.’s Peacock Theater. If you can’t get enough of great Bad Company stories, this Q&A is a rock ‘n’ roll fantasy come true.

LYNDSANITY: I’m very excited to chat with you, and I think a lot of Bad Company fans are excited about this as well — because if I’m doing the math correctly, Bad Company have been eligible for the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame since 1998. So, it took a while, but the very first time you were nominated, you got in. And you also were No. 2 in the fan vote as well, which indicates that a lot of people thought this induction was long overdue. Why do you think you didn’t get in until now?

SIMON KIRKE: Honestly, I think… all right, I’ll backtrack a little. Once you’ve been inducted, you become an automatic voting member, and several people I know, like Mick Fleetwood and a Little Stevie Van Zandt from Bruce’s band, they said, “Every year we get ‘round the table, and we say Bad Company or Free has got to get in. It’s been so long.” … But I think it was more political. There’s an arc of about 20 guys who are above the voting members, and without naming names, I think there was a certain anti-Bad Company movement. That’s really all I can say.

Anti-Bad Company specifically, or more anti the genre? Because with some “arena-rock” or “FM radio” artists of the era, like Foreigner and Peter Frampton, it took a very long time for them to get in. So, is it Bad Company-specific, or more just that world?

Well, the fact that we got in on the first nomination… for instance, my old mate, Nicko McBrain from Iron Maiden, they’ve been nominated [twice] and never gotten in. So, I think there was almost like a log jam. And once that jam had been dispersed, we were a slam dunk. I think also, if I was really being honest, Bad Company over the 50-odd years has had a couple of lineups, and I think it kind of maybe diluted our currency a little bit, or devalued it. I don’t really know. But I know once that log jam had been dispelled, we were in, and I’m very, very happy. I’m happy primarily for Mick Ralphs, who passed away a few months ago. He got to know just a couple of months before he passed that we were inducted. So, I was more happy about that than anything.

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Did this honor mean a lot to Mick?

I think it was just in a way of recognizing the band. Because every year, and as much as we might sort of pooh-pooh and say, “Oh, it doesn’t really matter,” it does. It does matter to me, and my kids were like, “Hey Dad, when are you going to be in?” And I thought, “Well, look, it’s out of my hands.” But it was always around the corner and you’d go, “S***, another year gone by,” and some R&B/rap group is in. So yeah, I think justice has been done, without sounding too arrogant. But I’m happy, and a lot of my contemporaries have said, “Hey guys, well done.” …. So, I think the balance has been redressed.

Now that Mick has passed, you and Paul Rodgers are the only two surviving members of the original lineup. Are you guys going to perform at the Hall ceremony? I know Paul has had some health issues, so fans are wondering.

I think the secret is out that we will perform. I don’t know, I might get into trouble, but as far I saw some Google News that “Bad Company will perform at the Hall of Fame”. So, I will cautiously say yes. I’m not at liberty to say which songs. I mean, quite honestly, I don’t give a s***. We’re going to play, and whatever Paul chooses is fine by me! Just to play with him again is going to be a real thrill for me. I missed him. I missed playing with the band. I miss playing particularly with Paul. He’s such a wonderful singer.

How long has it been since the two of you performed together?

We did our last show over five years ago, in Las Vegas of all places, when Bad Company and Lynyrd Skynyrd were flip-flopping [on a co-headlining tour]. And it was one of the best gigs we ever played. So, thank God we finished on a good gig and not a s***ty one!

How is Paul’s voice these days?

I haven’t heard him sing since then, quite honestly. I know he has sung, and we are going to do a couple of rehearsals for the cameras and so on and so forth. But when you have a voice that naturally good, it’s going to take a hell of a lot for it to fray or devalue. So, I think he’s going to be fine for the two songs that we’ve chosen.

Only two songs?

Honestly, all artists are allowed seven minutes.

I think I could probably guess what you’ll play. I would think “Feel Like Makin’ Love” and of course, “Rock ‘n’ Roll Fantasy.”

Well, you’ve got one of them right.

I imagine it will a bittersweet night, because some band members are now gone. I do believe that you were in England last week for a Mick Ralphs celebration.

Yeah, we had a farewell memorial bash for Mick at his favorite pub, just outside Henley in England. It’s called the Crooked Billet; God knows what that means. It’s about the size of your living room. There were about 70 or 80 friends, old road crew, wives, ex-wives, Boz Burrell’s widow, just a whole bunch of friends. And we had a dinner and I played seven or eight Bad Company songs, and then Zak Starkey played drums on a bunch of Mott the Hoople songs. It was a lovely night. I’m so glad I went over.

Joe Elliott, who is on the new Bad Company tribute album, has been on a campaign to get Mott the Hoople in the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame for a very long time.

Yeah, I think Mott should be in. I also think Free should be in. We wanted to get maybe a two-for-one and get Bad Company and Free inducted, but we’ll just take what we can right now. But I honestly would rest 100 percent happy knowing that Free were inducted. It’s strange, I’ve been looking at old clips of Free on YouTube, and it’s like, “Wow, we really were good!” And I am not blowing my own trumpet. It’s something that everyone I’m close to — particularly in New York, where I know a lot of musicians roughly my age, fifties and sixties — they say Free was just special. But there we go. We will see.

