Search Results for: Stevie Wonder

Singer-songwriter Carole King will receive the prestigious Johnny Mercer Award during the 33rd annual Songwriters Hall Of Fame induction ceremony in June. Hall Of Fame inductees this year include Michael Jackson, Barry Manilow, Sting, Randy Newman, and Ashford & Simpson. Also, Garth Brooks will be presented the Hitmaker Award and Stevie Wonder will be given the Lifetime Achievement Award. Songwriter Hal David, the Hall’s chairman and CEO, said of King, “Carole King has been a tour de force in our industry ever since I can remember. She is a gifted songwriter and performer, who epitomized a wonderful era of music.… Read more »

Michael Jackson, Barry Manilow, Sting, Randy Newman, and Ashford & Simpson have been named as the next inductees to the Songwriters Hall Of Fame. The songwriters-all of whom are also performing artists in their own right-will be honored during the 33rd annual Songwriters Hall Of Fame induction ceremony and dinner in June. Songwriter Hal David, the Hall’s chairman and CEO, said during the announcement on Monday (February 11), “The Songwriters Hall Of Fame Awards & Dinner is so important because it’s a time when some of the premier songwriters in the world come together to honor their own. That kind… Read more »

Five artistic legends sat alongside President Bush in Washington’s top theater on Sunday night, and were starry-eyed themselves as political and Hollywood heavyweights paid tribute to their glittering careers. Actress Julie Andrews, pianist Van Cliburn, music maestro Quincy Jones, actor Jack Nicholson and opera singer Luciano Pavarotti received the Kennedy Center Honors for their contributions to American culture. “The recipients for 2001 make quite a collection…. As one newspaper put it in the headline, this year’s honorees can carry a tune and then there’s Jack,” Bush told them at a White House reception before the gala. “Perhaps it’s a nice… Read more »

With a career spanning nearly 35 years, Elton John has a simple explanation for his longevity: “I tend not to look back. I look forward.” That said, John doesn’t disagree with the overwhelmingly favorable reviews that refer to his new album, “Songs From the West Coast,” as a vintage work hearkening back to the early 1970s hits that established him as a leading pop music figure. “I’m fine with that,” says John, 54, of comparisons to such early albums as “Tumbleweed Connection” and “Madman Across the Water.” “It’s the same kind of lineup as I had on the old albums,… Read more »

No Doubt might as well change their name to No Rules for their upcoming album. Rock Steady, due December 18, is a scattered collection of pop, rock, rap and reggae songs produced by everyone from Prince to Dr. Dre. Singer Gwen Stefani, all smiles talking about her band’s fifth album during the video shoot for the all-star “What’s Going On” remake, explained how her band of brothers returned from Saturn with an urge to do something different. “After 14 years of being a band, you build all these rules up,” Stefani said, adjusting her shiny No Doubt belt buckle. “That’s… Read more »

A fire erupted Tuesday afternoon (October 9) at the building housing Hit Factory Recording Studios, birthplace of records by artists ranging from John Lennon to Notorious B.I.G., causing an unknown amount of damage. No one who worked in the building was hurt in the blaze, according to police on the scene, though the section of the building that faces West 54th Street appeared severely damaged. The fire was contained chiefly to the fourth-floor offices of SESAC, a performing-rights organization representing songwriters and publishers that leases space in the building, according to Hit Factory executive Troy Germano. The Hit Factory has… Read more »

An internationally televised special that brought together some of the biggest names in show business raised more than $150 million in pledges for victims of the Sept. 11 air attacks and their families, organizers said on Monday. The two-hour, commercial-free program, “America: A Tribute to Heroes,” aired Friday night on more than 35 U.S. broadcast and cable networks, the Internet and 8,000 radio stations nationwide. It also was beamed to TV outlets in more than 210 countries and carried on the Armed Forces Network to U.S. military personnel stationed in 175 nations around the globe. The unprecedented simulcast drew an… Read more »

Rock troubadour Bruce Springsteen sang the prescient “My City of Ruins” and pop diva Mariah Carey gave a comeback performance of “Hero” during an internationally televised pledge drive on Friday benefiting victims of the Sept. 11 attacks on America. The unprecedented, commercial-free show, dubbed “America: A Tribute to Heroes” and simulcast live from candle-lit studios in Los Angeles and New York, was carried on at least 31 U.S. broadcast and cable networks and beamed to 156 countries around the globe. Dozens of stars from the movie, television and music industries took part in the emotional but subdued event, providing entertainment… Read more »

Elton John says he has gone “back to basics” to produce his new album, “Songs from the West Coast,” and he believes it’s the best one in 25 years. Elton said the album, which is due out on October 1, was recorded in a studio in Los Angeles with musicians he’d never worked with before. “So I was a bit scared of working with them,” he told the Sunday Telegraph magazine. “Of course, I hadn’t written anything before I went into the studio. Ha! Ha! Ha!” Elton said he has “gone back to basics,” returning to his original line-up of… Read more »

Jane’s Addiction has announced 10 dates for its forthcoming Jubilee Tour with Live. The tour kickoff is scheduled for October 2 at the Centrum in Worcester, Massachusetts. So far, dates run through October 23, but a second leg is in the planning stages. Femi Kuti will appear on dates scheduled between October 6 and October 23. Tickets for the Worcester show and a show at New York’s Madison Square Garden go on sale tomorrow (August 31). One dollar from every ticket sold will go to the Jubilee Foundation, a non-profit organization founded by Jane’s singer Perry Farrell to work with… Read more »