By Phyllis Pollack
Singer, songwriter and guitarist Pete Townshend will receive the distinguished Les Paul Award at the 28th Annual Technical Excellence and Creativity (TEC) Awards.
Townshend, known for his unique guitar style, and his historic and iconic windmills, will make his debut at TEC during NAMM week to accept this mark of recognition.
The Les Paul Award is sponsored by the Les Paul Foundation.
Prominent sound producers, engineers, recording artists and studio musicians will take part in honoring the achievements of their peers at the TEC Awards, the audio industry’s most prestigious awards event.
The event will be held on Friday night, January 25 at the Hilton Anaheim during the 2013 NAMM Show.
Last year, Townshend released his autobiography "Who I Am," which received critical acclaim. A member of The Who for more than four decades, Townshend has long been vocal about hearing problems he has suffered from loud music on stage.
He has also worked as an activist, and has been outspoken about many causes, including child abuse.
Townshend's achievements include the very first rock opera, 1969's "Tommy," for which he received an Oscar nomination.
He has played many benefit concerts throughout the years, and is considered one of rock's major humanitarians.
Noting the past year’s most notable achievements in sound technology and music production, the awards show will distribute 28 awards for advances in audio products and projects, many of which are showcased at NAMM.
The TEC Awards will be co-produced with the National Association of Music Merchants (NAMM). “We are honored to partner with the great folks at the TEC Foundation to produce the TEC Awards at NAMM," said Joe Lamond, president and CEO of NAMM.
“Since the early days of NAMM and exhibitors like the Edison Company, technology and creativity have been at the heart of the advancement of the music industry,” he added.
Lamond spoke earlier today about the TEC Awards during his annual State of NAMM address, expressing his enthusiasm about the event.
The TEC Awards will be hosted by singer/songwriter John Sebastian, founder of The Lovin’ Spoonful. Sebastian was inducted into the Rock N’ Roll Hall of Fame in 2000.
Another highlight will be the induction of Record Plant President Rose Mann-Cherney to the TEC Awards Hall of Fame. The Record Plant's history is long and storied, beginning with Jimi Hendrix's Electric Ladyland in 1968.
Martin Lewis, longtime friend of Pete Townshend and co-creator/producer of Amnesty International’s Secret Policemen’s Ball series will present the Les Paul Award together with Les’ son, Russ Paul.
Rose Mann-Cherney will receive her award from producer, arranger and A&R executive Ron Fair (Christina Aguilera, Vanessa Carlton, The Black Eyed Peas) and guitarist Slash (Guns N’ Roses, Velvet Revolver).
Presenting the awards for Outstanding Technical and Creative Achievement will be an all-star lineup of renowned artists, arrangers, producer and engineers, including: electronic music diva Suzanne Ciani, platinum producer Phil Ramone and his sons, producer Csaba Petocz (Steve Nicks, Metallica, Alanis Morissette).
Producer/engineer Ryan Hewitt (Avett Brothers, Sheryl Crow, Red Hot Chili Peppers) and drum software guru Steven Slate will also dole out awards.
To date, guest artists scheduled to perform include John Sebastian, David Pack (Ambrosia) and bassists Phil Chen (Jeff Beck, Rod Stewart, Ray Manzarek) and Tal Wilkenfeld (Allman Brothers Band, Mick Jagger, Chick Corea).
The house band for the awards will be the 2Cold ChiliBone TEC Band led by musical director Larry Batiste (Grammy Awards, Whitney Houston, Stevie Wonder), and will feature Will Kennedy (Yellowjackets, Lee Ritenour) on drums; Melvin Lee Davis (Chaka Khan, Gerald Albright) on bass.
Keyboardist Randy Emata (Grammy Awards Pre-Tel Band); guitarist Ross Bolton (Al Jarreau, David Benoit, Warren Hill); percussionist Luis Conte (over 1,000 recordings); Ron King (Jeff Lorber, Michael Bolton) on trumpet; Jacques Voyemant (Chris Walden Big Band) on trombone will also play on stage.
Other musicians will include Charles McNeal (Boz Scaggs, Wynton Marsalis) on sax; and vocalist Claytoven Richardson (Aretha Franklin, Elton John) mark others performing.
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