Rock Hall Calls Police, Clash, Costello

Here's a message in a bottle for rock fans: The Police, along with fellow seminal British acts the Clash and Elvis Costello and the Attractions, lead the list of nominees for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame's class of 2003.

The Cleveland-based music shrine unveiled its ballot of 15 acts vying for rock immortality. Aside from the aforementioned trio of first-timers, other notables up for enshrinement include punk legends the Sex Pistols, Swedish dancing queens ABBA, German electronic music pioneers Kraftwerk, former Traffic piano man Steve Winwood, the soul vocal duo the Righteous Brothers (of "Unchained Melody" fame), disco chart-toppers Chic ("Le Freak") and, yet again, Ozzy Osbourne and Black Sabbath.

Nominees are typically selected by a 70-member committee of so-called rock 'n' roll experts made up of journalists, record-label execs and music historians. To qualify, artists must have released their first recording at least 25 years prior to the induction year--meaning this year's acts debuted in 1978 or earlier.

Among the eligible acts failing to make the ballot: Alice Cooper, KISS, Lou Reed, Bob Seger and Iggy Pop's Stooges.

The inductees will be winnowed down by 1,000 music-industry types. A maximum of seven of the 15 nominees can be chosen for the Hall of Fame, and the lucky few are inducted in a traditional ceremony/all-star jam session held in New York City.

Last year's class consisted of the Ramones, Talking Heads and Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, Isaac Hayes, Brenda Lee, Gene Pitney and Chet Atkins.

The closest things to a lock this year are the Police, the Clash and Costello.

The Police formed in the late '70s, during Britain's New Wave era and included frontman-bassist Sting, guitarist Andy Summers and drummer Stewart Copeland. Drawing on reggae, pop and punk influences, the band crafted a unique sound, showcased in hits like their break-out single "Roxanne," as well as "So Lonely," "Don't Stand So Close to Me," "Message in a Bottle" and "Invisible Sun." Their 1983 album Synchronicity made them one of the most popular bands in the world and spawned the classics "King of Pain" and the ubiquitous "Every Breath You Take." The trio disbanded two years later.

Considered Britain's preeminent punk outfit, the Clash were led by singer-songwriters-ne'er-do-wells Joe Strummer and Mick Jones. The band got started opening for the Sex Pistols in 1976, and fancied themselves the ultimate political rebels, infusing such anthems as "London Calling" and "White Riot" with a leftist ideology that ultimately brought passion and protest back into rock 'n' roll. They peaked in the U.S. with their top 10 hit "Rock the Casbah" and, after internal feuding and several lineup changes, broke up in 1986.

One of the best songwriters of his generation, Costello has collaborated with the likes of Paul McCartney, Burt Bacharach and the Brodsky Quartet. Backed by the Attractions, Costello racked up several U.K. hits ("Alison," "Watching the Detectives," "Oliver's Army"), before going solo. In 1987, he scored his biggest American hit with "Veronica." His 2002 release, When I Was Cruel, has been hailed by critics as one of his strongest albums in years.

Other groups might face a tougher road to Cleveland.

ABBA, the Swedish pop group that dominated the airwaves and the dance floor in the late '70s and early '80s with such tunes as "Dancing Queen," "Take a Chance on Me," "Waterloo" and "Knowing Me, Knowing You," has sold more than 350 million albums worldwide. Their tunes even inspired the hit Broadway musical Mamma Mia! But critics tend to dismiss the music as lightweight.

Meanwhile, Osbourne's Sabbath finds itself on the ballot one more time, despite being snubbed five times previously and Ozzy demanding the '70s metal gods be pulled from consideration because the honor was not voted on by fans. Maybe this could be Ozzy's year, however, considering the newfound fame his MTV reality show has brought him.

For the Sex Pistols, this will be the second chance for enshrinement. The punksters, led by Johnny Rotten and the late Sid Vicious, were best known for little ditties like "Anarchy in the U.K." and "God Save the Queen."

Aside from the Sex Pistols and Sabbath, other holdovers from previous ballots include Southern-fried rockers Lynyrd Skynyrd ("Free Bird"), Aussie headbangers AC/DC ("Highway to Hell") and the U.S. protopunk band the Patti Smith Group ("Because the Night"). Other first-time nominees include revolutionary Detroit rockers MC5 and doo-wop legends the Dells.

Inductees will be announced in December with the 2003 class set for induction in the spring.