Every Rock & Roll Hall of Fame inductee, ranked

• I considered the Rock Hall's criteria of originality, impact and influence.

Yes, but: This is just one person's list, so please be delicate in your reactions and criticism.

The pioneers

1. Chuck Berry

2. Elvis Presley

3. Little Richard

Why they matter: You can debate who invented rock 'n' roll, but Berry and Richard are a great place to start.

• Elvis didn't invent much, but he was rock 'n' roll's biggest star. He elevated it to the kind of pop culture phenomenon a museum can be built around.

The G.O.A.T.s

4. The Beatles

5. Bob Dylan

6. James Brown

You could make the case these are the three most impactful music artists of the past 75 years in terms of influence and body of work.

The icons

7. The Rolling Stones

8. Stevie Wonder

9. Aretha Franklin

10. Ray Charles

11. The Jimi Hendrix Experience

12. Led Zeppelin

13. Buddy Holly and the Crickets

14. Fats Domino

15. The Beach Boys

16. Muddy Waters

17. Prince

18. Michael Jackson

19. Madonna

20. Bruce Springsteen

21. Bob Marley

22. The Velvet Underground

23. Miles Davis

24. Bo Diddley

25. The Who

26. Sam Cooke

27. Marvin Gaye

28. Johnny Cash

29. David Bowie

30. Janis Joplin

31. Ramones

32. Pink Floyd

33. Joni Mitchell

34. John Lennon

35. U2

36. Neil Young

37. Nirvana

38. The Supremes

39. Elton John

40. The Byrds

Each of these artists were inducted either during their first year of eligibility or close to it. Their impact on music is immeasurable.

No brainers

41. R.E.M.

42. The Clash

43. The Kinks

44. Otis Redding

45. Smokey Robinson and the Miracles

46. Sly and The Family Stone

47. The Everly Brothers

48. The Stooges

49. The Doors

50. The Temptations

51. Black Sabbath

52. Run-DMC

53. Ike and Tina Turner

54. Queen

55. Parliament-Funkadelic

56. Public Enemy

57. Talking Heads

58. Roy Orbison

59. Jerry Lee Lewis

60. Fleetwood Mac

61. Tina Turner

62. Paul McCartney

63. Jay-Z

64. Radiohead

65. The Grateful Dead

66. Eagles

67. Aerosmith

68. B.B. King

69. Janet Jackson

70. Simon & Garfunkel

71. Van Morrison

72. Curtis Mayfield

73. Etta James

74. Sex Pistols

75. Eminem

76. The Band

77. Cream

78. The Drifters

79. Nina Simone

80. Frank Zappa

81. Ruth Brown

82. The Yardbirds

83. Jackie Wilson

84. Van Halen

85. The Four Tops

86. Eric Clapton

87. Al Green

88. Tupac Shakur

89. Metallica

90. Lou Reed

91. Beastie Boys

92. The Allman Brothers Band

93. AC/DC

94. Patti Smith

95. The Shirelles

96. Carl Perkins

97. The Isley Brothers

98. Bill Haley & His Comets

99. The Bee Gees

100. Crosby, Stills and Nash

The best of the rest

101. Pearl Jam

102. Creedence Clearwater Revival

103. Nine Inch Nails

104. The Police

105. The Cure

106. Guns N' Roses

107. N.W.A.

108. Elvis Costello & the Attractions

109. Eddie Cochran

110. Big Joe Turner

111. Donna Summer

112. Paul Simon

113. The Notorious B.I.G.

114. Rod Stewart

115. Jefferson Airplane

116. Booker T. and the M.G.'s

117. Lynyrd Skynyrd

118. Steely Dan

119. Deep Purple

120. The Jackson 5

121. Billy Joel

122. Tom Waits

123. Kate Bush

124. Leonard Cohen

125. Roxy Music

126. Grandmaster Flash & the Furious Five

127. Ricky Nelson

128. T. Rex

129. Carole King

130. Earth, Wind & Fire

Reality check: As much as we want to argue about the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, most artists deserve to be there.

Solid choices

131. Whitney Houston

132. Santana

133. Martha and the Vandellas

134. Blondie

135. The Go-Go's

136. John Lee Hooker

137. Missy Elliott

138. The Platters

139. Cheap Trick

140. Jimmy Reed

141. Genesis

142. Joan Baez

143. Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers

144. Mary J. Blige

145. Outkast

146. The Pretenders

147. The Impressions

148. The Ronettes

149. Depeche Mode

150. John Mellencamp

151. The Cars

152. Peter Gabriel

153. ZZ Top

154. Eurythmics

155. Bob Seger

156. George Michael

157. Cyndi Lauper

Sure, why not?

