The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame will get a dose of classic heavy metal, pioneering punk, and Southern rock in its class of 2006.

In unveiling its 2006 inductees today, the Hall picked an eclectic mix of bands that helped define their respective genres, including heavy metal forefathers Black Sabbath, the punk band Sex Pistols, and Southern rock legends Lynyrd Skynyrd.

The 2006 class of inductees also includes jazz legend Miles Davis, who blurred the lines between jazz, funk, and rock with several albums in the 1970s, and 1980s New Wave rockers Blondie.

Famed jazz trumpeter Herb Alpert, known for his work in the 1960s with the Tijuana Brass, will be inducted along with Jerry Moss, his partner at A&M Records, in recognition of their label's success in discovering and recording acts in the 1980s.

Regarded as the most influential heavy metal band of all time, Black Sabbath formed in Birmingham, England in 1968, releasing a string of hard rock albums that delved into subjects like black magic and the occult. Front man Ozzy Osbourne went on to a successful solo career in the 1980s, and the band reformed in the late 1990s to headline Osbourne's popular Ozzfest concert series.

Although they only lasted about two years in the late 1970s and released only one studio album, the Sex Pistols defined the punk rock genre. The band's Never Mind The Bollocks, Here's the Sex Pistols is considered one of the most important rock records ever released, vaulting the British punk movement to a wider audience.

Lynyrd Skynyrd songs like "Free Bird" and "Sweet Home Alabama" have been staples on classic rock radio for years, and their country-tinged, guitar-driven sound came to define the Southern rock genre. The band broke up after the 1977 death of lead singer Ronnie VanZant in a plane crash, but they reformed in the 1990s.

All three bands had been rejected several times by Hall voters in previoius years. A short list of nominees is sent to an international body of about 700 "rock experts," according to organizers, and they vote for a handful of contenders.

Black Sabbath and Lynyrd Skynyrd were each rejected on seven previous occasions, and the Sex Pistols were rejected four times. U2 made the cut last year on its first attempt.

"It's about time," Black Sabbath drummer Bill Ward told Reuters, adding that he had long ago given up on getting inducted.

"What bothered me was not necessarily that Black Sabbath was being passed over but that hard rock and heavy metal was being passed over ... Bands that created heavy metal music or brought it into the foreground ought to have gone into the hall of fame some time ago, quite honestly."

Fronted by Debbie Harry, Blondie's eclectic rock flirted with a wide range of styles but found mainstream success with hits like "Heart of Glass," "Call Me," and "Rapture."

Davis' induction is in recognition of one of his many experimental phases, this one coming in the mid-1970s that found him venturing into funk and rock with albums like Agharta, Pangaea, and Tribute to Jack Johnson.

As the founders of A&M records in 1962, Alpert and Moss signed such artists as the Police, Supertramp, Peter Frampton, and the Neville Brothers.

Artists are eligible for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame 25 years after the release of their first album. The 2005 class featured Buddy Guy, the Pretenders, U2, the O'Jays, and Percy Sledge.

The induction ceremony will be held March 13 in New York.