Renowned bassist Carol Kaye has announced she will decline her upcoming induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. The 90-year-old musician cited long-standing objections to the use of the term “Wrecking Crew” to describe the group of studio players she worked with during the 1960s.
In a Facebook post this week, Kaye wrote, “People have been asking: NO I won’t be there. I am declining the RRHOF awards show (and Denny Tedesco process).” Tedesco directed the 2008 documentary The Wrecking Crew, which brought renewed attention to the group of session musicians. Kaye made it clear she views the nickname as demeaning. “I was never a ‘wrecker’ at all. That’s a terrible insulting name,” she added.
Kaye’s decision means she will be inducted in absentia at the Hall of Fame ceremony this fall. The institution has made clear in past cases — such as Dolly Parton’s initial attempt to refuse induction in 2022 — that it will honor artists regardless of their personal acceptance.
Her stance comes as no surprise to followers of her social media. When her induction was first announced in April, Kaye expressed mixed feelings. She thanked supporters but emphasized that “Studio Musicians” was the only appropriate name for the collective. She rejected the label coined by drummer Hal Blaine, whom she has criticized in the past. At the time, she also mentioned health concerns, saying, “Am not feeling up to much.”
Kaye further explained that she objects to being singled out apart from the larger group. “You are always part of a TEAM, not a solo artist at all,” she wrote. She noted that hundreds of studio musicians worked together in the 1960s, and she felt the honor misrepresented their contributions.
This is not the first time Kaye has pushed back against portrayals she finds disrespectful. In 2020, she criticized The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel for introducing a character that many believed was based on her. “I am not a cartoon — and my life is not a joke,” she said in an interview with The New York Post. “Nobody contacted me. I thought that was pretty bad — kind of like slander.”
Despite such disputes, Kaye remains one of the most celebrated studio musicians in history. She played on countless hits, including the Beach Boys’ Pet Sounds and songs like “Good Vibrations” and “California Girls.” Her bass lines can also be heard on tracks by Frank Sinatra, Simon & Garfunkel, Elvis Presley, Ray Charles, and many more. Kaye contributed to TV themes like Mission Impossible, Hawaii Five-O, and The Brady Bunch.
In her recent message, Kaye reflected on how she became a bassist. Originally a jazz guitarist, she said she took up bass by chance in 1963 during a recording session. “I never played bass in my life but… it was easy for me to invent good bass lines,” she wrote, explaining that her jazz background made her well-suited to the role.
Kaye’s legacy as a pioneering woman in a male-dominated field remains secure, whether or not she stands on the Rock Hall stage.
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