Music

Nirvana's other drummer is being inducted into the Hall of Fame

by Tyler Munro

Updated: It looks like Channing spoke too soon. According to Radio.com, he won’t be inducted next month, and apparently Nirvana’s management received a text that said “Can you tell whoever looks after Chad Channing that he isn’t being inducted… It is just Dave, Krist and Kurt.”

Yikes.

Chad Channing, Right

Chad Channing doesn’t get nearly enough credit. Granted, when future cool-dad Dave Grohl took over midway through Nirvana’s Nevermind sessions, he became a big part of the band’s quick catapult to success, but it’s easy to forget that Channing, their previous drummer, had a big hand in their early triumphs.

Not only did he play on Bleach, the band’s Sub Pop debut—some would argue it’s their best album—but his good buddy (and brief Nirvana guitarist Jason Everman) is the one who fronted the bill to record it. And while he quit before work on Nevermind really took form, Grohl played many of Channing’s original parts on the album. So, while his is a name casual Nirvana fans might not know, word the he’ll be inducted with the band into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame comes with a certain point of pride for die hards.

Of course this couldn’t happen without pissing someone off, and in an odd twist, it’s KISS fans who aren’t pleased. They don’t think it’s fair for Channing to be inducted when long-time drummer Eric Carr won’t be—The Hall of Fame is instead inducting the band’s original line-up of Gene Simmons, Paul Stanley, Ace Frehley and Peter Criss.

With Nirvana, that line is a little blurrier. They cycled through three drummers before landing on Channing; his inclusion is less about legacy than it is sincerity. While Eric Carr was technically in the band longer than Criss, casual observers likely aren’t familiar with his work. And while they similarly might not know Channing, his impact on Nirvana’s early years cannot be understated. Eric Carr fell into an established band in 1980; Chad Channing helped establish one until 1990.

The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremony happens on April 10th at Brooklyn’s Barclays Center. Channing expects to be there, though naturally doesn’t expect to perform.

As for what Channing’s up to now, he’s currently playing bass in the band Before Cars.

[via SPIN]