Country icon Loretta Lynn was inducted by fellow country star Lee Ann Womack, who performed Lynn’s hit “You Ain’t Woman Enough (to Take My Man).” Lynn performed her autobiographical song and #1 country hit “Coal Miner’s Daughter.” She then went on to break the rules and treat the audience to an impromptu version of “Don’t Come Home A-Drinkin’ (With Lovin’ on Your Mind).”

Oscar-, Golden Globe- and Grammy-winning composer and lyricist Alan Menken was inducted by his long time collaborator, Tim Rice, after pop star Natasha Bedingfield gave a beautiful performance of Menken’s “Colors of the Wind.” Menken then went on to perform a medley of Disney fan favorites, including “Under the Sea,” “A Whole New World” and “Little Shop of Horrors,” among others.

John Sebastian, leader of the ’60s hit group The Lovin’ Spoonful, was joined by fellow Lovin’ Spoonful member Steve Boone and performed a rocking medley including “Lovin’ You” and “You Didn’t Have To Be So Nice.” Sebastian was honored with a performance by the Naked Brothers, 10-year-old Alex and 13-year-old Nat Wolff, and was inducted by one of SHOF’s 2007 esteemed inductees, Irving Burgie.

Anne Murray was the recipient of the newly renamed Howie Richmond Hitmaker Award, which is specifically tailored for artists or "star makers" in the music industry who have been responsible for a substantial number of hit songs for an extended period of time, a perfect way to describe Murray’s long career. Murray was presented with her award by Randy Goodrum, who penned her smash song, “You Needed Me,” which she said was the greatest song she’s ever recorded, and thanked the hallowed hall with a soaring performance of the song.

Milt Okun, founder of the highly successful independent publishing company Cherry Lane Music, was the recipient of the Abe Olman Publisher Award this year. He was honored with a performance by the first artist he ever signed, Tom Paxton, and the most recent artist he has signed, Madi Diaz, who sang a duet, both on guitars, of “Leaving on a Jet Plane.”

The legendary Paul Anka was honored with the Johnny Mercer Award, one of the most prestigious special awards of the evening and reserved for previous inductees. John Legend, who was the recipient of last year’s Hal David Starlight Award, wowed the crowd with his own special rendition of Anka’s “Put Your Head on My Shoulder.” Anka then brought the house to its feet and the show to a resounding conclusion with an indelible performance of “My Way.”

Also honored during the evening’s ceremonies were songwriters Desmond Child, Albert Hammond and John Rzeznick.

The current Broadway season has theatre-goers scrambling for seats to shows from BMI’s ever-growing list of writers from the Tony-honored BMI Lehman Engel Musical Theatre Workshop.

A CHORUS LINE
A revival of A Chorus Line opened Oct. 5, 2006, at the Schoenfeld Theatre in New York. The ground-breaking and record-breaking musical features lyrics by BMI writer Edward Kleban, who won the 1975 Tony, Drama Desk, Olivier Awards and the Pulitzer Prize in Music for the show’s lyrics. Kleban was a member of the BMI Lehman Engel Musical Workshop for over 20 years.

A Chorus Line begins on a bare stage, where casting for a new Broadway musical is almost complete. The competition has been narrowed down to just 17 dancers. During the show we find out the dancers’ dreams and disappointments. By the show’s finale, the final chorus line of eight is chosen.

In 2001, a musical biography of Kleban, A Class Act, was produced on Broadway. The show features Kleban’s music and lyrics and has scenes set in the BMI Workshop. Mr. Kleban, who died in 1987 at the age of 48, posthumously won an Obie for his score for A Class Act, and was nominated for a Tony and a Drama Desk Award. Linda Kline, Kleban’s literary executor and a BMI Workshop member, is co-writer. The Kleban Foundation, created according to his will, awards grants to aspiring theatre lyricists and bookwriters so that they may carry on the tradition of the American musical theatre, which he loved so dearly.

Joel Siegel of ABC-TV wrote, “This proves you can be a singular sensation twice. The choreography, the staging, the set and the score are still magic. You’ll dance out humming the score. The music moved me to tears twice. And something I’ve never done, during the finale, I whispered wow under my breath.”

Jon Lahr in The New Yorker described A Chorus Line’s score “full of wit and fun. Edward Kleban’s shrewd lyrics sit easily on Marvin Hamlisch’s inspired score.”