Obviously you’re British, but the Rock Hall tends to be a bit American-centric. Free didn’t have as many big hits in the U.S. as Bad Company did, so that might be why they’re not in too.

[Free had] two [U.S. chart hits], honestly. We had the huge hit “All Right Now,” which propelled us into the stratosphere., and then after that we had “Wishing Well,” which I believe went into the top 40, so it wasn’t a monster hit. But Free were always sort of hampered by canceled tours. Paul Kossoff, our guitarist, suffered from addiction and was rendered useless on a couple of tours, so we had to come home. That kind of really screwed up our ascent, if you will, into American culture. So, a lot of people know “All Right Now,” but very few people actually saw Free play. And then Bad Company sort of changed all that.

When Bad Company came together, it was a supergroup in every sense of the word. It was members of Free, Mott the Hoople, King Crimson. And I think it’s safe to say that Bad Company became bigger than any of the members’ respective previous groups, at least in the U.S. I bet more casual music fans still don’t even know that Bad Company are British, because you had this big American arena sound. In general, why do you think the sum of the parts became so huge here?

That’s a very good question. A lot of people did think and maybe still do think that we are American, because particularly with me and Paul Rodgers, our influences are pretty much — the Beatles and the Stones aside — all Black music. The blues and R&B and James Brown, Ray Charles, Aretha Franklin. So, we gave you Benny Hill, and you gave us the blues. [laughs]

Seems like an even trade!

I’m being facetious, of course. OK, I think the underlying No. 1, main reason was our affiliation with Led Zeppelin and Peter Grant. It was a perfect storm. We came from three very well-known and well-liked bands in England. That didn’t really mean much in America; that’s true. But Led Zeppelin in 1973 were the biggest goddamn band in history, and they were a superb band. They launched their own record label. We were the first band on that label. They had two enormous galas in L.A. and in New York where we were flown out, introduced to the public, and we had a smash-hit first album. It was perfect. And that kind of launched us. But although it was laid out for us, we had to do the work. We didn’t headline our first show. We opened for bands — Edgar Winter’s White Trash, bands that I can’t even remember now. So, we paid our dues. But by the second tour the next year, we were headlining, and we lived up to our CV, if you will.

How did Bad Company come to be artist to be signed to Zeppelin’s Swan Song Records?

I think purely by chance. I remember sitting down at the table. We had our first rehearsal in this little farm that Paul owned, and we sat down and said, “Right, who’s the biggest band in the world right now?” “Led Zeppelin.” “OK, who managing Led Zeppelin?” “Peter Grant.” Now, here’s where it gets interesting. Our roadie was a New Zealander, and he had a friend who was another New Zealander who roadied for Led Zeppelin. Our roadie called Clive, Led Zeppelin’s roadie, and said, “Can you get us Peter Grant’s number?” And within, I don’t know, a day, Paul was speaking to Peter Grant. He said, “Hey Peter, you might not know me, but…” Peter Grant said, “Excuse me for interrupting, but you’ve got a band together.” And Paul goes, “What?” Peter says, “Yeah, I know a lot of things. And I want to come and see you.” Wow. Peter Grant wants to come and see us?

So, we arranged for him to come and see us. And he did a very clever thing. We were [rehearsing] in this little village hall, waiting for Mr. Grant to arrive. And he was late. There were no cell phones back then. Hours went by and we thought, “Oh, f***, he’s not coming.” And he suddenly walked in and said, “Hello boys, I’m sorry I’m late. Traffic was terrible.” And we said, “OK, sit down, and we’ll play you the set.” He said, “That’s OK, I’ve already heard it. I knew you’d be nervous, so I’ve been sitting in the car park listening through the open windows, and I think you sound great.” That was our introduction to Peter Grant! And he said, “By the way, me and the boys” — Zeppelin — “are putting together a record label. Would you like to be on it?” And we said, “Well, we’ll have to think about it. [pauses for one second] Yes!”

What was Peter Grant like? He had quite a reputation. What was he really like to work with, and how long did he manage you guys?

I would say eight or nine years. If you were on his side, if he was on your side, you couldn’t ask for a better guy. Even though he was only a couple of years older than us, he looked older. He was 300 pounds. He was an ex-wrestler, but with amazing business acumen. But if he was in a bad mood and not on your side, he was really quite frightening. And we only had one cross word, me and him; it’s not worth bringing up. But 99 percent of the time, he was a great guy, and I loved him very much. He adored Led Zeppelin, obviously. I mean, they were his band. They were his first choice. But when we started to nip at their heels, Bad Company gave them a good run for their money. We were coming up, and he spent a lot of time with us. But unfortunately, and it’s common knowledge, drugs got the better of just about all of us. Peter went into seclusion, and Swan Song collapsed around 1982. But for seven or eight years, he was great. I love the guy.

