Thursday, March 28, 2024

Grammy Award Lifetime Achievement Awards to Sly Stone, Nina Simone, Charley Pride, Velvet Underground

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The Grammy Awards for Lifetime Achievement: gospel singer Shirley Caesar, jazz performer Ahmad Jamal, Charley Pride (one of only a few African American superstars in country music), Jimmie Rodgers (lauded as the Father of Country Music), soul singer Nina Simone, Sly Stone and rock band The Velvet Underground.  If Sly shows up and is in decent shape, that should be quite a ceremony!

Plus the great Mo Ostin, who made Warner Bros. records a powerhouse in the 70s and 80s, and Philadelphia International hit songwriter Thom Bell, are among the Trustee Honors winners along with Ralph Peer (who recorded the first country records, by The Carter Family and Rodgers, in the famed 1927 Bristol Sessions). Alan Dower Blumlein is the Technical GRAMMY Award recipient, and his biggest achievement is the invention of the stereo in 1931.

Mo Ostin is responsible for careers from Bonnie Raitt to Prince to Neil Young, Fleetwood Mac, the list goes on and on. Thom Bell — often with the late Linda Creed– wrote some of the most enduring songs of all time including most of the hits for the Stylistics and the Spinners.

Here’s a list of Bell’s credits:

  • 1968: “La-La (Means I Love You)” – The Delfonics
  • 1970: “Didn’t I (Blow Your Mind This Time)” – The Delfonics
  • 1971: “Hey Love” – The Delfonics
  • 1971: “Stop, Look, Listen (To Your Heart)” – The Stylistics
  • 1971: “You Are Everything” – The Stylistics
  • 1972: “People Make the World Go Round” – The Stylistics
  • 1972: “I’m Stone in Love with You” – The Stylistics
  • 1972: “I’ll Be Around” – The Spinners
  • 1972: “Could It Be I’m Falling in Love” – The Spinners
  • 1973: “I’m Doing Fine Now” – New York City
  • 1973: “One of a Kind (Love Affair)” – The Spinners
  • 1973: “Ghetto Child” – The Spinners
  • 1973: “Break Up to Make Up” – The Stylistics
  • 1974: “You Make Me Feel Brand New” – The Stylistics
  • 1974: “Mighty Love (Part I)” – The Spinners
  • 1974: “Then Came You” – The Spinners (with Dionne Warwick)
  • 1975: “They Just Can’t Stop It the (Games People Play)” – The Spinners
  • 1976: “The Rubberband Man” – The Spinners
  • 1979: “Are You Ready for Love” – Elton John (with the Spinners)
  • 1979: “Mama Can’t Buy You Love” – Elton John
  • 1981: “Silly” – Deniece Williams
  • 1982: “It’s Gonna Take a Miracle” – Deniece Williams
  • 1990: “I Don’t Have the Heart” – James Ingram

The other big news is that Debra Lee, head of BET, will be honored by NARAS and Clive Davis at the annual pre-Grammy gala on February 11th. Neil Portnow — great choices, he’s working overtime this year!

Roger Friedman
Roger Friedmanhttps://www.showbiz411.com
Roger Friedman began his Showbiz411 column in April 2009 after 10 years with Fox News, where he created the Fox411 column. His movie reviews are carried by Rotten Tomatoes, and he is a member of both the movie and TV branches of the Critics Choice Awards. His articles have appeared in dozens of publications over the years including New York Magazine, where he wrote the Intelligencer column in the mid 90s and covered the OJ Simpson trial, and Fox News (when it wasn't so crazy) where he covered Michael Jackson. He is also the writer and co-producer of "Only the Strong Survive," a selection of the Cannes, Sundance, and Telluride Film festivals, directed by DA Pennebaker and Chris Hegedus.
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