In addition to India Arie and The Black Crowes, seven other Georgians or former Georgians will be honored by their state this weekend:
. . . Mezzo-soprano Jennifer Larmore, who has 70 albums to her credit and is perhaps the most recorded mezzo of all time, said she feels "honored, humbled, grateful, incredulous, joyful and excited" about being chosen for the Georgia Music Hall of Fame. Larmore grew up in Atlanta and she still has family here, so that when she sang the Olympic Hymn during Atlanta's Closing Ceremonies in 1996, it was an emotional time. "The excitement of that moment is etched in my psyche for all time!" she writes from her new hometown, Paris. Larmore will sing Victor Herbert's "Art is Calling For Me" during Saturday's induction ceremonies.
. . . Pianist and chamber music programmer Charles Wadsworth has had some significant honors in a lifetime of pioneering classical music events, but getting an alley named after himself in downtown Newnan surely comes near the top.
Charles Wadsworth Alley ran behind a grocery store where his father, Charles Spurgeon Eugene William Wadsworth, once served as fruit and vegetable man. Wadsworth grew up to become a concert pianist and to create chamber music programs at Alice Tully Hall in Lincoln Center, in Spoleto, Italy, and at the Spoleto Festival in Charleston, S.C.
Wadsworth, 81, now a New Yorker, will perform (with Angela Jones-Reus) a piece he wrote for piano and flute at the Georgia Music Hall of Fame’s induction ceremonies. The fact that there will be two performances of classical music during the ceremonies is “an encouraging sign for those of us who are doing our best throughout our careers to bring people into our fold.”
. . . Artist manager and concert promoter Charlie Brusco, 59, discovered the Outlaws, put Lynyrd Skynyrd back together in the 1980s, put Styx back together in the 1990s, and, with Wallace Barr, formed Brusco Barr, which handled much of the booking at the Lakewood Amphitheatre during its first five years. He's organized very lucrative tours for acts such as Kansas, Ringo Starr and Fleetwood Mac and Janet Jackson's 65-show Velvet Rope tour in 1998.
. . . Paul Davis was a soul, country and pop music singer-songwriter best known for his 1977 pop single "I Go Crazy," which stayed in the Top 100 for a record-setting 40 weeks. During his career, Davis released eight albums in which six singles reached the Top 20 on the Adult Contemporary chart. Davis died of a heart attack in Meridian, Miss. on April 21, 2008.
. . . Pete Drake (born Roddis Franklin Drake), was a steel guitar player, producer and record-label owner. He performed on hundreds of hit songs including Lynn Anderson's "(I Never Promised You A) Rose Garden," Charlie Rich's "Behind Closed Doors," Bob Dylan's "Lay Lady Lay," and Tammy Wynette's "Stand by Your Man." He was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame's Walkway of Stars in 1970 and the Steel Guitar Hall of Fame in 1987. He died in Nashville, Tenn., on July 29, 1988.
. . . Rev. Pearly Brown, born in Abbeville, Ga., was a blind blues singer and guitarist known for singing traditional slave songs and gospel tunes. As a young man, Brown moved to Macon, Ga., where he performed on the streets for several decades. As his status grew he played large music festivals and opened for touring rock bands and was the first black performer to play on "The Grand Ole Opry." Brown continued to sing on the streets until poor health forced him to retire in 1979. He died in July 1, 1986.
. . . John Jarrard was a country music songwriter from Gainesville, Ga. In 1977, he moved to Nashville, Tenn., to pursue a career in songwriting. Despite losing his eyesight as a result of diabetes, Jarrard penned 11 chart-topping hits, including Alabama's "There's No Way" and "You've Got the Touch," George Strait's "Blue Clear Sky" and Tracy Lawrence's "Is That a Tear?" On Feb. 1, 2001, Jarrard died from complications due to diabetes, in Nashville, Tenn.
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