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Patti Smith Honored By ASCAP
Three years ago Patti Smith was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Next month, the singer-songwriter and her 40-year career are being honored once again with a lifetime achievement award from the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers.
ASCAP is presenting the award to Smith during its 27th annual Pop Music Awards dinner celebrating the top songwriters and publishers of ASCAP’s most-performed pop songs of 2009.
The invitation-only event takes place April 21 at the Renaissance Hollywood Hotel in Hollywood, Calif. Guests will be treated to a performance by Smith and her band.
Photo: Adam Bielawski
Harold Washington Library Center, Chicago, Ill.
In addition to rocking out and helping shape the history of the 1970s punk scene, the 63-year-old “Godmother of Punk” has also spent the last four decades making a name for herself as a poet, political activist and painter.
“She expanded the boundaries of artistic expression, musically and otherwise, inspiring generations of rockers worldwide,” ASCAP president and CEO Paul Williams said in a statement.
“She continues to be a vibrant, prolific artist, working in a wide variety of media.”
Smith’s most recent studio album was 2007’s Twelve, an album that featured 12 cover versions of hit tunes including The Rolling Stones’ “Gimme Shelter,” Bob Dylan’s “Changing of the Guards,” The Doors’ “Soul Kitchen” and Stevie Wonder’s “Pastime Paradise.”
In January her autobiography Just Kids hit bookshelves. The memoir details Smith’s relationship with artist Robert Mapplethorpe.
Previous ASCAP Founders Award honorees include Neil Young, Elvis Costello, Joni Mitchell, Steely Dan and Paul McCartney.
Click here for ASCAP’s Web site.
Click here for Patti Smith’s Web site.