Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Opens Archives to the Public

Cyndi Lauper watches a video about Wanda Jackson during the Women Who Rock exhibit opening at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum.

Jamie Sabau/Getty Images for Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum

The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum in Cleveland, Ohio has opened its library and archives to the public, granting scholars and fans alike access to items including personal letters penned by Madonna and Aretha Franklin and rare concert footage of the Rolling Stones on tour in the early Eighties.

The museum's collection, which includes over 3,500 books, 1,400 audio recordings and 270 videos, is housed in a new four-story, $12 million building located on the Cuyahoga Community College campus in Cleveland, not far from the Rock Hall. The building was funded by the college, and the institution will shares its archives with the college's Center for Creative Arts.

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Song Stories

“Let My Love Open the Door”

Pete Townshend | 1980

A peppy, hopeful love song, "Let My Love Open the Door" became a U. S. Top Ten hit for Pete Townshend in 1980, anchored by the kind of repeating synthesizer figures that he'd used in some of the Who's recordings in the previous decade. Although Townshend brushed the song off as "just a ditty" in Rolling Stone shortly after its release, in 1996 he revealed it was about love of the holiest sort. "It's supposed to be about the power of God's love," he remarked. "That when you're in difficulty, whether it's major or minor, God's love is always there for you."

More Song Stories entries »

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