Entertainment Weekly proclaimed, “This sensational revival blows the sequins off most Broadway musicals. It’s thrilling!”

Michael Sommers of the Star-Ledger wrote, “Welcome back, you beautiful thing! The show glows with dynamic and dazzling songs by composer Marvin Hamlisch and lyricist Edward Kleban,” and Joe Dziemianowicz of the Daily News asserted, “There’s nothing better. The score sounds fantastic, too. As long as ‘A Chorus Line’ is kicking on Broadway, audiences have somewhere exciting to go.”

MARY POPPINS
Based on P.L. Travers’ cherished stories and the classic 1964 Walt Disney film, Mary Poppins features the Sherman Brothers’ original Academy Award-winning songs, bringing to life the story of the Banks family and their magical nanny.

Mary Poppins marks the first collaboration between Disney, producer of the The Lion King (BMI’s Elton John and Tim Rice) and Beauty and the Beast (BMI’s Alan Menken) with Cameron Mackintosh, legendary producer of the record-breaking Phantom of the Opera, Cats and Les Miserables. The Cameron MackIntosh Foundation provides underwriting for the annual BMI Workshop Musical Theatre Showcase at Manhattan Theatre Club.

Mary Poppins, with classic songs by Richard M. Sherman and Robert B. Sherman, and new songs by George Stiles and Anthony Drewe, opened Nov. 16, 2006, at the historic New Amsterdam Theatre in New York.

The Sherman Brothers are leading composer/lyricists in family entertainment. Among their many hits is the most translated and performed song on earth: “It’s a Small World (After All).” Robert Sherman endows the BMI Foundation’s Robert B. Sherman Scholarship, which is given annually to a college student who is a musical theatre composer/lyricist.

The Shermans’ career spans almost 50 years and includes two Academy Awards for Best Score and Best Song for “Chim Chim Cher-ee” from Mary Poppins. Their other Broadway credits include Chitty Chitty Bang Bang and Over Here, which is being prepared for a lavish West End revival.

Additional songs are by composer/lyricists George Stiles and Anthony Drewe, Olivier Award winners for the musical Honk and founders of London’s Mercury Musicals.

Michael Kuchwara of the Associated Press wrote, “All the big, classic Sherman Brothers songs are here, and new songs by George Stiles and Anthony Drewe fit seamlessly into the proceedings. In fact, one or two of them, including Mary’s opening number, ‘Practically Perfect,’ possess an instant hypnotic quality.”

Terry Teachout wrote in The Wall Street Journal, “I’ll be surprised if it doesn’t run for at least a century!”

SPRING AWAKENING
Based on the scandalous 1891 play about troubled teens, Spring Awakening opened off-Broadway last summer and opened at the Eugene O’Neill Theatre on Dec. 10, 2006. This ground-breaking show is by BMI writers Duncan Sheik (music) and Steven Sater (book and lyrics).

Christopher Isherwood of the The New York Times called Sheik and Sater’s score “ravishing” and declared that “Broadway would never be the same. The music, spare in its simple orchestrations, lush in the lapping reach of its seductive choruses, embodies the shadowy air of longing that infuses the show, the excitement shading into fear, the joy that comes with a chaser of despair. The singing throughout is impassioned and affecting, giving powerful voice to the blend of melancholy and hope in the songs.”

Grammy Award-nominated singer/songwriter Duncan Sheik’s self-titled debut album, both a popular and critical success, introduced the hit singles “Barely Breathing” and “She Runs Away,” and spent 30 weeks on the Billboard 200. Other albums include Humming, Daylight, Phantom Moon with lyrics by Steven Sater and his latest, White Limousine.

Sheik’s film soundtracks include Great Expectations, The Saint, Teaching Mrs. Tingle, Three to Tango, What a Girl Wants, Transamerica and A Body Goes Down. Sheik and Sater recently wrote original songs for the feature film A Home at the End of the World. For the stage, their Nightingale workshopped both at the O’Neill Musical Theatre Conference and La Jolla Playhouse, and is announced for La Jolla’s 2007 season.

Sater’s plays include the long-running Carbondale Dreams, Perfect for You and Doll (Rosenthal Prize, Cincinnati Playhouse).

