LOS ANGELES (Top40 Charts) - For a stately hotel, the Regent Beverly
Wilshire was pretty rockin' Tuesday (May 14) night as Chuck Berry,
Little Richard, and Bo Diddley were honored with Icon Awards during the 2002 BMI Pop Awards in Beverly Hills, Calif.
This was the 50th annual ceremony held by the performing rights organization, so it was only fitting to spotlight the lifetime achievements of rock's maybe not-so-holy, but certainly legendary trinity.
The night's top winner was singer-songwriting Brad Arnold of 3 Doors Down , taking home five honors in all for the band's hits "Kryptonite," "Loser," "Be Like That," and "Duck and Run," capped by being named Songwriter of the Year towards the end of the evening.
Song of the Year went to Matchbox Twenty's "If You're Gone," written by frontman Rob Thomas.
"With Chuck Berry, you've got the all-time four star player, arguably the greatest rock and roll star ever. And the only person who would argue with that would be Little Richard, and he's got a great argument. He's Little Richard, the one, the only. And then you've got Bo Diddley, the man amongst men," said George Thorogood , who led off the musical tribute midway through the ceremonies with three Bo Diddley classics: "Who Do You Love," "Bo Diddley," and "I'm a Man" (Diddley's thumpy, reworking of Muddy Waters' "Mannish Boy"). During the final number, Thorogood exhalted, "Bo Diddley is the man."
The all-star backing band was directed by drummer Steve Jordan and included guitarist Waddy Wachtel and piano player Ivan Neville (all three vets of Keith Richards' late '80s Expensive Winos), bass player Larry Taylor from Tom Waits ' band, Al Blake on harmonica, and Pete Christlieb and Jim Horn on saxes. Neville sang three Little Richard hits: "Rip It Up, " Keep a Knockin'," and "Good Golly Miss Molly."
For the Chuck Berry segment, leather-jacketed young guitar hotshot Jonny Lang took a crack at "Maybelline," but was upstaged by Mavis Staples , who followed with a one-two punch of "Rock and Roll Music," then a full-throttle "Back in the U.S.A." that brought a standing ovation.
Berry and Richard both turned 75 last year, while Diddley is the youngster. "One of the things is I don't fool with no drugs ?- I'm scared of aspirin tablets. I try to live the best I know how," he said. "I'm 73 years old now and I feel great. 73 ain't nothin' but a number baby!"
The audience included Billy Gibbons of ZZ Top, and song honorees Eve 6 ("Here's to the Night"), Evan and Jaron (Jaron Lowenstein was honored "Crazy for This Girl"), Lee Ann Womack ("I Hope You Dance"), Bob Crewe ("Lady Marmalade"), Sugar Ray's Mark McGrath ("When It's Over"), Lifehouse ("Hanging by a Moment," which won the Most Performed Song on College Radio Award), and Fuel ("Hemorrhage (In My Hands)"), among others.
Awards are given to songs that received the most appearances on radio and TV from Oct. 1, 2001 through Sept. 30, 2001.
