Carol Kaye, one of the most accomplished bassists in rock and pop music, has turned down an invitation to the upcoming Rock & Roll Hall of Fame ceremony.
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In a now-deleted Facebook post, Kaye, who was set to receive the Musical Excellence Award, explained why she declined the invitation.
“People have been asking: NO I won’t be there,” the 90-year-old wrote in her post, according to Rolling Stone.
“I am declining the rrhof awards show (and denny tedesco process)…..turning it down because it wasn’t something that reflects the work that Studio Musicians do and did in the golden era of the 1960s Recording Hits,” she added.
In the 1960s and 1970s, Kaye was a member of the Wrecking Crew, a Los Angeles-based group that frequently worked with artists like the Beach Boys, Phil Spector, and Glen Campbell.
Happy birthday to Carol Kaye, born on this day in 1935 in Everett, Washington. Here she is discussing the origin of her bass line for "The Beat Goes On" in the 2008 documentary “The Wrecking Crew!” https://t.co/qCN8doChnX
— Dust-to-Digital (@dusttodigital) March 24, 2021
In her post, she made it clear that she was always part of a “team” and never a “solo artist.” She also shared her criticism of the group’s name.
“I was never a ‘wrecker’ at all….that’s a terrible insulting name.”
Despite Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Honor, Carol Kaye Recalls Falling Into Playing Bass
“Just so you know, as a working Jazz musician (soloing jazz guitar work) in the 1950s working since 1949, I was accidentally asked to record records by producer Bumps Blackwell in 1957, got into recording good music, w/Sam Cooke, other artists and then accidentally placed on Fender Precision Bass mid 1963 when someone didn’t show,” Kaye recalled in the post, per Rolling Stone.
“I never played bass in my life, but being an experienced recording guitarist, it was plain to see that 3 bass players hired to play ‘dum-de-dum’ on record dates, wasn’t getting it,” she added. “It was easy for me to invent good bass lines… as a Jazz musician, you invent every note you play… and they used a lot of Jazz musicians (and former big-band experienced musicians on all those rock and pop dates too).”
Kaye concluded with: “I refuse to be part of a process that is something else rather than what I believe in, for others’ benefit and not reflecting on the truth – we all enjoyed working with EACH OTHER.”
Although Kaye won’t be present, she will still receive the award alongside Thom Bell and Nicky Hopkins.
The 2025 Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Induction airs live Nov. 8 from the Peacock Theater in Los Angeles, streaming on Disney+. A special on the inductees will stream on Hulu the next day and later on ABC.