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Read news on the awarding of the first Gershwin Prize.
April 23, 2007 (REVISED)
Star-Studded Lineup Confirmed for Library of Congress Concert Honoring Gershwin Prize Recipient Paul Simon
Concert on May 23 at Warner Theatre and Broadcast Nationally on PBS on June 27
A star-studded cast of performers and presenters has been confirmed, with more to come, to pay tribute to Paul Simon as he receives the first annual Library of Congress Gershwin Prize for Popular Song on Wednesday, May 23 at 8 p.m. at the Warner Theatre located at 1299 Pennsylvania Ave NW, Washington, D.C.
Performers include Yolanda Adams, Marc Anthony, Shawn Colvin, Dixie Hummingbirds, Jerry Douglas, Art Garfunkel, Philip Glass, Alison Krauss, Ladysmith Black Mambazo, Lyle Lovett, Stephen Marley, James Taylor, Stevie Wonder and Buckwheat Zydeco. Presenters include former poet laureate Billy Collins, Bob Costas, Charles Grodin and Lorne Michaels.
Tickets will be available in-person on Friday, April 27 at 10 a.m. at the Warner Theatre Box Office, all Ticketmaster Ticket Centers, TicketMaster Phone Charge: 703-573-SEAT, 202-397-SEAT, 800-551-SEAT and via the Internet at www.ticketmaster.com.
The Library of Congress Gershwin Prize for Popular Song is named in honor of the legendary George and Ira Gershwin. This newly created award recognizes the profound and positive effect of popular music on the world’s culture and will be given annually to a composer or performer whose lifetime contributions exemplify the standard of excellence associated with the Gershwins.
During his distinguished career Paul Simon has received many awards and prizes, including 12 Grammy Awards, three of them for album of the year. "Graceland," which won in 1986, was recently selected as part of the Library’s National Recording Registry.
Simon is also a two-time inductee into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, once as half of the Simon and Garfunkel duo and again in 2001 as a soloist. He is a member of the Songwriters Hall of Fame and a 2002 Kennedy Center Honoree. In 2006 Time Magazine named Paul Simon one of the "100 People Who Shaped the World." Simon was the first American artist invited by President Nelson Mandela to perform in post-apartheid South Africa.
The creators and executive producers of the Gershwin Prize for Popular Song are Peter and Bob Kaminsky, Mark Krantz and Cappy McGarr, who are also the creators and executive producers of the Kennedy Center Mark Twain Prize for American Humor, now in its 10th year. WETA executive producers of the broadcast are Dalton Delan and David S. Thompson. The event will be broadcast in high definition on Wednesday, June 27 at 9 p.m. EDT on PBS stations nationwide (check local listings).
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PR 07-085
04/23/07
ISSN 0731-3527