It's only rock and roll...

...but I like it--a whole lot. A few photos and reflections from today's immersive experience at the remarkable Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland.

I spent the day with Bridgett at the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland.

Consider that my “tardy note” for this week’s Inside Edge.

Also, after a rather emotionally draining week¹ where I can’t muster the time or energy to unwrap those weightier things, I see the Hall of Fame visit as a prime opportunity to share a few photos with only a few more words.

Just what the doctor ordered for a late Saturday night, right?

The nearly 30-year-old building is an architectural delight. In front is a display declaring “Long Live Rock,” so this photo captures only the last word.

Let’s begin with the end: our gift shop excursion at day’s end netted these goodies: a coffee mug, socks and a keychain that Bridgett will convert into a Christmas ornament.

Entering the gift shop is one of the myriad mentions of this year’s class of inductees. Of the 16, the only one I saw in concert was the late, great Jimmy Buffett.

We arrived at 10 a.m. sharp and left at 5 p.m., closing time. We could’ve spent days there. So much to look at, to listen to, and to learn. There are QR codes throughout that take you to even more information online.

If I go again, I could spend all seven hours hunkering down with the one-hit wonders. Not exaggerating—they are organized alphabetically and by decade.

Instead, I devoted maybe 10 minutes to this plunge down trivia rabbit holes with the likes of Sniff `N’ the Tears’ “Driver’s Seat,” Rick Dees and His Cast of Idiots’ “Disco Duck (Part 1), and King Harvest’s “Dancin’ in the Moonlight.”

Among my favorite songs are Spiral Starecase’s “More Today Than Yesterday” (above) and The Looking Glass’s “Brandy” (below) so I snapped photos of their moments of fame.

On the top floor is a special exhibit featuring Bon Jovi and marking the group’s 40 years of stardom. As I’ve chronicled before, with “My Bon Jovi Moment,” I attended the Chicago leg of his “Slippery When Wet” tour in 1987, so this was a mandatory photo.

My shirt reads “Try a Little Tenderness.” I purchased it at the Otis Redding Museum in Macon, Georgia. Redding is a most deserving member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

Of the many other nooks and crannies throughout², there are two exhibits that I couldn’t just let be: retrospectives on The Rolling Stones and The Beatles.

Staggering to think the Stones have been together for over 60 years and that “Start Me Up” came out over 40 years ago. As Mick Jagger sang, “If you start me up, I’ll never stop.”

Indeed.

The tribute to The Beatles, right next to The Rolling Stones, included documentaries on all of their albums.

At the last millisecond, I managed to capture this image from the last video. To get a fading shot that captures their last album, “Let It Be,” is quite the artistic touch, yes? Or, more likely, a sign that I need to snap photos a tad faster.

This all just scratches the surface. Some three hours after closing time, I’m still grappling with sensory overload.

Before today, I already knew music was an integral part of my life. But after having seen hundreds of artists from across genres and generations, I have a new appreciation that I’ve actually got little clue about just how profound a role music’s played in my life.

Long live rock!

1. Foremost: my brother Phil’s return home after 16 days in the hospital. Also: attending an emotionally charged book launch event for Our Nazi: An American Suburb’s Encounter with Evil, a book by Michael Soffer about a high school custodian in Oak Park who was a Nazi camp guard.

Both of these recent experiences may well be topics that I write about, just not so soon.

2. There’s a great “50 Years of Hip Hop” section and a big Elvis Presley area and an endless lineup of so many influential musicians I’ve never heard of before and…and…you get the gist. You truly could spend days at this music mecca.