A new addition to Cuyahoga Community College’s Metropolitan Campus will be open to the public as of tomorrow. As part of a series of events leading up to the the Rock Hall inductions at Public Auditorium on April 14, the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum’s Library and Archives will officially be dedicated in a ceremony on April 9. But as of Tuesday, January 17, the public is welcome to visit the unique repository.
Jim Henke, the Rock Hall’s vice president of exhibitions and curatorial affairs, says of the facility, “It really extends our depth in terms of telling the story and the history of rock ‘n’ roll.”
“This takes it to another level, a level that’s deeper than what we have at the museum,” he said. “Our hope is that as people visit the museum, they’ll be inspired to come to the library and archives, too.”
The research center is a haven for any history and music buff. Row after row of shelves are lined with books about everyone from the Beatles to Jimi Hendrix to Elvis Presley. Andy Leach, director of the facility, says, “When it comes to, say, the Beatles, I wouldn’t be surprised if our collection is the deepest among all public libraries in the country.”
A proud claim, and Leach follows it up with an even loftier goal, “We’re going to be the leading research center for anything related to American popular music, with rock ‘n’ roll as the focus.”
Apart from traditional books, songbooks, dissertations and scores of music periodicals can be found at the library. Audio-visual resources can be accessed at several computer terminals. Items cannot be checked out, but patrons are more than welcome to browse through them in the main reading room of the facility, with its large windows and inviting air. Visitors will need a Rock Hall library card in order to make full use of the repository. The card can be availed at the library free of charge.
The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum Library and Archives is located at 2809 Woodland Ave in Cleveland (in Tri-C’s Center for Creative Arts.)
