The 5 greatest Rock & Roll Hall of Fame induction classes, ranked
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Rock Hall inductees (from left): Chuck Berry, Debbie Harry, Bob Dylan and Janis Joplin. Photos: David Redfern; Brian Cooke; Robert Cumming; Keith Morris via Getty Images
There are no bad Rock & Roll Hall of Fame induction classes — only great, greater and greatest.
Driving the news: In honor of the National Day of Rock 'n' Roll on Tuesday, we're counting down the five greatest classes over the 40 years of inductions.
How it works: We avoided overstuffed classes (like 1987 with 20-plus inductees) and classes that featured a glaring weakness (like 1989 — Sorry, Dion fans).
The result is a top five that's all killer, no filler:
1. 1988
Inductees: The Beach Boys, the Beatles, Bob Dylan, the Drifters, the Supremes.
- Side categories: Lead Belly, Les Paul, Woody Guthrie, Berry Gordy Jr.
The Beatles and Dylan would make this a top-five class, but what puts it over the top are the side category honorees.
- Lead Belly, Paul and Guthrie are the definition of musical influence, while Gordy's Motown Records produced more than a dozen future Rock Hall inductees.
2. 1986
Inductees: Buddy Holly, Chuck Berry, Elvis Presley, The Everly Brothers, Fats Domino, James Brown, Jerry Lee Lewis, Little Richard, Ray Charles, Sam Cooke.
- Side categories: Jimmie Rodgers, Jimmy Yancey, Robert Johnson, Alan Freed, John Hammond, Sam Phillips.
How can the inaugural class, featuring rock's greatest pioneers, not be No. 1?
- Sixteen inductees and NOT ONE woman, a shortcoming the Rock Hall has dealt with for decades.
3. 1995
Inductees: Al Green, the Allman Brothers Band, Frank Zappa, Janis Joplin, Led Zeppelin, Martha and the Vandellas, Neil Young.
- Side categories: The Orioles, Paul Ackerman.
The six main inductees are all slam dunks, a rarity for a Rock Hall class.
- Ackerman, one of rock 'n' roll's early journalists, and the Orioles, who pioneered doo-wop, are the cherries on top.
4. 2006
Inductees: Black Sabbath, Blondie, Miles Davis, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Sex Pistols.
- Side categories: Herb Alpert, Jerry Moss.
2006 featured a diverse mix of artists who played integral parts in the evolution of their respective genres.
- The addition of A&M Records founders Alpert and Moss was an amazing bonus.
5. 1993
Inductees: Cream, Creedence Clearwater Revival, The Doors, Etta James, Frankie Lymon and the Teenagers, Ruth Brown, Sly and the Family Stone, Van Morrison.
- Side categories: Dinah Washington, Dick Clark, Milt Gabler.
This is an incredible mix of groundbreaking bands and some of the greatest vocalists of all time.
- It was also the first induction class to feature four women (including two members of Sly and the Family Stone) as inductees.