“Great Performances,” in collaboration with the Recording Academy, will air a “Grammy Salute To Music Legends” all-star concert Friday, October 13 on PBS (check local listings) featuring a primetime spotlight for the Academy’s 2017 Special Merit Awards recipients. The celebration and tribute concert will have rare performances by honorees as well as renditions of their songs by those that they’ve inspired along the way.
With Paul Shaffer as its musical director, the celebration was recorded at the Beacon Theatre in New York in July. This will be the second time in which the Recording Academy will have celebrated these awards in a standalone musical tribute, which has been historically held during Grammy Week. This year’s Lifetime Achievement Award honorees are Jimmie Rodgers, Shirley Caesar, Ahmad Jamal, Nina Simone, the Velvet Underground, Sly Stone, and Charley Pride.
Photo: Facebook/Rick James
Sly Stone also has Texas roots, born in Denton in 1943, the second of the family’s five kids. Raised in a deeply religious, middle-class household, Stone’s parents encouraged musical expression in their household as part of the doctrines of the church which they belonged to. As children, the family performed gospel music for their local church, recording a 78 rpm single in 1952. This would be the first taste of such business for Sly Stone (born Sylvester Stewart,) who was deemed a musical prodigy at the age of seven. In pursuing a career in the industry, Stone’s other Stewart siblings (with the exception of the eldest) adopted the “Stone” surname, becoming members of the famed Sly & the Family Stone. For airtime details on the “Grammy Salute To Music Legends” on PBS, featuring career highlight from these as well as the other noted honorees, check your local listings and stay tuned for the special October 13.