In collaboration with The Recording Academy, GREAT PERFORMANCES presents "GRAMMY Salute To Music Legends™," a special all-star concert offering a primetime spotlight for The Academy's 2016 Special Merit Awards recipients.
The celebration and tribute concert features rare performances by honorees and never-before-seen renditions by those they've inspired.
The celebration wasrecorded at Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles. Previously held during GRAMMY® Week, this is the first time The Recording Academy has celebrated the Special Merit Awards with a stand-alone event and musical tribute.
This year's Lifetime Achievement Award honorees are Ruth Brown, Celia Cruz, Earth, Wind & Fire, Herbie Hancock, Jefferson Airplane, Linda Ronstadt, and Run-DMC. John Cage, Fred Foster, and Chris Strachwitz are Trustees Award honorees; and EMT and Dr. Harvey Fletcher are Technical GRAMMY® Award recipients. Also being honored is Phillip Riggs, this year's recipient of the Music Educator Award™.
Along with never-before-seen video packages celebrating each of the honorees' contributions to the music industry and our cultural heritage and heartfelt testimonials from the presenters, the star-studded event features performances by Patti Austin, Ry Cooder, Lila Downs, Earth, Wind & Fire, Andy Garcia and The CineSon All Stars, Herbie Hancock, Jefferson Airplane, J’Nai Bridges, Kris Kristofferson, Naughty By Nature, Anthony Parce, Lucrecia, Shelby Lynne, Martina McBride, Magnolia Sisters, and JD Souther.
Other presenters include Jimmy Jam, Michael Tilson Thomas, David Crosby, LL Cool J, Don Was and David Foster.
Among numerous highlights, psychedelic rock pioneers Jefferson Airplane takes fans back in time as they play some of their most memorable hits that shaped much of the San Francisco scene in the 1960s and earned them international mainstream success.
Standing in for legendary frontwoman Grace Slick (who is present to accept her award) is GRAMMY®-nominated rock songstress Cathy Richardson.
Arhoolie Records founder Chris Strachwitz has made a living recording, preserving, selling, and celebrating the music he loves — music that formed the fabric of both American and international culture.
Paying homage to the multifaceted and uniquely talented producer/businessman will be six-time GRAMMY winner and fretboard virtuoso Ry Cooder, Chicago bluesman GRAMMY nominee Henry Gray, and Cajun music jewels and GRAMMY nominees Magnolia Sisters.
Paying tribute to three-time GRAMMY winner and four-time Latin GRAMMY® winner Celia Cruz — internationally known as the "Queen Of Salsa" — are Latin GRAMMY nominee Lucrecia and GRAMMY and Latin GRAMMY winner Andy García, who will bring his Cuban musical group, Andy García And The CineSon All Stars, to the stage.
Six-time GRAMMY winners Earth, Wind & Fire, one of the most important and innovative musical forces influencing music and popular culture across generations, offer a roof-raising performance.
A salute to 10-time GRAMMY winner Linda Ronstadt features pop, country and Latin musical offerings from GRAMMY and four-time Latin GRAMMY winner Lila Downs and GRAMMY nominees Martina McBride and JD Souther.
The Lifetime Achievement Award honors performers who have made contributions of outstanding artistic significance to the field of recording, while the Trustees Award recognizes such contributions in areas other than performance. Both awards are determined by vote of The Recording Academy's National Board of Trustees.
Technical GRAMMY Award recipients are determined by vote of The Academy's Producers & Engineers Wing® Advisory Council and Chapter Committees, and are ratified by The Academy's Trustees. The award is presented to individuals and companies who have made contributions of outstanding technical significance to the recording field.
Presented by The Recording Academy and the GRAMMY Foundation®, the Music Educator Award was established to recognize current educators (kindergarten through college, public and private schools) who have made a significant and lasting contribution to the field of music education.
The full episode is no longer available for online streaming.
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Credits:
GREAT PERFORMANCES is produced by THIRTEEN Productions LLC for WNET, one of America’s most prolific and respected public media providers. "GRAMMY Salute To Music Legends" is written by David Wild and directed for television by David Horn, with Mitch Owgang as producer, and Horn and Neil Portnow as executive producers. Don Was is music director. For GREAT PERFORMANCES, Bill O’Donnell is series producer; David Horn is executive producer.