Did you have much of an addiction problem yourself?

Oh, yeah!

I don’t know how much you want to talk about that. You look so healthy and young.

I don’t mind talking about addiction. In fact, it’s part of my program. I’ve been in recovery now, on and off, for about 40 years, but I’ve been completely sober coming up on 12 years. So yeah, I don’t mind talking about it. I was doing a lot of blow and drinking a lot in my thirties, forties, and fifties and sixties! I was doing stupid stuff, and it did cause the demise of Bad Company. Paul gave all that up in the ‘70s. He’s very healthy guy. And the irony is that he suffered from these health problems over the last six or seven years. So, it’s a crapshoot. You never really know. Now I do yoga and I go to the gym and I eat properly, so that’s helped me. But I don’t mind telling people that I am “an addict in recovery.” I can say that now, but 50 years ago, it was a shameful thing.

I don’t even know what you would have to do in England to be considered an “alcoholic,” because the drinking culture is so ingrained there.

It is. Every second advert over there is Budweiser or whatever. Look, at my worst, I was drinking brandy in the morning. And drinking in the morning is a classic sign [of alcoholism]. Trembling and just thinking about it constantly. And then you fuel that with cocaine. It’s just a never-ending, vicious circle. I was on that particular carousel for quite a few years, but all bad things have to end. And I’m glad — it’s the best thing I ever did, getting sober.

Was there an epiphany, a rock-bottom moment, that made you get sober for good?

It’s funny you mentioned “rock bottom.” We’ll get to that in a minute. There were a couple of rock bottoms. I inherited my addiction from my parents; they were both alcoholics. But when you are young, you can shake off a hangover. You can actually stay up all night and play the next day without too much negative s***. But it brings with it a certain arrogance when you’re in your twenties and you think, “Yeah, f*** it, I’ll stop drinking for 30 days.” And then you say, “Well, I can do that, so I can drink again.” And that’s what happened to me. I went through several rehabs over the years thinking I got ahold on it. Bulls***. Once you’re an addict, you’re an addict. I’m addicted to gum now. I mean, nice, healthy, aspartame-free gum.

I’m sure your breath is great.

Of course. But what I like, I like to do lots of it. And my epiphany came when I nearly died on a tour bus. I nearly died, and without the help of a particular person, I’m sure I would’ve flatlined. That was when I really thought, “F***, this is it.” And the next day I dragged myself to a rehab and started that slow, uphill recovery, dragging that rock on my back. But that’s what it took. And I was very, very lucky. Nowadays, everything’s laced with fentanyl, so you don’t get a chance. A hundred people a day die in America through overdoses. A hundred people a day. That’s a Vietnam every year. The drug problem in this country is off the charts. It’s around because youth is naturally rebellious. Tell someone not to do it, and they’ll go and f***ing do it.

You’re right. That “Just Say No” campaign never worked.

It didn’t work. But I work with kids now. I’m working with a couple of organizations that help troubled teens, and there’s like 17-year-old kids who’ve been sober three years. It’s amazing, because I just wish that I could have done that. But back then, shame magnified the intake, if you will. But I’m here.

I’m so glad you’re here! But since rock is about debauchery and all that, but there’s sort of this concept that musicians make their best music when they’re taking substances or in a dark place. Like, “Oh, they made their best work when they were all strung-out on heroin and depressed. Now that they’re all normal, sober, middle-aged guys, their music is boring!” What do you think of that myth?

I don’t know. That’s a tough one. I mean, Eric Clapton said years ago — and he’s been sober many, many years — that he decries the work that he did when he was drunk or high on heroin. He turns his back on it. And that’s kind of hard, because I don’t really. … I never played high or stoned. One time in Detroit I had a line of coke and it was the worst, but I never played stoned. Maybe a little toke of a joint before I went to the stage, but never, ever out-of-it. But afterwards, when you’ve been bathed in that applause and you are 20 feet high and people are looking at you, particularly the ladies, it’s part of the lifestyle. But no, I’ve been sober a long time now and I write great songs now. I’ve written a rock musical called Rock Bottom about addiction.

Tell me about that!

This is going to be a doozy. I’m writing it with two people who are in the program, and the ideas come. We wake up with clear heads and not red eyes, and we just get on with it. I’m putting together a band. I’m going to be doing some solo shows next year because I can now. I’ve got a good reputation as not being the guy who f***s up and rides my Harley to shows drunk. I did that a lot back in the ‘90s. That’s another story for another time.

What is the plot of Rock Bottom?

Two addicts who fall in love. One gets sober and tries to convert her or his, depending on the choice, their partner to get sober. One of her friends overdoses, dies, and going through rehab and just trying to get her friend to get f***ing sober. I won’t spoil it by telling you what the ending is, but it’s heartfelt, and I really, really hope it gets a shot.

I’m finding it ironic now to realize that one of the most iconic Bad Company albums was called Straight Shooter…

That’s my favorite [Bad Company] album.