HIGH FIDELITY
The romantic musical comedy High Fidelity follows the adventures of Rob, a record store owner who knows almost everything about pop music, but almost nothing about how to hang on to a girlfriend. This new musical adaptation of Nick Hornby’s best-selling novel marks the first-time collaboration of fast-rising songwriters Tom Kitt and Amanda Green (daughter of actress Phyllis Newman and legendary Broadway lyricist Adolph Green) and book writer David Lindsay-Abaire (a Tony nominee last season for his play Rabbit Hole).

Kitt and Green first met and collaborated in 2006 in the BMI Musical Theatre Workshop, and songs from High Fidelity have been featured in BMI Workshop showcases. Tom’s work has been heard in film (The Two Ninas), television (Dawson’s Creek), and original recordings (Julia Murney, The Tom Kitt Band). Amanda’s shows include Hallelujah Baby (Arena Stage 2004; additional lyrics) directed by Arthur Laurents, For The Love of Tiffany (NY Fringe Festival 2003) and Up the Week Without a Paddle (L.A. Drama Critics Circle nomination, Garland Award, Best Score).

Frank Rizzo in Variety wrote, “This is a musical that celebrates the power of pop culture with wit, verve and a killer beat. Nailing the music in all its varied forms is Tom Kitt’s tuneful score and the sharp, funny and telling lyrics of Amanda Green.”

Terry Teachout proclaimed Green “a master of the craft of packing everything you need to know about a character into a neatly wrapped, deftly rhymed package.”

The Philadelphia Enquirer calls the musical numbers the show’s “mother lode. Act II bubbles over with so many show-stealers that you begin to wonder whether it has anything left to plunder. Indeed, it keeps bringing out the treasure.”

And Entertainment Weekly declared that High Fidelity is “the unique show that charms both your college drinking buddy and your mother.”

THE APPLE TREE
A revival of The Apple Tree, which opened Dec. 14, 2006, at the Roundabout’s Studio 54 Theatre, features a score by BMI writers Jerry Bock (music) and Sheldon Harnick (lyrics). The original production, which opened at the Shubert Theatre in 1966, was nominated for seven Tony Awards, including Best Musical. Bock and Harnick are the Pulitzer- and Tony Award-winning writing team responsible for Fiddler on the Roof, She Loves Me, The Rothschilds and Fiorello.

The Apple Tree contains three short musicals, all pertaining to the subject of temptation. The first is based on Mark Twain’s interpretation of Adam and Eve, the second, Frank Stockton’s classic fable of The Lady or the Tiger, and the third, Passionella, Jules Pfeiffer’s delicious look at a chimney sweep who is transformed into a glamorous movie star.

Composer Jerry Bock personally selects and endows the BMI Foundation’s Jerry Bock Award, which is given bi-annually to a composer/lyricist team from the BMI Musical Theatre Workshop.

Ben Brantley of The New York Times wrote that The Apple Tree “is somewhere you should definitely spend time if you need reassurance that musicals can still float next door to heaven,” and praised Bock and Harnick’s “remarkably fresh comic and musical stylings, which speak slyly in an assortment of musical tongues.”

Terry Teachout declared, “musical comedy fans, rejoice!” and Broadway.com wrote, “With a lovely score and witty book by the legendary Jerry Bock and Sheldon Harnick, ‘The Apple Tree’ is a must-see revival for lovers of musical theater.”

BMI Broadway blockbusters from earlier seasons include:

Avenue Q
2004 Best Musical and Best Score Tony Award by Robert Lopez and Jeff Marx, who met and first wrote together in the BMI Musical Theatre Workshop; plays nightly at New York’s Golden Theatre and in London at the Noel Coward Theatre.

Beauty and the Beast
Now in its 12th year at the Lunt-Fontanne Theatre, has music by Alan Menken, who also honed his craft at BMI’s Musical Theatre Workshop; he is currently a member of the Workshop’s Steering Committee. Menken’s Sister Act is currently breaking box office records on its pre-Broadway tour, and his Little Mermaid is in preparation for Broadway next season.

Chicago
1997 Tony Award for Best Musical Revival, by John Kander and Fred Ebb, celebrates its tenth year at the Ambassador Theatre. Kander and Ebb’s Curtains opens on Broadway March 22 at the Hirschfeld Theatre.

The Color Purple
2006 Tony nominee featuring a score by BMI writers Brenda Russell and Allee Willis plays at the Broadway Theatre.

Jersey Boys
With music by Bob Gaudio and lyrics by Bob Crewe, the 2006 Tony Award winner for Best Musical celebrates its 500th performance at Broadway’s August Wilson Theatre.

