YEAR
2023
INDUCTED BY
Various Artists
CATEGORY
Musical Excellence
Composer, multi-instrumentalist, singer, arranger, and producer Al Kooper may not be a household name, but with tens of millions of albums and records sold and career highlights that feature some of the biggest names in rock & roll, his influence on American rock music is undeniable.
HALL OF FAME
ESSAY
By RJ Smith
“I wasn’t bound to a style,” Al Kooper has said. He was talking about his guitar playing but just as easily could have been talking about the totality of Al Kooper, songwriter, musician, singer, producer, band director. “If anything, I was known for being in the right place at the right time and playing the right thing.” Kooper has been at the heart of rock & roll’s time/space continuum for much of its history.
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