Johnny Mercer Award

Songwriters of the nineties often tend to belong to one special niche in the music process. One of the reasons for this is the fact that many are writing principally for themselves as artists, thus tending to fall into a single category. Burt Bacharach, who has been writing song hits…

Johnny Mercer Award

Already an inductee in The Songwriters Hall of Fame, lyricist Hal David is again honored, this time with the coveted Johnny Mercer Award, given annually in memory of the late founding president of the organization. Like Mercer, Hal David exemplifies the highest level of achievement in the fine art of…

Abe Olman Publisher Award

Freddy Bienstock was born in Austria and emigrated to the United States just before the onset of World War II. He began his career in the music business in the stock room of Chappell & Company, then and now a major music publisher. Within a few years at Chappell, after…

Sammy Cahn Lifetime Achievement Award

Frankie Laine, an entertainer whose career spans literally six decades, is one of those consummate artists whose performing style has always ridden high above the wave of musical fads. Laine's approach to his music is distinctive and recognizable even to many listeners today in an era when you're never quite…

Hitmaker Award

When Gloria Estefan, in May 1993, first stepped onto New York's Ellis Island, the historic arrival point for millions of immigrants entering this country for the first time, it was a supremely significant moment. She was to receive the highly coveted Ellis Island Congressional Medal of Honor, acknowledging her ongoing…

Patron of the Arts Award

Sumner M. Redstone is chairman and chief executive officer of Viacom Inc. He has been chairman of the board since June 1987, when National Amusements Inc., of Dedham, MA acquired a controlling interest in the New York City-based Viacom. Redstone had served as president and CEO of National since 1967…

Towering Song

The melody to this enduring song is quite likely the most sung music in history, including all the output of the three B's, Beethoven, Bach and The Beatles. The tune was first published exactly 103 years ago, in a book titled, "Song Stories of the Kindergarten," wherein "Happy Birthday," was…

Board of Directors Award

Board of Directors Award