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September 04, 2010
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Music News and Commentary.
September 04, 2010
Not George and Ira from Yo La Tengo, but the Gershwins.
The White House recently announced that Sir Paul McCartney will be honored by Barack Obama June 2nd with the Gershwin Prize for Popular music, a lifetime achievement award that commemorates the contribution to the American songbook of the pop power duo, George and Ira Gershwin, by selecting an honoree each year whose contribution lives up to the great Gershwin name.
In my opinion being a fan of Paul McCartney is a lot like being a Lakers fan, it's almost too easy. The guy was a Beatle, after all! I don't mean this at all disrespectfully, that's just how it is. But as this IS a lifetime achievement award, I guess it's too early to give it to Ben Folds anyway. Sir McCartney is the third musician to be awarded the Gershwin Prize following in the groovy footsteps of Paul Simon and Stevie Wonder.
The White House has planned a whole event for the honor, including performances from a wide range of artists including Dave Grohl, Emmylou Harris, Jack White, Faith Hill, Elvis Costello and jazz great Herbie Hancock. PBS will be airing the whole thing on July 28th.
If you can't wait till then to get a fix of Sir Paul live, check out the recently rereleased (yesterday I believe) Good Evening New York City, a live 2 CD, 2 DVD album that came from his 2009 Summer Live concert tour. This was both the inaugural concert at NYC's Citi Field Stadium, but also a celebration marking 45 years since McCartney first played New York with the Beatles. If the trailer for the album is any measure, this would have been a concert not to miss.
Lincoln Wilder is a professional music writer who has published thousands of articles and reviews for bands, albums, concerts and industry news. Wilder has travelled across the U.S., Canada, South America, Tibet and parts of Europe to familiarize himself with the varying music cultures of numerous regions. With a brief stop at Julliard and amateur symphony experience in his youth, this accomplished journalist brings a rich and well educated musical background to his work.