For 25 years, the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame has defined Cleveland’s image as the “Rock and Roll Capital of the World.” But while the Rock Hall has become an iconic landmark for the city of Cleveland and for fans of rock and roll around the world, it was just one missed phone call away from never being built in Cleveland. If the prominent singer and actress Lesley Gore hadn’t contacted radio personality Norm N. Nite in August 1983, the Hall of Fame would not be in Cleveland—period.

Nite immediately joined the project’s Rules and Nominating Committee and spearheaded the campaign to bring the museum to Cleveland. He began lobbying local and state politicians, fundraising with music moguls and civic leaders, and promoting the museum to the broader Cleveland public. As fans got involved, especially with their overwhelming response to a USA Today phone poll, Nite’s campaign to bring the Hall to Cleveland was ultimately successful.

This book, told from Nite’s insider perspective, draws on both first-person accounts and exclusive interviews with influential business leaders, government officials, and giants of the music industry. A detailed record of the Rock Hall’s inception and creation, The House That Rock Built becomes a true tribute to the people who made it happen—through Herculean efforts—and to the music it celebrates.

The book is published by The Kent State University Press. The audiobook is published by University Press Audiobooks.

"Nite has remained the unsung hero of the Rock and Roll Hall of fame for the last quarter-century." (Rolling Stone)

"Norm N. Nite was there at the very, very beginning...We are lucky to have his very special history of this unique institution." (Jann Wenner, Editor and Founder, Rolling Stone)

“This informative and entertaining read will likely become the definitive volume on this important cultural center’s formation.” (Library Journal)