The Rock & Roll Hall of Fame: The Outrageous, Definitive, & Untold History

Summary

The Indiana Jones of rock history recounts the wild creation of the Rock Hall and his quest to build its collection from scratch—from Ozzy’s manor to Keith Moon’s childhood bedroom to Garfunkel’s archives—featuring Dylan, Springsteen, Jagger, Debbie Harry, Chuck Berry, and more.

Craig Inciardi was a rising star at Sotheby’s, collecting iconic rock memorabilia and mingling with music’s elite, when he was recruited by the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame to travel the world and build the greatest collection of rock artifacts ever. The catch? There was no museum—just a “guitar of no importance and three interesting sheets of paper.”

So began an epic journey, with Inciardi cast as rock history’s Indiana Jones. Told with wit and reverence, his story is a backstage pass to the wild birth of rock’s most iconic institution.

Working out of Rolling Stone’s New York office under the eye of Jann Wenner, Inciardi chased down musicians and managers.

His travels took him to the homes and vaults of legends to score:

• Treasures from Ozzy Osbourne’s English estate (Ozzy greeted him with a rifle)

• Pete Townshend’s acoustic guitar, used to write “Pinball Wizard”

• Otis Redding’s black leather coat, worn before his fatal plane crash

• Patti Smith’s duct-taped leather boots and scrapbooks

• John Lennon’s glasses, kept by Yoko Ono since the day he was murdered

And that’s only a fraction of the rock relic quests on offer.

Equally compelling is Inciardi’s front-row view of the Hall’s early years—from the first all-star jam session to backroom battles over who would be inducted, and who wouldn’t.