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THE 2013 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony premieres on August 17 on cable television in the Caribbean through HBO Latin America, that company announced last week. According to a statement from HBO, viewers will be given “front-row seats to one of the year’s hottest events” which took pace in April at the 7 000-seat Nokia Theatre in Los Angeles.

Eight persons were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame during its 28th ceremony.

They are influential blues guitarist Albert King, singer/songwriter Randy Newman, disco diva Donna Summer, rap pioneers Public Enemy, Canadian rock band Rush and American rock group Heart.

Quincy Jones and Lou Adler, two of the music  industry’s greatest producers, were also inducted.
An all-star cast that included John Mayer, Jennifer Hudson, Kelly Rowlad, Dave Grohl and Taylor Hawkins of Foo Fighters, Don Henley and Usher, performed in tribute to the inductees.

Albert King and Randy Newman have indirect ties to reggae music. The Arkansas-born King inspired some of the leading guitars in rock music including Jimi Hendrix, Eric Clapton and Stevie

He had similar impact on Al Anderson and Donald Kinsey, the African-American guitarists who played in Bob Marley and Peter Tosh’s bands during the 1970s and 1980s. Kinsey, who is from Gary, Indiana, started his music career as a teenager in King’s band.

Maryland-born Newman is not a household name in Jamaica, but Baltimore, one of many songs he wrote, has been recorded by greats including jazz stylist Nina Simone and reggae group The Tamlins.

Recorded in 1979, The Tamlins’ reggae version, produced by Sly and Robbie, has become a Jamaican classic.
Two Jamaicans (Bob Marley and Jimmy Cliff) are members of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Marley was inducted in 1994 while Cliff was recognised in 2010. — Jamaican Observer.