Tell me about making that record, because it’s one of the most important rock albums of that era.

It was done in a place called Clearwell Castle, which is on the border of Wales, and we used the Rolling Stones’ mobile unit. And it was a castle. Peter Frampton recommended it to us. I believe the Faces had recorded an album there. We always used a residence with an external mobile, not a regular recording studio, because we could record any time of the day of the night. It was a lot of fun and we’d just come off a world tour, so we were a real knit-together band. Whereas with the first album, BadCo, we’d rehearse those eight or nine songs in and out, in and out. We weren’t actually a band per se. But once you’ve done a couple of hundred shows around the world, you come back in for that second album. It was a rocking band, and the album was fantastic. I loved that album.

And now you’ve just put out the Can’t Get Enough, A Tribute to Bad Company album, which features the Pretty Reckless. Taylor Momsen of the Pretty Reckless is listed as one of the participants in the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Class of 2025 ceremony, so can I assume she’s part of the Bad Company segment in some way?

Oh, you know more than I do! … I know that Mick Fleetwood is inducting us, an old friend. That’s about all I know. I should know more, but I don’t. But whoever wants to cheer us on, I welcome them with open arms.

Are there any of your fellow class of 2025 inductees that you’re excited about?

Joe Cocker — I know it’s posthumous — because he was such a wonderful singer. I’m happy for Cyndi Lauper. I think she’s a hoot and she said a great thing on Howard Stern recently: Her very first song that she ever sang professionally was “Feel Like Makin’ Love”! So, I’ll be happy to meet her. Jack White I know fairly well, have met him several times. I’m happy for [the White Stripes]. Carol Kaye. … She’s amazing. Growing up in the ‘60s with this male crew, the Wrecking Crew, surrounded by guys — she deserves a real tip of the hat. Warren Zevon, of course, has passed away. He was a great musician. OutKast, I don’t really know much about them. But we’re all having a dinner at Spago’s, all of us, so I’ll get a chance.

Wow, how exciting!

Yeah, it’s shaping up to be quite a week.

Who would you like to see get into the Rock Hall next?

Iron Maiden, for sure. I mean, they’re rock, man. They are really rock.

I know Iron Maiden’s snub has been a source of much outrage from rock fans, including myself. But I’m glad Bad Company finally got in. I’m looking forward to seeing what you’ll do at the ceremony, and how you will honor Mick and Boz as well.

Oh, they’re going to get a mention in my speech. I’m sure Paul will mention them as well. And also the wives, the widows who looked after them, particularly Susie [Mick Ralphs’s widow], who looked after Mick Ralph. He had seven years of being incapacitated. Boz died of an instant heart attack, so if there’s such a thing as a good death, it was quick, but Mick lingered for many, many years. And I feel that his wife should get a mention. And I’m going to make sure that I mention her.

Yes, the rock wives need their own hall. The Rock & Roll Wives Hall of Fame.

That’s really good. I like that!

We’ll see if we can make that happen. In the meantime, congratulations to you and to Paul.

Thank you very much.

This Q&A, which has been edited for brevity and clarity, originally ran on Gold Derby. Watch Simon Kirke’s full interview in the video at the top of this article.

When renowned drummer Matt Cameron is inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame’s Class of 2025 with Soundgarden on Nov. 8, he will join a very elite group. Having already entered the Hall seven years ago as a member of another legendary Pacific Northwest rock band, Pearl Jam, for whom he drummed from 1998 to 2025, he’ll become a two-time inductee — an honor shared by the likes of Ozzy Osbourne, Stevie Nicks, Jimmy Page, Tina Turner, Jeff Beck, Eric Clapton, Paul Simon, Lou Reed, Michael Jackson, all four members of CSN&Y and the Beatles, and his Seattle peer Dave Grohl.

Cameron says, “I have to pinch myself!” when he realizes this, but his second Hall induction ceremony will obviously be much more bittersweet — because Soundgarden frontman Chris Cornell, who died by suicide in 2017, won’t be there to share the glory. So, Cameron’s chief concern is that Cornell will be celebrated “in the most honest, heartfelt way possible” on that special night at Los Angeles’s Peacock Theater.

“We are very honored to take part in this event, and to honor Chris’s legacy in Soundgarden and just his legacy as an artist, as a one-of-a-kind musician and frontman. And hopefully he’ll be [one day] recognized as a solo artist by the Hall or other entities as well. Because his influence is massive, and his artistry was completely unique,” states Cameron.

Cameron says “a lot of Chris’s family will be there” at the Class of 2025 ceremony, and while he’s not sure if Cornell’s daughter Toni, a stellar vocalist in her own right, will take part in the Hall’s musical salute to Soundgarden, he says the band “would certainly like to have [Cornell’s] kids up there onstage with us in some degree. … I would love to include all those kiddos in this environment, in whatever way they feel comfortable.”

