Boomer Takes A Nostalgic Trip Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame Enshrines Music Of Teryear In Evocative Images And Displays

The heart of rock ‘n’ roll is in Cleveland. And apparently, it beats loudest, and wildest, for boomers.

The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum was built for me … and you, too, if you happen to belong to the demographic bulge known as the baby boom generation.

It doesn’t matter if you’ve hardly been to a concert in your life. It doesn’t matter if ‘60s psychedelia passed you by. We boomers grew up with this music; it’s imprinted on our psyches. That’s why the images and music that surround you at the hall are so evocative.

They’re enough to make a person a little giddy, and a little in awe, too. As my friend from high school (class of ‘72) whispered as we wandered down one exhibit-filled hallway after another: “This is our generation.” It was - to use a description we’ve uttered way too many times in our lives - too cool.

So we made our way past Supremes costumes, Dylan posters, various multimedia displays. There was Janis Joplin on a TV screen, talking about being a nobody in her Texas town and how, as a success, she was going back to visit - perhaps in her psychedelic Porsche, which was also on display. There were lyrics hand-written by John Lennon, written pretty much as we’ve heard them countless times.

Boomers, like anyone, will have their little disappointments with the hall. I had expected more on the Beatles as a group, but mostly I found it exhilarating, spending two hours-plus immersed in nostalgia.

When we made our way up the curved, dim staircase to the Hall of Fame itself, the dark quiet surprised us. But we also found it to be an appropriate tribute to this musical genre. How any times have we sat in a darkened room, listening to rock ‘n’ roll? It was fitting because rock has its dark side. And because, way up on the top floor, you expect light but you don’t always get what you want - or expect - in rock ‘n’ roll.

Too cool. , DataTimes MEMO: Kathryn DeLong, 41, is a boomer - and proud of it. She admits to getting misty-eyed watching TV’s tribute to the Beatles last November.

This sidebar appeared with the story: IF YOU GO Ticket prices: $12.95 for adults, $9.50 for seniors 55 and over and youth 4 to 11. Children under 4 are free. Hours: Open 10 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. every day of the week except Wednesday, when hours are 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. For more information: call the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum at (216) 781-7625 or the Cleveland Convention and Visitors Bureau at (800) 321-1004.