The Lion King
Music by Sir Elton John (PRS) and lyrics by Tim Rice (PRS), winner of the 1998 Best Musical Tony, is in its ninth year at Broadway’s Minskoff Theatre.

Mama Mia!
With songs by Benny Andersson and Björn Ulvaeus of ABBA, Mama Mia! has been playing at the Winter Garden Theatre since 2001.

Monty Python’s Spamalot
2005 Tony Award for Best Musical with book and lyrics by Eric Idle and music by Eric Idle and John Du Prez, directed by BMI writer Mike Nichols, continues its run at Broadway’s Shubert Theatre.

The Producers
Won an unprecedented 12 Tony Awards including Best Musical and Best Score for Mel Brooks‘ music and lyrics, plays at the St. James Theatre.

Tarzan
With music and lyrics by Phil Collins, continues at Broadway’s Richard Rodgers Theatre.

Tarzan, The Lion King, Mary Poppins and Beauty and the Beast are all Disney Broadway productions.

These start in the Caribbean, of course, since Headley hails from Trinidad. Hence the prominent reggae-flavored album track "Rain," which features Shaggy and is one of several Headley co-writes.

"The beauty of the island was the music — calypso, soca, reggae," explains Headley, who was also exposed to classical, country, gospel, r&b, and even Bollywood music before moving with her family to Ft. Wayne, Ind., at 15. "So I was never pigeonholed in what I listened to — and I think [my lable] gets mad because I sing whatever I want to. To me, a good song is a good song."

Songs are clearly the key for Headley, who chooses to collaborate when it comes to writing them. "I like to hear people say, 'Why don't you try this?,' or 'That second verse isn't working.' I love working off other people's energy."

As a singer, meanwhile, she cites Whitney Houston and CeCe Winans as role models, and has rightly drawn critics' comparisons with Mariah Carey, Beyoncé and Mary J. Blige. But she's stern when she cautions against neglecting those who came first.

"We have great singers in our generation, but whenever I think I'm getting a little too good, I listen to singers like Ella Fitzgerald," she concedes. "They bring me back to earth — and we can't let them be forgotten!"

BMI's Joyce Rice, Tim Nichols, Tim McGraw, Darran Smith, Curb Records' Carson James

"Live Like You Were Dying" earned two Grammy nominations for Nichols and co-writer Craig Wiseman in the Song of the Year and Best Country Song categories; McGraw received a nod for Best Male Country Vocal Performance. The song has already been named Song of the Year at 2004 ceremonies presented by the Country Music Association and the Nashville Songwriters Association International, and Nichols and Wiseman became New York Times best-selling authors with the success of their companion gift book, published by Rutledge Hill Press.

Warner-Tamerlane Publishing Corp.'s Dale Bobo and Cris Lacy, Tim Nichols, Tim McGraw

Also recognized during the #1 celebration were publisher Warner-Tamerlane Publishing Corp. and co-producers (with McGraw) Byron Gallimore and Darran Smith.

Patsy Nichols, BMI's Patsy Bradley and Patsy Wells

Among Nichols' other hits are the #1s "Girls Lie Too," "I'm Over You," "Brotherly Love," "(This Ain't) No Thinkin' Thing" and "I'll Think Of a Reason Later," as well as "I Wanna Do It All," "That'd Be Alright," "Heads Carolina, Tails California," and "That's the Kind of Mood I'm In."

BMI's Paul Corbin, Doug Johnson, Nichols, BMI's Joyce Rice, Tim McGraw, Bobby Braddock, Kathy Locke

The Nichols Family - Landon, Patsy, Tyler and Tim - with Tim McGraw

Photos by Steve Lowry

Country singer and BMI songwriter Faith Hill was a big winner at the 43rd annual Grammy Awards, presented February 21 at the Staples Center in Los Angeles. Hill, a first time winner, took home Grammys for Best Country Album (Breathe), Best Female Country Vocal Performance ("Breathe") and Best Country Collaboration with Vocals ("Let's Make Love" with husband Tim McGraw).

Controversial rapper Eminem, whose over-hyped performance with Elton John brought the audience to its feet, also made his presence known with two wins in rap categories, including Best Rap Album for his Marshall Mathers LP and Best Rap Solo Performance for "The Real Slim Shady." He was also recognized for his featured performance on producer Dr. Dre's "Forget About Dre."