After Cornell’s tragic death, the surviving members of Soundgarden were embroiled in a protracted and very public legal battle with the singer’s widow, Vicky Cornell, who sued them over seven unreleased recordings and filed another lawsuit claiming they had undervalued her share of the band. But those disputes ended in 2023, and as Cameron looks ahead to the Rock Hall ceremony with the Cornell family in attendance, he expects it to be a cordial affair. “I certainly hope so,” he says optimistically. “We’re open to everyone coming together and hopefully putting all that stuff behind us, and carrying on with positive force for the future.”

And those future plans, now that the above-mentioned lawsuit has been resolved, include the long-awaited, long-delayed release of the group’s as-yet-untitled final album, which Cameron says will be “a really nice way to finish the creative chapter in Soundgarden.”

Cornell, Cameron, guitarist Kim Thayil, and bassist Ben Shepherd began writing this album, “trading demos back and forth,” around 2015, and had recorded some sessions — “just rough rehearsals” — in early 2017, right before Soundgarden embarked on their ill-fated final tour. (Cornell was found dead in his hotel room on May 18, 2017, after Soundgarden’s gig at Detroit’s Fox Theater).

“The vocals that we’re using are from the demos that we all recorded together, and we’re just sort of building our tracks around those vocal parts,” reveals Cameron. While it has been understandably difficult and emotional working on the record, which is now “about 70 percent finished” and is “on no strict timeline” but will hopefully come out in 2026, he says, “We’re trying to stay focused on the overall sound of it, and all the reasons for us doing it. It has been tough to solo up that voice and hear it loud and clear, but I think the fans will like it. … Kim is working on his parts feverishly, and he really wants to make sure his guitar parts are exactly the way he wants them to be. That’s where it’s at right now, but we’ve got a big portion of it completed, so it’s just a matter of putting those finishing touches on it and mixing it. … It sounds killer. It’s been a really amazing and bittersweet process.”

One new track that Cameron is particularly excited about is “The Road Less Traveled,” which he co-penned with Cornell. “I wrote this music that I didn’t really know if it would fit for Soundgarden, but I just sent Chris all these musical ideas around 2016 or so, and that’s one that he really liked,” he recalls. “He made an arrangement from my demo, and then he added vocals to it, and it came out really, really good. The lyrics are mesmerizing, as always. That’s going to be a really great one for people to hear. It has all the trademark elements that Soundgarden fans might be familiar with, as well as a little bit of new territory. And there’s two or three other songs [on the new album] that do sound like the band, but I think we were able to stretch out a little bit creatively, and hopefully when people hear that song, they’ll notice that as well. I guess it’s hard rock. It’s sort of bluesy, sort of psychedelic, sort of folky — all the things that we were known for. I hope people like that one when they finally do hear it.”

Cameron doesn’t expect that “The Road Less Traveled” or any of the new album’s tracks will be debuted at the Rock Hall induction ceremony, and he doubts that the band will ever tour the album, since that would be pretty much impossible to properly pull off without Cornell. But as for who will sing in Cornell’s place at the Hall ceremony, there’s certainly an abundance of artists who’d volunteer for the job. For instance, at Los Angeles’s epic, all-star, five-hour, 42-song “I Am the Highway” Cornell tribute concert, which took place in January 2019, everyone from Metallica, the Melvins, and Foo Fighters, to Chris Stapleton and Brandi Carlile, to Taylor Momsen, Adam Levine, and Miley Cyrus, took part —  demonstrating Soundgarden’s vast appeal. “That concert really was a nice reminder of Chris’s influence with a lot of different genres,” Cameron remembers fondly.

Cameron says Soundgarden have “everything wrapped up” when it comes to the band’s Rock Hall ceremony setlist and guest stars, although he’s been ordered to keep the details under wraps for now. He does reveal that original bassist Hiro Yamamoto, who co-founded Soundgarden in 1984 and left the band in 1989, will participate, which he says “will be a nice addition; he had a really strong connection with Chris.” He also says they’ll keep the setlist “Soundgarden-centric” — that is, no songs from the Pearl Jam/Soundgarden supergroup Temple of the Dog, of which Cameron was a member, although he jokes about becoming a three-time Hall inductee if Temple ever make it in.

As for who will induct Soundgarden, some of the band’s first choices, like Ann Wilson (whose Seattle band Heart were inducted into the Hall by Cornell in 2013), Tony Iommi, Jimmy Page, and Trent Reznor, are unable to make it due to tour commitments or inability to travel. But it will be a special night no matter who does the honors. Soundgarden have only played together a few times since Cornell’s death — at the 2019 “I Am the Highway” tribute concert, in 2021 with Brandi Carlile, at 2022’s Taylor Hawkins tribute, and at a December 2024 benefit fronted by Seattle jazz diva Shaina Shepherd (no relation to Ben) under the anagrammatic name Nudedragons. “We haven’t really gotten together that much, other than finishing the last Soundgarden album,” says Cameron. “No real live performances.”

