Pick a Day

Music History Events: Awards and Honors

February 25, 1992 James Brown receives a Lifetime Achievement Grammy Award, recompense for the paltry three competitive Grammys (including one for Best Album Notes) he wins during his seminal career.

February 25, 1992 Buddy Guy, 55, wins his first Grammy, taking the award for Best Contemporary Blues Album for Damn Right, I've Got the Blues. He went most of the '80s without a record deal, but the Grammy win makes him more popular than ever. His next two albums earn the same award.

February 25, 1992 Patti LaBelle shares her first Grammy win with Lisa Fischer when her Burnin' album (featuring Fischer on backing vocals) ties with Fischer's "How Can I Ease The Pain" for Best Female R&B Vocal Performance.

January 15, 1992 Johnny Cash, Bobby "Blue" Bland, Booker T. & the MG's, The Isley Brothers, The Jimi Hendrix Experience, Sam & Dave, and The Yardbirds are inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

December 10, 1991 Alan Freed, the disc jockey who coined the phrase "rock and roll," is posthumously awarded a star on Hollywood's Walk of Fame.

October 18, 1991 Los Angeles declares it "Rocky Horror Picture Show Day" in honor of the 1975 cult classic musical.

September 30, 1991 Liza Minnelli receives a star on Hollywood's Walk of Fame at 7000 Hollywood Blvd. Her mother, Judy Garland, has three stars on the famous boulevard.

August 24, 1991 Randy Newman wins his first Emmy, taking Outstanding Original Music And Lyrics for his work on Cop Rock, a spectacular flop that was cancelled long before the ceremony.

August 9, 1991 The 5th Dimension are awarded a star on the Hollywood Walk Of Fame.

May 4, 1991 Governor Ann Richards declares "ZZ Top Day" in Texas, honoring the group for "bringing the powerful beat of Texas boogie to enthusiastic audiences across the globe."

March 25, 1991 Michael Jackson escorts Madonna to the Academy Awards. "Sooner Or Later (I Always Get My Man)," which she sang for the movie Dick Tracy, wins for Best Original Song.

January 16, 1991 The Byrds, LaVern Baker, John Lee Hooker, The Impressions, Wilson Pickett, Jimmy Reed, and Ike and Tina Turner are inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in the sixth class. The event is overshadowed by news that America has launched airstrikes on Iraq, starting the Persian Gulf War.

September 27, 1990 Marvin Gaye receives a posthumous star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 1500 Vine Street.

September 25, 1990 Mercer University Drive in Macon, Georgia, is renamed "Little Richard Penniman Boulevard" after the famous singer who grew up there.

September 5, 1990 B.B. King receives a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

June 21, 1990 Little Richard finally gets a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. Says Richard: "Like everything I got, it took a long time to get."

May 11, 1990 The late Ritchie Valens is finally awarded a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 6733 Hollywood Blvd.

April 12, 1990 The Astronomical Union's Minor Planet Center in Arizona announces that four newly discovered asteroids, 4147-4150, will be named Lennon, McCartney, George Harrison, and Ringo Starr.

March 21, 1990 Tony Orlando is awarded a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 6385 Hollywood Boulevard.

February 21, 1990 Paul McCartney is honored with a Lifetime Achievement Award at the 32nd annual Grammy Awards, perhaps to make up for the paltry four awards they gave to The Beatles while they were still active. Bonnie Raitt is the big winner with four awards, including Album of the Year for Nick Of Time.

January 17, 1990 The Fifth Annual Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremonies are held in New York City. Inductees include Hank Ballard, Bobby Darin, The Four Seasons, The Four Tops, The Kinks, The Platters, Simon & Garfunkel, and The Who.

August 25, 1989 Chicago mayor Richard Michael Daley declares today "Pops Staples Day" in honor of the native musician and leader of The Staple Singers.

June 27, 1989 Tom Jones gets a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

June 14, 1989 Carole King gets a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

June 13, 1989 Jerry Lee Lewis gets a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

May 11, 1989 The late Roy Orbison is posthumously inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in New York, with Eric Clapton presenting the award to Orbison's widow. Orbison enjoyed a career resurgence in the '80s, but died on December 6, 1988.

April 13, 1989 Love Boat crooner Jack Jones is honored with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 6104 Hollywood Blvd.

December 3, 1988 Carole King and Gerry Goffin receive a Lifetime Achievement award from the US National Academy of Songwriters.

September 30, 1988 John Lennon is awarded a posthumous star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 1750 Vine St.

August 19, 1988 Elvis Presley's "Hound Dog" is named the most-played song in the first 100 of the jukebox.