BMI songwriter and lengend, Paul Simon was honored with the MusicCares Man of the Year award.

Other notable winners included veteran singer Shelby Lynne who won for Best New Artist, noting that it took "13 years and six albums to get here," as well as the Foo Fighters, Shakira, Toni Braxton, Macy Gray, B.B. King, Dolly Parton, Bela Fleck, Sting and Creed.

BMI's 2001 Grammy Winners (Alphabetically)

Dave Alvin
Best Traditional Folk Album
Public Domain - Songs From The Wild Land

Asleep At The Wheel
Best Country Performance By A Duo or Group With Vocal
"Cherokee Maiden"

Baha Men
Best Dance Recording
"Who Let The Dogs Out"

Beach Boys
Lifetime Achievement Award

Beenie Man
Best Reggae Album
Art And Life

Steve Berkowitz
Best Historical Album
Louis Armstrong: The Complete Hot Five And Hot Seven Recordings

Toni Braxton
Best Female R&B Vocal Performance
"He Wasn't Man Enough"

Alison Brown
Best Country Instrumental Performance
"Leaving Cottondale" (with Béla Fleck)

Eric Clapton
Best Traditional Blues Album
Riding With the King (with B.B. King)

Chick Corea
Best Instrumental Arrangement
"Spain For Sextet & Orchestra"

Sheryl Crow
Best Female Rock Vocal Performance
"There Goes The Neighborhood"

George Crumb
Best Classical Contemporary Composition
"George Crumb: 70th Birthday Album, Star-Child"

Eminem
Best Rap Solo Performance
"The Real Slim Shady"
Best Rap Performance By A Duo or Group
"Forget About Dre"
Best Rap Album
The Marshall Mathers LP

Brian Eno
Record of the Year
"Beautiful Day"

Gloria Estefan
Best Traditional Tropical Latin Album
Alma Caribeña

Béla Fleck
Best Country Instrumental Performance
"Leaving Cottondale" (with Alison Brown)
Best Contemporary Jazz Album (w/Flecktones)
Outbound

Foo Fighters
Best Rock Album
There Is Nothing Left To Lose
Best Short Form Music Video
"Learn To Fly"

Faith Hill
Best Country Album
Breathe
Best Female Country Vocal Performance
"Breathe"
Best Country Collaboration With Vocals (with Tim McGraw)
"Let's Make Love"

Fred Jerkins III
Best R&B Song
"Say My Name"

Macy Gray
Best Female Pop Vocal Performance
"I Try"

Rodney Jerkins
Best R&B Song
"Say My Name"

Shelby Lynne
Best New Artist

Jars of Clay
Best Pop/Contemporary Gospel Album
If I Left The Zoo

Elton John
Best Musical Show Album
Elton John And Tim Rice's Aida

Michael Kamen
Best Rock Instrumental Performance
"The Call Of The Ktulu" - Michael Kamen Conducting The San Francisco Symphony Orchestra

B.B. King
Best Pop Collaboration With Vocals
"Is You Is, Or Is You Ain't (My Baby)"
Best Traditional Blues Album
Riding With The King (with Eric Clapton)

The Legends
Best Tejano Album
�Qué Es Música Tejana?

John Lennon
Best Long Form Music Video
"Gimme Some Truth - The Making Of John Lennon's Imagine Album"

Joe Lovano
Best Large Jazz Ensemble Album
52^nd Street Themes

Taj Mahal
Best Contemporary Blues Album
Shoutin' In Key

Arif Mardin
Trustees Award

Tim McGraw
Best Country Collaboration With Vocals (with Faith Hill)
"Let's Make Love"

Pat Metheny
Best Jazz Instrumental Solo
"(Go) Get It"

Edgar Meyer
Best Classical Crossover Album
Appalachian Journey

Chris Montan
Best Musical Show Album
Elton John & Tim Rice's Aida

Thomas Newman
Best Soundtrack Album For A Motion Picture, Television or Other Visual
Media
American Beauty

Mark O'Connor
Best Classical Crossover Album
Appalachian Journey

Eddie Palmieri
Best Salsa Album
Masterpiece/Obra Maestra

Dolly Parton
Best Bluegrass Album
The Grass Is Blue

Rage Against The Machine
Best Hard Rock Performance
"Guerilla Radio"

Tim Rice
Best Musical Show Album
Elton John and Tim Rice's Aida

Riders In The Sky
Best Musical Album for Children
Woody's Roundup Featuring Riders In The Sky