While the two other members of Seattle’s 1990s grunge holy trinity, Pearl Jam and Nirvana, were respectively inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame on their first nominations and actually in their first years of eligibility, it took three times for Soundgarden, who’d been eligible since 2012, to get in —  despite the fact that they arguably bridged the worlds of heavy metal and college/indie rock more effectively than any of their peers. And while there was a time when the band members might not have cared about this accolade, it is truly vindicating and meaningful now.

“In the early days, it probably didn’t really matter to [Cornell] or us much. But we got nominated for a Grammy in 1989 for our Ultramega OK record, and it was really nice just to get recognition from the industry in any way, shape, or form. I always personally felt like it was a nice acknowledgement for what we were doing,” says Cameron. “In terms of what Chris might’ve liked, I think as he got older, he really was open to acceptance by the music industry, by different established entities like the Hall of Fame or the Grammys. I personally think he would’ve been extremely proud to have seen this [Hall induction] occur.

“It’s  just so mind-blowing,” Cameon muses. “To think that this little band that started in a living room or a basement somewhere, playing local clubs, could morph into this phenomenon that had a reach outside of its own scene.”

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Watch Matt Cameron’s full interview in the video above, which originally ran on Gold Derby, in which he also discusses what he really thinks of the term “grunge,” how touring with metal bands like Guns N’ Roses and Skid Row divided some early Soundgarden fans, and  who he’d like to see get in the Rock Hall next.

The Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Class of 2024 inductees were announced Sunday night on American Idol by judge (and Class of 2022 inductee) Lionel Richie, a promotional stunt that likely irked some rock snobs. Some rock purists might have even been less than thrilled that artists like this year’s Cher, A Tribe Called Quest, Mary J. Blige, or Kool & the Gang — or even Richie himself — are in the Hall, because these acts are supposedly not “rock ‘n’ roll.”

But Richie, while chatting at Monday’s American Idol top 10 reveal afterparty in Hollywood, made it clear that there’s room in the Rock Hall for all sorts of popular music.

“Let me tell you how I feel about that. I think we’ve grown,” said Richie. “Because if you want to talk about ‘rock’ — rock came from the blues, OK? So, they finally figured out that soul is not a color. Soul is a feeling. And right now, I think we’re finally getting it right, when you can celebrate all people who have touched the world through music. And I think even though we still use the words ‘rock ‘n’ roll,’ it now means something a lot broader, in terms of accepting the whole gambit of what music is all about.

“It started with the blues,” Richie continued. “Check out the chords, and then we go from there. And then, from those Chuck Berry chords and the Slim Harpo chords and the Muddy Waters chords, they started putting a little fuzz guitar on it — and they called that ‘rock ‘n’ roll.’ Come on. Give me a break!”

As for Cher — whose Hall induction announcement got the biggest response from Sunday’s Idol studio audience, according to Richie — Richie said, “Let me just give that shout-out to her, because she’s still pop culture. She is still happening. With lot of people, you bring them back and you’re like, ‘Oh, that’s who they are. I remember them.’ But she is still as current today. And so, when you see her standing on a Grammy stage, or on any stage, she just belongs there. She’s still transcending time.”

Along with Cher, Richie revealed that the other Class of 2024 inductee he’s most personally excited about are his funk/soul peers, Kool & the Gang. “We started out together. I mean, these are the originals. These are the guys,” he grinned. “They were actually in the business before the Commodores, two years before we [started]. So, I’m really happy about that. I think that just from that ground floor of my existence, we all kind of got there.”

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The nominations for the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame’s Class of 2024 have been announced, and it’s certainly an interesting mix, spanning decades and genres, with 10 of the 15 shortlisted artists — pop/soul diva Mariah Carey, multi-hyphenate goddess Cher, AOR rockers Foreigner, guitar great Peter Frampton, jazz/funk combo Kool & the Gang, crossover rock ‘n’ soul star Lenny Kravitz, Britpop bros Oasis, Irish singer-songwriter Sinéad O’Connor, prince of darkness Ozzy Osbourne, and sophisti-pop chanteuse Sade — being first-time nominees. (Yes, you read that correctly: Incredibly, none of those legends have ever been on the ballot before.) The remaining, previously nominated contenders are alternative rap trio A Tribe Called Quest, queen of hip-hop soul Mary J. Blige, jam-band fan faves Dave Matthews Band, golden-age hip-hop duo Eric B & Rakim, and college-rock trailblazers Jane’s Addiction.

I am a bit surprised, even disappointed, that several of last year’s passed-over nominees — namely the two I voted for, Cyndi Lauper and Joy Division/New Order, along with Warren Zevon and 2023’s most straight-up-rockin’ options, Iron Maiden, Soundgarden, and the White Stripes — aren’t in the running at all this year. And don’t even get me started about the fact that the New York Dolls, who’ve been nominated three times since 2001 and should be the next logical glam-rock inductees after 2019’s Roxy Music and 2020’s T. Rex, didn’t get a nom. (I’m hoping they’ll eventually slip in via the “Early Influence” category, like the illogically long-snubbed Kraftwerk did.) Or that the never-nominated Monkees got snubbed again. Or that Buzzcocks will realistically never get in, despite pretty much inventing pop/punk. Etc., etc., etc.

