Father of rock 'n' roll booted from HOF

Peter Gabriel performed with Chris Martin of Coldplay. The Boss thanked his bandmates. A tribute recalled groundbreaking Nirvana. April's Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremony in Brooklyn was taped and is airing on HBO on May 31. The hall, shown here, is in Cleveland.

Nirvana kicked off the grunge revolution with its second studio album, "Nevermind," in 1991. Lead singer Kurt Cobain, center, died 20 years ago. At the induction, Dave Grohl (left) and Krist Novoselic performed "Smells Like Teen Spirit" and "All Apologies" with guest singers Joan Jett, Kim Gordon and Lorde. In her speech, Cobain's mother said her son would have been proud to be honored that night. "He'd say he wasn't, but he would be."

Kiss used makeup to take its stage persona to another level. The group built its fan base over 40 years of constant touring and was rewarded with such hit singles as "Rock and Roll All Nite," "Beth" and "Hard Luck Woman."

Yusuf Islam, formerly known as Cat Stevens, was one of the leading singer-songwriters of the 1970s. Among his best-known songs are "Moonshadow," "Peace Train," "Wild World" and "Oh Very Young."

Daryl Hall, left, and John Oates started as a soul-and-rock duo in the mid-1970s with hits such as "Sara Smile" and "She's Gone." (Incidentally, Hall thought Oates' initial drafts of "She's Gone" "reminded me of a Cat Stevens song.") Hall & Oates became one of the biggest acts of the 1980s with songs such as "Kiss on My List," "I Can't Go for That (No Can Do)" and "Out of Touch."

Linda Ronstadt's powerful, wide-ranging voice made her interpretations of other artists' songs -- "You're No Good," "Poor, Poor Pitiful Me" and "It's So Easy" -- some of the biggest hits of the 1970s.

Peter Gabriel left Genesis, a band he co-founded, in 1975. In his solo career, he's been a force for both political action -- his song "Biko" was about a South African activist -- and humanitarian causes. Commercially, his song "Sledgehammer" remains the most-played video on MTV almost 30 years after its debut.

The legendary E Street Band (L-R: Clarence Clemons, Bruce Springsteen, Garry Tallent, Danny Federici, Max Weinberg, Steven Van Zandt and Roy Bittan, in 1981) were inducted into the Rock Hall in the category for musical excellence. At the ceremony, held in New York last month, Springsteen accepted the honor, saying, "I thank you my beautiful men and women of E Street. You made me dream and love bigger than I could have ever without you. And tonight I stand here with just one regret: that (the late) Danny (Federici) and Clarence (Clemons) couldn't be with us here."

• An urn with Freed's ashes is moved from its spot at the Cleveland museum Friday


• His son says the museum is "disrespectful" to his father's legacy as a rock 'n' roll pioneer


• "We are conscious of his important role and will continue to honor him," hall director says


• Ashes are being removed just days after the museum opens a Beyonce exhibit

(CNN) -- Alan Freed, the DJ credited with coining the term "rock 'n' roll," will be physically removed from the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame on Monday.

An urn with Freed's ashes was taken from its spot at the Cleveland museum on Friday, and Freed's son will pick up his father's remains Monday, according to Executive Director Greg Harris.

Lance Freed told CNN that the museum was being "disrespectful" to his father's legacy as a pioneer of rock 'n' roll, but Harris said Freed will continue to be "very prominent" in the hall.

Harris disputed the Freed family's description of the removal as an eviction, but according to the son, it is not a voluntary removal.

The urn containing Alan Freed's ashes.

Freed's ashes are being ousted just days after the museum opened a Beyonce exhibit featuring the singer's costumes, including the black leotards worn in her 2008 "Single Ladies" video.

Freed started playing R&B records on his Cleveland radio show in 1951, a time when stations that targeted white listeners ignored black artists. He called it "rock 'n' roll." His "Moondog Coronation Ball" at the Cleveland Arena in March 1956 is considered the first major rock concert.

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Freed put Cleveland on the music map and rock 'n' roll on the radio. His connection to the city was a major reason the northeastern Ohio city was chosen as the home for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, both his son and Harris said.

Freed was initially interred in New York, the city where he died at 43 in 1965. His family moved his remains to Cleveland years later and then to the museum 12 years ago, Lance Freed said.

"I thought this was the last move, but then I got this call to move him," Freed said. "He said, 'You've got to come pick him up.' "

It was not a rushed or unilateral decision, Harris said.

"The museum world is moving away from exhibiting remains" since ashes don't help tell a story, he said. "Museum community colleagues across the country agree."

Lance Freed said he believed his father's exhibit is being downsized and moved to another area of the museum, but Harris said it is not being changed beyond removal of the gold urn. Harris suggested that Freed's son might feel better about the move after he visits the museum Monday morning.

"We are conscious of his important role and will continue to honor him," Harris said. The museum's radio studio is named for him, and there "are many touch points" in the hall that relate to Freed, he said.

Freed's role in breaking down racial barriers in U.S. pop culture in the 1950s, by leading white and black kids to listen to the same music, made put the radio personality "at the vanguard" and made him "a really important figure," Harris said.

Harris defended the ouster of Freed's ashes coming at the same time that Beyonce's leotards are welcomed into the hall of fame. "Rock and roll isn't just about yesterday," he said. "It continues to evolve, and we continue to embrace it and refine our operations."

The Freed family will spend the next several weeks deciding where in Cleveland to take the urn, his son said.

They want to "create some sort of modest memorial where people who want to pay respect, or reflect," can visit, he said.

"I'm a little bit emotional right now, because this is the third time I'm moving my dad," he said. "But hopefully it will be the last."

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