In a recent interview with The Seth Williams Show, TESLA bassist Brian Wheat was asked for his opinion of the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame. He responded (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET):  ”Listen, I think it’s a bit of a popularity contest. I saw that THE BLACK CROWES are [nominated this year].”If THE BLACK CROWES are gonna be put in the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame, then perhaps TESLA should be considered for it purely for the fact of the [TESLA 1990 live album] ‘Five Man Acoustical Jam’.”How it’s been told to me is that if you do something that is kind of influential or creates a movement or whatever — okay. Well, I mean, BLACK CROWES were… And I don’t wanna really talk about THE BLACK CROWES, because Blabbermouth will get on this and then [THE BLACK CROWES singer] Chris Robinson thinks I’m…”I love THE BLACK CROWES. I’ve loved THE BLACK CROWES since day one, and I’m glad they’re being considered.”Referencing the fact that BAD COMPANY is also nominated for the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame this year, Brian said: “My question with BAD COMPANY is, why so long? Why have they waited so long? BAD COMPANY should have been in there before a lot of bands.”I don’t trip on this Rock And Roll Hall [Of Fame],” he continued. “Pretty soon it’s not gonna mean shit, because everyone’s gonna be in the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame… But I mean, just in general, it’s, like, who isn’t in the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame? There’s gonna be more people in the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame than aren’t in the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame. [They’ll] have to come up with a new one.”When co-host Chris Akin noted that “Five Man Acoustical Jam” “created that whole unplugged movement, which was a a legitimate movement,” Wheat said: “Well, it was, but I wanna go on record and just say that we did not invent that. The thing that we did was we had the first successful acoustic live album — before Rod Stewart, before Eric Clapton, before NIRVANA. And that’s what we did do — that was our contribution. So based on that contribution, do I think that merits us going in the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame? I don’t know. I mean, you can make that argument for a lot of artists that are in the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame. Did what they do merit them to be in the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame? I don’t know.”Listen, if they called and they wanted to put us in there, would I turn it down? No. No,” he continued. “But am I gonna be heartbroken if TESLA never gets in the fucking Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame? Absolutely not. What matters most to me is that 40 years later, people are still paying their hard-earned dollars to come and see us play by the thousands. And that, to me — you can keep all the fucking awards; that’s the one that I’m most proud of, is that when I look out there and I see 2,500 people, wherever we go in America to play, singing our songs, and there’s three generations of people…”I don’t need to be put in the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame, I don’t need a Grammy, I don’t need any of that shit to validate what TESLA has done or does,” Brian added.”Listen, I can’t get caught up in that shit. I mean, I ain’t gonna lose any sleep over it. It’s, like, ‘Okay, cool.’ I was happy to see Chris and Rich [Robinson of THE BLACK CROWES] get nominated. And I was happy to see them recognize Chris Cornell for SOUNDGARDEN, ’cause I think Chris Cornell was a great singer and a true artist. I didn’t really pay too much attention to who else was there except BAD COMPANY. And I was, like, ‘It’s about time.'”To me, that first BAD COMPANY record was as classic and influential as ‘Van Halen I’ was, to me. They were both equally as… I mean, you had the ‘Bad Company I’ record, just like you had ‘Led Zeppelin I’, just like you had ‘Van Halen I’. And you had THE BLACK CROWES’ first record. And a lot of people have TESLA’s first album [1986’s ‘Mechanical Resonance’], which they consider to be a classic first album. And listen, I’m not gonna say that it wasn’t. I’m proud of that fucking record. It is a good first record. I look at a lot of bands’ first records that are in the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame, and their first records aren’t very fucking good.”Asked if TESLA’s hypothetical Rock Hall induction would see original guitarist Tommy Skeoch reunite with his former bandmates for a performance at the event, Brian said: “Absolutely. So [would] Troy [Luccketta, original TESLA drummer]. So [would current TESLA guitarist] Dave Rude. Absolutely. If that were ever to happen, it would not be right. But Tommy would definitely be there. And so would Dave Rude. You would see TESLA with three guitar players… Yes, if that ever were to happen, the whole original band would play and so would Dave Rude. So there’d be six of us up there.”Released last November, TESLA’s latest six-song EP, “All About Love”, includes four versions of the title track (acoustic, electric, hybrid, live); a live version of “Walk Away”, a concert favorite from “Reel To Real, Vol. 1”; and another new song, “From The Heart”, an instrumental track by guitarist Frank Hannon.Some fans criticized TESLA for adopting a 1980s-style polished production for its latest album, 2019’s “Shock”. The follow-up to June 2014’s “Simplicity” was helmed by DEF LEPPARD guitarist Phil Collen, whose own group is no stranger to slicked-up, glossy-sounding recordings.In September 2023, TESLA released the official music video for its cover of AEROSMITH’s “S.O.S. (Too Bad)”. The song is a bonus track on TESLA’s live album, “Full Throttle Live!”, which arrived in May 2023. The LP includes the band’s “Time To Rock!” single, plus other songs, all recorded in August 2022 at Full Throttle Saloon in Sturgis, South Dakota.In September 2021, original TESLA drummer Troy Luccketta announced that he would “take a little time from the road” to spend with family and friends. He has since been replaced at TESLA’s gigs and in the recording studio by Steve Brown, the younger brother of former DOKKEN drummer Mick Brown.TESLA’s debut album, 1986’s “Mechanical Resonance”, went platinum on the strength of the hits “Modern Day Cowboy” and “Little Suzi”. The 1989 follow-up album, “The Great Radio Controversy”, produced five hits, including “Heaven’s Trail (No Way Out)” and “Love Song”, which hit the pop Top Ten.[embedded content]