Putting such gripes aside, 2024’s crop is solid, and a convincing case could be made for really any of them. According to my sources, industry voters will get to check seven boxes on the ballot this year, instead of the usual five, but even with those two extra votes, my decision-making process will be tough.

However, after much deliberation, I think I’ve whittled it down to my final lucky seven. They’re listed below, along with my (totally subjective and sometimes sentimental) reasons and — just for fun! — my own “nominations” for who should induct each artist. Scroll down, and don’t @ me.

Sinéad O’Connor – This one’s a no-brainer, but honestly, my brain boils over the fact that O’Connor was never nominated during her lifetime. For most of her career, she was misunderstood, shat upon, canceled before “being canceled” was even a thing. When she died last year, many of the celebrity tributes raged against an industry that, as Morrissey worded it, “stayed safely silent” and didn’t have “the guts to support her when she was alive.” O’Connor, who became an indie darling at age 20 with The Lion and the Cobra and an unlikely MTV pop star in 1990 thanks to her stunning cover of Prince’s “Nothing Compares 2 U,” was simply one of the most singular voices of her generation, paving the way for strong (and at times divisive) women of the ’90s like Liz Phair, Courtney Love, Tori Amos, and Alanis Morissette. Thankfully, the acclaimed 2022 documentary Nothing Compares allowed O’Connor to experience a new wave of support and appreciation while she was still here. But there’s little doubt that her too-little, too-late induction would be the Class of ’24 ceremony’s most tear-jerking and bittersweet moment.

Potential inductor: Cabaret artist Amanda Palmer, who posted an instantly viral essay on her Facebook page the day O’Connor died, would likely deliver an eloquent speech. So would Bono or Shirley Manson. But I suggest Kris Kristofferson, who had O’Connor’s back when she was nearly booed off the Madison Square Garden stage at Bob Dylan’s 30th anniversary concert two weeks after her Pope-photo SNL scandal. Like Sinéad, Kristofferson was on the right side of history then — and he could help make history in Cleveland this year.

Cher – Cher is 2024’s equivalent of beloved Class of 2022 queen Dolly Parton. There’s no one who doesn’t love Cher (or at least, anyone who doesn’t love her can’t be trusted and can’t be my friend). And there’s nothing she can’t do, from winning Oscars, to dueting with Beavis & Butt-head, to having her own delicious gelato, to being the only artist in Billboard history to chart a No. 1 single in each of the past seven decades. It’s bonkers that Cher has never been up for Hall consideration before (and yes, all you rockist snobs out there, she is a rock star, as her ‘80s power ballads and Spectorian early work with ex-husband Sonny Bono readily prove). It’s understandable that she’s miffed over being snubbed for so many years — so miffed, in fact, that she recently claimed she wouldn’t even accept a Hall nomination, not for “a million dollars.” But hopefully she’ll show up when she’s inevitably inducted, because we all know she’d deliver the most epic speech of the night (while hopefully looking like a million dollars in head-to-toe vintage Bob Mackie couture).

Potential inductor: Cher’s equally eccentric tourmate Cyndi Lauper would be entertaining (and it might help get Lauper back on the Hall ballot for 2025), as would Cher’s Burlesque co-star Christina Aguilera. But I nominate Cher’s fellow fashionista/quadruple-threat Lady Gaga for the job. Maybe they could even finally perform their unreleased Pride song duet, “The Greatest Thing.” That’d be the greatest!

Peter Frampton – This here’s another no-brainer. Frampton is a former child prodigy whose career has spanned (and despite many setbacks, survived) seven decades. He’s a bona fide guitar god who went from ‘60s mod-pop with teen idols to the Herd; to blues-rock with supergroup Humble Pie; to stadium superstardom when Frampton Comes Alive! set a record in 1976 as the then-best-selling album in chart history; to dependable journeyman playing for the likes of David Bowie, George Harrison, Ringo Starr, Bill Wyman, and Harry Nilsson. And it seems like he’s just going to keep on playing, even though he announced his farewell tour five years ago after being diagnosed with a rare degenerative muscular disease called inclusion body myositis. The window for ‘60s acts to get into the Rock Hall (which is already shifting from the 1980s to focus on ‘90s artists) is almost shut now, too — so, let’s give Frampton his flowers now, while he can still totally shred at the Cleveland ceremony’s all-star finale jam.

Potential inductor: David Bowie would’ve been the best choice here, but obviously that can’t happen. So — while I realize that the 1978 box-office bomb Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band, which starred Frampton and the Bee Gees and nearly destroyed both artists’ careers in one fell swoop, might be the reason that some crotchety, grudge-holding Hall members won’t vote for Frampton — I’m unreasonably obsessed with that cult movie musical. Therefore, I say let’s have Frampton’s big-screen co-star Barry Gibb do the honors here… preferably while wearing a satin Pepper jacket.