Brian Setzer Orchestra
Best Pop Instrumental Performance
"Caravan"

Shakira
Best Latin Pop Album
Shakira - MTV Unplugged

Tia Sillers
Best Country Song
"I Hope You Dance"

Scott Stapp and Mark Tremonti (Creed)
Best Rock Song
"With Arms Wide Open"

Sting
Best Male Pop Vocal Performance
"She Walks This Earth"

Jimmy Sturr
Best Polka Album
Touched By A Polka

Temptations
Best Traditional R&B Vocal Album
Ear-Resistable

The Who
Lifetime Achievement Award

John Williams
Best Instrumental Composition
"Theme From Angela's Ashes"]]> 2001-02-21T18:00:00-05:00 http://www.bmi.com/news/entry/200117 Artists, Aguilera, Christina, Arnold, David, B*Witched, Bee Gees, The, Black, Don, Bryant, Del, Clapton, Eric, John, Elton, Lennon, John, Morrison, Van, Orton, Beth, Presley, Elvis, Preston, Frances, Rice, Tim, Sade, Spears, Britney, Sting, Yoakam, Dwight, Awards, BMI Awards, BMI London Awards, Musical Styles, Country, Dance, Latin, Pop, Type, International
David Arnold, Lulu, Don Black, Barbara Broccoli, Michael Wilson, and BMI's Frances Preston
Sting, The Bee Gees and Queen were among the songwriters honored tonight by BMI, the US performing rights organization. The awards are given annually to the BMI songs from the Performing Right Society (PRS) and European societies' repertoires that have received the most radio and television airplay in the United States. The event was hosted by Frances W. Preston, the organization's President and CEO, assisted by BMI Vice President of European Writer/Publisher Relations Phillip Graham.

Paul Curran, BMI's Frances Preston, Robin Gibb, and BMI's Phil Graham

This year, BMI presented a Special Citation of Achievement to Eon Productions for the many years it has produced the James Bond film series and the contribution the music from these films has made to our popular music culture. Producer Barbara Broccoli accepted the award on behalf of the organization. In addition, composer David Arnold picked up his fourth consecutive BMI Film Music Award for the score to "The World Is Not Enough."

BMI's Phil Graham, Steve Winwood, and BMI's Del Bryant

"Save Tonight" (Diesel 2 Publishing [STIM] / Warner/Chappell Music Ltd.) by Eagle-Eye Cherry was named Song of the Year and received the Robert S. Musel Award, named for the late legendary songwriter, music industry executive and long time BMI consultant. In addition to receiving a Pop Award tonight, "Save Tonight" was also named Song of the Year at the BMI Pop Awards held earlier this year in Los Angeles.

Two songs achieved an amazing 6 million plays: Sting's classic "Every Breath You Take" (EMI Music Publishing Ltd./Magnetic Music.) and "More" by Marcello Ciorciolini, Norman Newell, Nino Oliviero and Riz Ortolani. Sting also received two other awards in the 2 million plays category for "If Ever I Lose My Faith In You" and "Spirits In The Material World" (EMI Music Publishing Ltd./Magnetic Music).

Van Morrison was the only honoree in the 5 million plays category for his classic "Brown Eyed Girl" (Universal Music Publishing). Honorees in the 4 million plays category included John Lennon and Sir Paul McCartney for "And I Love Her" (Northern Songs Ltd.). They also received a 2 million award for "Day Tripper" and a Pop Award for "Come Together". Other 4 million award winners were Barry and Robin Gibb for "To Love Somebody" (Gibb Brothers Music/BMG), and Claude Francois, Jacques Abel Jules Revaud and Gilles Thibaut for "My Way" (Eddie Barclay Editions [SACEM]/Jeune Musique Editions [SACEM]) recorded by Elvis Presley.

There were a total of seven winners in the 3 million performance category, including three for Steve Winwood: "Back In The High Life Again" (FS Ltd.), "The Finer Things" (FS Ltd.) and "Roll With It" (FS Ltd.); Mick Jagger and Keith Richards for "Honky Tonk Women"; Eric Clapton for "Tears In Heaven" (Warner/Chappell Music International Ltd.); Per Gessle for "It Must Have Been Love" (Jimmy Fun Music [STIM]) recorded by Roxette; and Sade for her smash hit "Sweetest Taboo" (Angel Music Ltd./Sony/ATV Music Publishing Ltd.).

