Country’s Greatest Past and Present Honored at 10th Annual ACM Honors

September 12, 2016 Janeen Megloranzo Event Coverage 0

NASHVILLE, TN - AUGUST 30: Singer Jason Aldean recieves an award onstage during the 10th Annual ACM Honors at the Ryman Auditorium on August 30, 2016 in Nashville, Tennessee. (Photo by John Shearer/Getty Images for ACM)

It might have taken a decade, but the ACM Honors finally made its television debut on Friday night and it did not disappoint! The two-hours consisted of beautiful tributes to living legends and those who are no longer with us, as well as to current country superstars’ achievements. Here’s our recap of the evening’s big moments.

Lady Antebellum, who hosted the event, kicked off the night with a wonderful performance of “Galveston,” in tribute to the amazing Glen Campbell.  Little Big Town presented Keith Urban with the Mae Boren Axton award for his time-honored dedication and service to the Academy of Country Music before Urban took the stage and made his guitar sing during his newest single “Blue Ain’t Your Color.”

The three recipients of the Cliffie Stone Pioneer Award were:

Tanya Tucker – celebrated by Maren Morris with an amazing performance of the song “Delta Dawn” that had Tucker on her feet!

Crystal Gayle –  honored by Kelsea Ballerini who sang “Don’t It Make My Brown Eyes Blue” with such poise and elegance even Gayle commented she may never be able to sing the song again.

The Statler Brothers – Dan + Shay and Chris Young paid tribute to the quartet with a classic version of “Flowers On the Wall,” complete with 60’s style suits and amazing harmonies

Songwriter of the Year went to Ross Copperman, who’s written an insane amount of hits across the country spectrum including “Pirate Flag,” “Point at You,”and  “American Country Love Song.” Dierks Bentley, who has a history of writing with Copperman, honored his friend with his new song “Freedom,” written by Bentley, Copperman and Ashley Gorely.

Luke Bryan and Cole Swindell celebrated the Poet’s Award recipient Eddie Rabbitt with an energetic performance of “I Love A Rainy Night” that had everyone in the audience singing and grooving along. Rabbitt passed away in 1998 after a battle with cancer at the age of 56.

Jimmy Webb, a long-time friend of Glen Campbell who wrote some of Campbell’s greatest hits, received the living Poet’s Award.  His classic “MacArthur Park,” which has been recorded by artists of various genres, was performed by The Band Perry.

Before Friday night only six other artists ever won the elusive Triple Crown Award, which goes to an artist who has won the New Male/Female Vocalist of the Year, Male/Female Vocalists of the Year and Entertainer of the Year awards. Jason Aldean became lucky number 7, winning EOTY just this year to complete the triumvirate.  Aldean celebrated with a medley consisting two of his Platinum singles, “Dirt Road Anthem” and “Tattoos On This Town,” and his newest single “A Little More Summertime.”

The passing of Merle Haggard earlier this year was a hard hit to the world of country music. Those who were lucky enough to know him lost a friend, while everyone lost an iconic idol. The Academy of Country Music created the first ever Merle Haggard Award, and while there has been some controversy regarding who was deserving of such an acknowledgement, the award’s presenter Emmylou Harris solidified the reasoning behind choosing Miranda Lambert: “She has always made it clear she has something to say, and she’s going to say it in her way, just like the Hag.” An emotional Lambert accepted the award, followed by a phenomenal performance of “Misery and Gin,” further proving why she’s worthy of an award with the Hag’s name engraved on it.

Newly named Nashville Predators captain Mike Fisher accepted the ACM Lifting Lives Gary Haber Award for his wife Carrie Underwood for her commitment to helping others and her generous spirit. Underwood was not in attendance, but Fisher threw to a taped performance of “Temporary Home” with Underwood looking like a princess amongst petals.

The most powerful vocal performance of the night came from the duet of Cam and Alicia Keys, who completely blew Little Big Town – as well as everyone at home – away with their tribute of “Girl Crush.”  LBT received the Crystal Milestone Award to commemorate the song that drew controversy but more importantly, held the #1 spot on the Billboard Hot Country Songs Chart for 13 consecutive weeks, breaking a record set in 1959 by the Browns with “The Three Bells,” which held the spot for 10 weeks.

Bookending the night was the event that everyone had waiting for: the Glen Campbell tribute, consisting of Blake Shelton (“Southern Nights”), Dierks Bentley (“Gentle On My Mind”), Keith Urban (“Wichita Linemen”), Toby Keith (“By The Time I get To Phoenix”), and Campbell’s children Shannon and Ashley as part of the stage band. The four then joined together on stage for the iconic “Rhinestone Cowboy” before Campbell’s wife Kim, along with their three children, accepted the Career Achievement Award.

The great thing about the ACM Honors is that the country music heroes and legends who might not make the cut during the yearly, and more current, ACM Awards telecasts have their moments to shine on their own and get the proper recognition they deserve.  Hopefully this debut was the first in many more telecasts for years to come.

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