Ozzy Osbourne – Ozzy is already in the Hall as a member of pioneering sludge-rockers Black Sabbath, but he deserves to be a double-inductee. He’s arguably even more famous for his solo catalog (which comprises 44 years of his overall career), and he is a true survivor (like Frampton) and an unlikely crossover pop-culture icon who (like Cher) is adored by all. And with all of his health issues that are cutting his career, at least as a touring artist, tragically short, it’s time to give him his flowers now as well.

Potential inductor: This might seem like an odd choice, but hear me out. I nominate superfan Post Malone. The cross-generational 2019 Post/Ozzy duet “Take What You Want” was Osbourne’s first top 10 single in 30 years, and it led to Ozzy working with Malone producer Andrew Watt on his all-star comeback album Ordinary Man. Two of the collaborators on that LP, Hall inductees Chad Smith (of the Red Hot Chili Peppers) and Duff McKagan (of Guns N’ Roses), would also be good choices.

Jane’s Addiction – Rock Hall inductees Nirvana get most of the credit for pounding the grungy nail in hair metal’s Spandex-lined coffin, but it was this band of artsy L.A. street urchins that started the first wave of that sea change. By artfully mixing heavy metal thunder, jam-band jungle boogie, and piñata-smashing punk-funk into a cacophony of (Tijuana) biblical proportions, Jane’s orchestrated a seismic shift beneath the Sunset Strip’s asphalt — becoming the unlikely hottest draw in the ’80s Hollywood scene. Their studio debut, Nothing’s Shocking, was a druggy death-rock masterwork that influenced the Seattle scene too. But they never got the props that Nirvana or their above-mentioned Los Angeles peers RHCP and GNR did, because they imploded shorty after 1990′s Ritual de lo Habitual made them MTV darlings. However, frontman Perry Farrell’s masterminding of the game-changing alt-rock Lollapalooza festival tour alone makes his band induction-worthy.

Potential inductor: Jane’s contemporary and occasional Jane’s member Flea would kill this induction speech. And Flea needs to stay for the ceremony-closing jam as well.

Mariah Carey – OK, this will probably be my most controversial pick. But I refuse to entertain any rockist arguments that Mariah is, well, “not rock.” That ship sailed long ago. I fully accept that the Rock Hall has expanded its definition of the admittedly generic term, and if Madonna, Janet Jackson, Donna Summer, and especially Carey’s multi-octave diva peer Whitney Houston can all be in the Hall, then there’s absolutely no reason why Mariah does not qualify. She is one of the all-time finest vocalists (right up there with Whitney, Aretha, and Celine) and biggest hitmakers, and she’s co-written much her material, including the top-selling holiday song in RIAA history, the 14-times-platinum perennial “All I Want for Christmas Is You.” She overcame a traumatic childhood and mental health struggles to become one of the top pop stars of her generation (or any generation), and she orchestrated one of the greatest comebacks in music history after that Glitter fiasco, something Frampton couldn’t even pull off after Sgt. Pepper. (Side note: Glitter really wasn’t all that bad.) And for those of you looking for a “rock”-oriented reason to induct Carey, her cover of Def Leppard’s “Bringin’ on the Heartbreak” is pretty sweet. Plus, she keeps hinting that her secret/shelved 1995 alt-rock album, Someone’s Ugly Daughter, might finally get an official release, and timing that with the Hall ceremony would be a genius marketing move.

Potential inductor: Any number of young divas influenced by Mimi would do, including Adele or logical successor Ariana Grande. But since an adorably awestruck Miley Cyrus devoted much of her first-ever Grammy acceptance speech this month to praising her iconic presenter, the other “MC,” let’s keep that MC-squared lovefest going and have Miley do the honors here.

Oasis – If I’m being totally honest, I should probably grant this final spot to the long-overlooked A Tribe Called Quest, who’ve become a sentimental favorite since the death of member Phife Dawg. But for admittedly selfish reasons, I am going with Oasis, even if I think they peaked too early and it was all downhill after Definitely Maybe and (What’s the Story) Morning Glory?. Why? Well, first of all, there’s no Britpop representation in the often-xenophobic Rock Hall — and while I’d love to see Blur, Suede, or Pulp get the glory, that definitely, not maybe, won’t happen. (Blur frontman Damon Albarn’s “side-project,” Gorillaz, has a better shot at an eventual induction, really.) Second, this might be the only way to bring about a Gallagher brothers reunion. And finally, I am here for all the drama, especially since the Hall of Fame ceremony is now live-streamed. I almost want Liam to just ghost the ceremony and end up heckling Noel from the peanut-gallery balcony, MTV Unplugged-in-1996-style. I’m sure Oasis would make the Fame telecast producers’ lives hell — but they’d no doubt make for popcorn-passing good TV.

Potential inductor: Let’s just have the Gallaghers induct each other and turn their stage time into an expletive-filled roast. Bring it on.

The Class of 2024 ceremony will once again stream live (this year from Cleveland) on Disney+ this fall; inductees will be announced in late April. In the meantime, fans can cast their own ballots at vote.rockhall.com.