Among those honored in the 2 million performance awards category were Sir Elton John, who scored three awards with "Someone Saved My Life Tonight," "I Don't Wanna Go On With You Like That" and "Little Jeannie"; LuLu, Billy Lawrie and Steve DuBerry for the Tina Turner recording of "I Don't Wanna Fight" (Chrysalis Music Ltd. and Famous Music); Mick Jagger and Keith Richards for "Brown Sugar"; John Lennon and Sir Paul McCartney for "Day Tripper" (Northern Songs Ltd.); Sting for "If Ever I Lose My Faith In You" (EMI Music Publishing Ltd./Magnetic Music); Donovan Leitch for "Sunshine Superman" (Donovan Music Ltd.); Freddie Mercury for "Crazy Little Thing Called Love" (EMI Music Publishing Ltd./Queen Music Ltd.), which also received a Country Award for Dwight Yoakam's recording of the song.

Beth Orton's "Stolen Car" (EMI Music Publishing Ltd.) was named College Song of The Year.

Pop Awards honorees included John Barry for "Millennium" (EMI United Partnership Ltd.) which was based on a re-recording of the string part from the James Bond movie theme "You Only Live Twice," and Roger Waters for the Class of 99 hit of "Another Brick In The Wall." Also honored were B*Witched members Lindsay Armaou, Edele Lynch, Keavy Lynch and Sinead O'Carroll for "C'est La Vie" (Bucks Music Ltd.). Gary Numan scored with "Cars" (Beggars Banquet Music Ltd.) on which he collaborated with Fear Factory, and Gavin Rossdale for Bush's "Chemicals Between Us." Noel Gallagher was a winner with "Cigarettes and Alcohol" (Creation Songs Ltd., Sony/ATV Music Publishing) recorded by Rod Stewart, and John Lennon and Sir Paul McCartney were honored yet again for Junior Vasquez's version of "Come Together" (Northern Songs Ltd.).

Sir Elton John and Tim Rice were also honored with a Pop Award for Sir Elton's collaboration with LeAnn Rimes on "Written In The Stars" (Happenstance Ltd./Sixty Four Squares Music Ltd.). Jorgen Elofsson received a Pop Award for the Britney Spears' hits "Sometimes" and "(You Drive Me) Crazy" (BMG Music Publishing Scandinavia AB [STIM]/Zomba Music Publishers Ltd.); Australian writer Pam Sheyne scored an award for Christina Aguilera's hit "Genie In A Bottle" (Appletreesongs Ltd. / Warner/Chappell Music Ltd.).

The world of country music honored Freddie Mercury with a Country Award for "Crazy Little Thing Called Love" (EMI Publishing Ltd./Queen Music Ltd.) recorded by Dwight Yoakam and, as previously mentioned, the song also won an award in the 2 Million-Air category. The second Country Award winner was Steve Booker for "Somebody's Out There Watching" (Windswept Pacific Music Ltd.) recorded by The Kinleys.

The Dance Music Award went to Danski and DJ Delmundo for the Vengaboys smash hit "We Like To Party" (Violent Publishing BV), which also won a Pop Award. The Latin scene was also represented with a Latin Award going to Gianluca Grignani for "Mi Historia Entre Tus Dedos" (Universal Music Italia SRL [SIAE]).

Composer Richard Hartley was cited for his Emmy award-winning soundtrack of the American TV film "Alice In Wonderland."

The BMI Awards ceremony acknowledges the talents of British and European songwriters and composers whose works are represented by BMI in the United States. BMI is an American performing rights organization representing more than 250,000 American songwriters, composers and music publishers, and thousands of British and European songwriters and composers who license their works through BMI in the United States.

Nominated for five Tony's®, the love-triangle musical set in ancient Egypt also took home awards for Best Scenic Design, Best Lighting Design, while Heather Headley took home the award for Best Performance by a Leading Actress in a Musical for her role in the show.

John and Rice also won a Tony® for Best Musical in 1998 for their adaptation of Disney's "The Lion King."

Singer/songwriter Fran Healy of the band Travis was named Songwriter of the Year and picked up his second award for Best Contemporary Song, "Why Does It Always Rain On Me."

