Back in the summer of 2024, I took an impromptu roadtrip across the U.S. and back. It was a coast to coast adventure, beginning in Southern California, and going as far as Asbury Park, New Jersey. Over the course of 8,000 miles and 2 months on the road, I experienced lots of spontaneity kept my itinerary pretty open. That said, I did plan one stop that I knew I had to do, since I was passing through Cleveland, Ohio, and that was to visit the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame museum. This is going to be a photo-heavy entry, because there was lots to look at while I was there, as you can imagine. I did narrow down my photo selection for this entry, though, only including my favorites.
I wore my 2016 Marillion tour shirt to this trip. Walking in the door of the main entrance, the first thing you see is the Hot Dog stage prop the band Phish rode on over the audience on New Year’s Eve 1994. I know certain friends of mine will appreciate this image. I was able to get a closer look at it while riding the escalator later in the day.
I visited all 6 levels of the museum, but I’ll only cover the highlights. The first stand-out for me were the various displays for artists like the Rolling Stones, Jimi Hendrix, and, my personal favorite, Bruce Springsteen. I was excited to see some of the real instruments and clothing worn by Bruce and members of the E Street Band, including the black jacket and Clarence Clemmons’ saxophone featured on the cover of Born to Run.
I had a few other Bruce-related experiences on this road trip. One was driving up to Asbury Park, NJ from Philadelphia to visit the boardwalk and see where Bruce got started. The second, best of all, was a last-minute chance to see Bruce and the E Street Band in Pittsburgh when I was beginning to make my way back towards the west coast.
Moving on, I covered all of the areas that were dedicated to the pioneers of rock and roll, the British invasion, the musical importance of Cleveland and the Midwest, and the lasting impact of soul and R&B artists. I sat in one of the small theater rooms that was showing highlights from the Soul Train series. This section of the museum included some clothing and stage props the belonged to Michael Jackson, as one would expect.
The prog and Pink Floyd fan in me was excited to find, on Level 4, a huge replica of my all-time favorite album, The Wall. The replica was set up to look like that of the 1990 performance in Berlin, a performance I admittedly have mixed thoughts on. It was a smaller tribute to the album than I was hoping for, but I’m still happy that it’s getting its own designated spot in the museum. I looked it up just now on the museum website and it’s still there!
The last thing I saw during my day there was the wall of inductees, featuring plaques dedicated to each artist or band that had been inducted over the years. I recognized many names, but I took note of a few in particular that got a smile out of me.
And the last thing I did before heading out, was take a leap of faith and respond to this touchscreen prompt. Knowing how famously overlooked prog has been by the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, I wanted to offer up another band that I think more than deserves a place. I have a feeling the odds aren’t great, but I can dream, right?
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