Did Presley estate keep Nelson out of inaugural class of Rock and Roll Hall of Fame?

First, the news: Matthew Nelson told me the Elvis Presley estate persuaded the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame not to induct his dad, Ricky Nelson, during the hall's 1986 inauguration, out of an old "frienemy" rivalry.

"I was there with him (in 1985) when they announced the first inductees into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame," Nelson said.

"He took it in stride. He went, 'OK,'" Nelson recalled. "The man sold 285 million singles in his life. He was in the all-time top five selling recording artists at the time.

"I found out later the reason why he wasn't inducted the first year is because the Elvis estate insisted he wasn't inducted the first year, and said, 'If you induct Ricky Nelson with Elvis, we're not going to give you any memorabilia or mention his name.'"

As you can imagine, the Elvis estate denied this in an email to me on Monday:

"Elvis Presley Enterprises (EPE) was never in a position to influence any decision ever made by the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, has never been involved in Hall of Fame voting and would never block anyone. Ricky Nelson was a friend of Elvis' and EPE is proud to have had, and continues to have, a warm and friendly relationship with his children over many years, at one time representing the Nelson estate for licensing."

Ricky Nelson was inducted into the Hall of Fame the second year, but he didn't live to see it, because he died in a plane crash at age 45 on Dec. 31, 1985.

Matthew Nelson said his dad and Elvis were frenemies ("they loved each other"), because his dad was the only guy who gave Elvis a run for his money in the 1950s and early '60s.

Who told Nelson this Hall of Fame claim?

"I can't say. Let's just say it was somebody very much on the inside," he said. "By the way, I love those people. I really consider our family very friendly with the Presleys. He was, and always will be, the king of rock and roll. I'm a huge Elvis fan."

This Friday through Sunday, Nelson and his twin brother, Gunnar, will return to the South Point hotel to perform a rockabilly trio version of their shows called "Ricky Nelson Remembered" ($25-$35).

Ricky Nelson's hit songs included "Hello Mary Lou," "Traveling Man," "Poor Little Fool," "Lonesome Town" and "Garden Party," featuring the lyric, "You can't please everyone, so you got to please yourself."

In 1990, the Nelson brothers became MTV stars with their debut hits "(Can't Live Without) Your Love and Affection," "After the Rain," "More than Ever" and "Only Time Will Tell."

This was during the death throes of the hair metal era, so the brothers faced "Beavis & Butt-Head" pop culture jokes for displaying long, clean, pretty blond hair.

One year after the brothers found fame, Nirvana's "Smells Like Teen Spirit" sparked a revolution of dirty haired, punk-influenced grunge music — largely diminishing the superstardom of hair metal (Guns N' Roses et al.), and the drug overdoser who slept with children (Michael Jackson).

Nelson was a self-described "hard pop" group, and they, too, were swept away by "Teen Spirit."

"We were the biggest band in the country for a while, and a year later, we were the poster children for a bygone era," Nelson, 48, said.

"By the way," he said, "I'm a Nirvana fan. I love Dave Grohl. I think he's the greatest thing since Paul McCartney."

As for the Nelson brothers' visual style? Before fame, they started with a blase look. Then at a tour party overseas, a "very stylish" woman said to Matthew, "I'm just going to hip you to something" and informed him they looked like "rock bland."

So the brothers donned crazy colorful costume outfits, with Harlequin Romance-esque blond manes.

"We said, 'There's no guarantee whatsoever that anyone's going to pay any attention to us, so let's make a counter-statement with our clothes.' And we sure did," Nelson said knowingly.

For years now, the Nelson brothers have returned to their pre-fame roots as '70s-influenced country-rockers, sort of folkies with amps. Their "Christmas with the Nelsons" album comes out Dec. 4.

How did the brothers forge ahead for so long?

"There have been a lot of dark times, there have been a lot of amazing times, and at the end of the day, I play music because I have to. It's what I do. It's who I am," Nelson said.

"We take our music seriously, but we don't take ourselves and the whole thing too seriously," he said. "My dad said, 'Keep your sense of humor. You're going to need it.'"

And they hold onto confidence.

"(John) Lennon said, 'When we went out there, we were the best (expletive) band in the world.' You've gotta have that attitude, or you're never going to go anywhere.

"When we're onstage, we are fierce. There is nobody in the world that does what we do the way we do it."

Doug Elfman can be reached at delfman@reviewjournal.com. He blogs at reviewjournal.com/elfman. On Twitter: @VegasAnonymous