BMI's Ivor Novello Award Winners

British Academy of Composers and Songwriters Fellowship
Sir Paul McCartney

Songwriter of the Year
Fran Healy

Best Contemporary Song
"Why Does It Always Rain On Me"
written by Fran Healy
published by Sony/ATV Music Publishing
performed by Travis

Best Original Film Score
David Arnold
"The World Is Not Enough"
published by BMG Music Publishing

International Hit of the Year
"Genie In A Bottle"
co-written by Pam Sheyne
co-published by Apple Tree Songs-Warner/Chappell Music

International Achievement in Musical Theater
"The Lion King"
co-written by Sir Elton John and Sir Tim Rice

Jimmy Kennedy Award
Geoff Stephens

Best Score:

• "Marie Christine" - book and score by Michael John LaChiusa
• "The Wild Party" - book and score by Michael John LaChiusa (LaChiusa received his theater training in the BMI Lehman Engel Musical Theatre Workshop)
  
• "Aida" - score by Sir Elton John (PRS) and Tim Rice (PRS)

Best Play:

• Arthur Miller's "The Ride Down Mt. Morgan"

Best Performance by a Leading Actor in a Play:

• John C. Reilly for his performance in "True West"

What does a rock star do after he's sold over 110 million records, been knighted by Queen Elizabeth, composed and performed the best-selling single in history and won the prestigious Grammy Legend Award for lifetime achievement?

If you're the acclaimed singer/songwriter Sir Elton John, you gamely team with the renowned librettist Tim Rice to create one of the most highly anticipated Broadway musicals. Elton John & Tim Rice's Aida marks the second time the John and Rice have collaborated. The duo first teamed to compose the soundtrack for the Disney animated blockbuster, The Lion King. The resulting album was the best-selling recording of 1994, yielding the hit single "Can You Feel the Love Tonight" and capturing Sir Elton his first Oscar. In 1997, the film was adapted into a Tony Award-winning Broadway musical.

Slated to open in spring 2000, Elton John & Tim Rice's Aida is a classic love triangle of loyalty and betrayal. An Egyptian captain named Radames finds himself enamored of a captured African princess named Aida. To spare her from a life of hard labor, Radames gives Aida as a handmaiden to his future bride, the Egyptian princess Amneris. Though Aida's true identity as an African princess remains a secret, she forms a deep friendship with Amneris. At the same time, Radames falls in love with the African servant. Aida finds herself torn between her duty to her countrymen, her impossible love for Radames, and her growing friendship with Amneris. Elton John & Tim Rice's Aida is the complex saga of three people forced to make choices that will change their lives and alter the course of history.

"What makes Aida so interesting to me is that the story is so great, so pertinent," Sir Elton says. "It's a beautiful, complex love story, where bigotry and hatred are swept out the window, and love, compassion, forgiveness, and understanding triumph. In this day and age, I'm a great believer in the human spirit triumphing over evil in any way."

John's enduring faith in the human spirit is a testament to his own passion. Born Reginald Kenneth Dwight in Pinner, England, John teamed with lyricist Bernie Taupin and began releasing a spate of well-regarded recordings in the early '70s. John albums like Honky Chateau, Goodbye Yellow Brick Road and Captain Fantastic and the Brown Dirt Cowboy are now considered pop classics. The John/Taupin hit streak continued unabated in the '80s with hit singles like "Blues Eyes," "I'm Still Standing" and "Sad Songs (Say So Much)."

As the '90s dawned, John's career gained locomotive momentum. His 1990 single, "The One," was a global Top 10 hit. In 1992, he founded the Elton John AIDS Foundation, a charity that has since disbursed millions of US dollars, UK pounds and Australian dollars to charities in their respective lands. The Foundation has also contributed proceeds to fight AIDS in Africa.

John was poised to celebrate his 50th birthday when his good friend Diana, Princess of Wales, was killed in a controversial 1997 auto accident. In her honor, Taupin set new lyrics to John's 1973 classic melody, "Candle in the Wind." John performed the elegiac tune at Diana's Westminster Abbey funeral. Released as a single in the weeks following the funeral, "Candle in the Wind 1997" became the top single of all time.

John lost another good friend earlier when fashion designer Gianni Versace was slain outside his Florida home. But curiously, these tragedies were been offset by a number of bittersweet triumphs. In honor of his musical and charitable contributions, John has been made a British Knight, an Officer of Arts and Letters in France, an Honorary Member of the Royal Academy of Music and a member of the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. Possessing almost superhuman creativity and stamina, John seems destined for even more achievements in the 21st Century.