158. Randy Newman

159. Willie Nelson

160. Little Willie John

161. Yes

162. Linda Ronstadt

163. Hall & Oates

164. Albert King

165. A Tribe Called Quest

166. The White Stripes

167. James Taylor

168. Alice Cooper

169. Green Day

170. Isaac Hayes

171. Jackson Browne

172. Wilson Pickett

173. The Animals

174. Sam & Dave

175. Gladys Knight and the Pips

176. Stevie Ray Vaughan & Double Trouble

177. Dolly Parton

178. Joe Cocker

179. LaVern Baker

180. Dusty Springfield

181. Rage Against the Machine

182. Soundgarden

183. Foo Fighters

184. Heart

185. Todd Rundgren

186. Duane Eddy

187. Solomon Burke

188. The Mamas and the Papas

189. Buddy Guy

190. Neil Diamond

191. The O'Jays

192. Bonnie Raitt

193. Jimmy Cliff

194. Faces/Small Faces

195. Gene Vincent and the Blue Caps

196. Joan Jett and the Blackhearts

197. The Staple Singers

198. Duran Duran

199. Bobby Womack

200. The Spinners

None of these selections wowed me, but I would never lose sleep over their induction.

Love 'em or hate 'em

201. ABBA

202. Rush

203. Journey

204. Def Leppard

205. KISS

206. Red Hot Chili Peppers

You won't find too many acts with more intense love/hate relationships with music fans.

• They could be lower or higher on this list depending on which side you fall on. I tend to think their cultural significance outweighs any career missteps.

Boring but okay

207. Carly Simon

208. The Four Seasons

209. Lloyd Price

210. Kool & the Gang

211. Cat Stevens

212. The Righteous Brothers

213. Peter Frampton

214. The Moody Blues

215. The Flamingos

216. The Zombies

217. Bad Company

218. The Dave Clark Five

Not everyone is the Beatles. Even acts with great careers worthy of the Rock Hall can be somewhat mundane.

Borderline at best

219. The Ventures

220. Bobby "Blue" Bland

221. Laura Nyro

222. Brenda Lee

223. Chubby Checker

224. The Hollies

225. Donovan

226. Pat Benatar

227. Bill Withers

228. The Coasters

229. Darlene Love

230. Dr. John

231. Gene Pitney

232. Dion

233. Little Anthony & the Imperials

234. The Dells

235. Bobby Darin

236. The Paul Butterfield Blues Band

What makes these artists worthier than the long list of snubs you see around the Internet?

There's no good answer to that.

• Every artist in the Rock Hall has done something great, but there are levels to consider when choosing who to induct.

WTF

237. Dave Matthews Band

238. Cher

239. Lionel Richie

240. Sherly Crow

These are the artists I've struggled with in recent years. They're all well-known cultural figures and have strong industry connections, but I can't say their musical output has been earth-shattering.

• I mean, can you name a Cher album?

Short resumes

241. Hank Ballard and the Midnighters

242. Buffalo Springfield

243. Frankie Lymon and the Teenagers

244. Ritchie Valens

245. The Moonglows

246. Del Shannon

247. Percy Sledge

Longevity isn't mandatory for Rock Hall induction (See: Nirvana or the Sex Pistols) but these artists' respective careers were either too short or produced too few notable songs to justify their induction.

Third tier bands

248. Dire Straits

249. Traffic

250. The (Young) Rascals

251. The Doobie Brothers

252. Lovin' Spoonful

253. Electric Light Orchestra

254. Steve Miller Band

255. Chicago

256. Foreigner

The Rock Hall's worst habit is its willingness to induct second or third-tier bands from the 1970s and 1980s rather than top-level acts from the 1990s.

• Older music fans will say, "you had to be there," but I don't wish I was.

One too many times

257. Clyde McPhatter

258. George Harrison

259. Ozzy Osbourne

260. Stevie Nicks

261. Jeff Beck

As of this year, 27 artists have been inducted into the Rock Hall more than once. These are the ones whose solo careers weren't extraordinary enough outside of their core bands to warrant induction.

And then there's…

262. Bon Jovi

Someone must be last. Bon Jovi has a massive fanbase but ultimately didn't change the course of music in any significant way.

Yes, but: At least this means there's hope for Nickelback.