Madonna's career has spanned three decades

John Mellencamp, The Ventures, Leonard Cohen and The Dave Clark Five, will also be honoured at the 23rd annual induction ceremony in New York.

The nominees are chosen by a committee and are whittled down to a final list of five by more than 600 music experts.

Rock and Roll Hall of Fame president Joel Peresman said: "From poetry to pop, these five acts demonstrate the rich diversity of rock and roll."

He added: "The 2008 inductees are trailblazers - all unique and influential in their genres."

Acts only become eligible to be considered for the honour 25 years after their first recording.

Madonna will be inducted by pop star Justin Timberlake and Iggy & The Stooges will perform on her behalf.

Bittersweet

The star signed her first US record deal in 1982, and scored her first hit with Holiday in the UK two years later.

The 49-year-old has constantly altered her image and embraced different musical styles.

For British band The Dave Clark Five the event will be bittersweet, following the death of lead singer Mike Smith, 64, last month from pneumonia.

I'm very honoured and pleased to be recognised this way, especially among people whom I greatly admire John Mellencamp

He had been paralyzed from the waist down after suffering a spinal cord injury in 2003.

"He was extremely excited and honoured to have been inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and I am glad that he will be remembered as a 'Hall of Famer' because he was in so many ways," Smith's agent, Margo Lewis, said when he died.

Glad All Over helped The Dave Clark Five become one of the most successful British "invasion" bands of the US during the 1960s.

Indiana native Mellencamp became a voice of America's heartland with hits like Pink Houses.

"I'm very honoured and pleased to be recognised this way, especially among people whom I greatly admire," Mellencamp said on his website.

He will be inducted by Billy Joel and will perform at the ceremony.

Cohen became a folk icon in the late 1960s with songs such as Suzanne and Dress Rehearsal Rag.

Lou Reed will induct him and singer Damien Rice will perform for him.

The Ventures defined instrumental guitar rock in the 1960s with surfer anthems like Walk Don't Run and Hawaii Five-O.

Last year's inductees were REM, Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five, Van Halen, the Ronettes and Patti Smith.

Once included, the artists are featured in the Museum's Hall of Fame exhibit.

This includes a computerised jukebox containing every song of each inductee and a film played on three big screens recounting their careers and music.