Mon, 02 Nov 2009 5:11p.m.
New Yorkers have been treated to a rock'n'roll concert like no other. It was the 25th anniversary of the Rock'N'Roll Hall Of Fame, and had the line-up of a lifetime.
The two-day birthday bash at Madison Square Garden had Bruce Springsteen, Billy Joel, Stevie Wonder, Sting, U2, Mick Jagger, Jerry Lee Lewis, Crosby, Stills & Nash and Bonnie Raitt on hand to celebrate the Hall's 25th anniversary.
"It's an organisation that has elevated the history of this music," says Raitt - who was inducted in 2000.
The hall's US$100 million Cleveland home has become a cultural temple, and sometimes a controversial one.
The Hall Of Fame, which now includes a New York annex, has inducted 234 artists over its 25 years, but some prominent performers are still waiting for their invitations.
Despite some 40 Top 40 hits, Neil Diamond is not in the hall.
"I think the songs and the music and the records over the years have earned me that," says Diamond of the snub.
Van Morrison was voted in, but skipped his induction ceremony.
"Basically, I think its got very little to do with rock'n'roll," he says.
Maybe it's hypocritical, but rock, which preaches rebellion against institutions, has become one itself.
Jann Wenner, publisher of Rolling Stone magazine, is co-founder of the Hall of Fame.
"You have to think of everything else that's institutionalised, you know, Picasso or Rembrandt or Robert Frost - every art, and as rebellious as they were, becomes part of the mainstream."
And most artists embrace the honour.
"I don't put my gold records on the wall or that kind of thing," says David Crosby, "but there is something else involved here, which is the respect of your peers."
Rock no longer dominates the radio or music sales, which may make it harder to choose future inductees.
"It's not going to be as obvious," says Wenner. "You know, obviously, you're never going to replicate Bob Dylan, the Stones or Chuck Berry or Elvis."
At the garden, the night belonged to rock's all-stars, who unlike sports Hall Of Famers, wanted to show they can still play.
CBS / 3 News