The GRAMMY Museum® released two Songwriters Hall of Fame programs from its archive today, while the Museum in Los Angeles is closed until further notice in light of COVID-19. The programs are being released in celebration of the 10-year partnership between the two organizations.
Videos by American Songwriter
The programs originally took place in the Museum’s Clive Davis Theater and include “Legends In The Round” from Oct. 19, 2010, featuring legendary songwriters and SHOF inductees Hal David, Lamont Dozier, Mac Davis, Nickolas Ashford, and Valerie Simpson moderated by GRAMMY® and Oscar -winning composer/songwriter and SHOF inductee Paul Williams, as well as “Chart Toppers: Today’s Star-Making Hit Songwriters/Producers” from Oct. 18, 2017, featuring songwriters busbee, Dave Bassett, Warren “Oak” Felder, and Teddy Geiger, moderated by Executive Editor of Music at Variety Shirley Halperin. The programs showcase iconic and contemporary songwriters who share behind-the-scenes stories about their craft and unique collaborations with a string of global hit songs.
The writers in the Legends In The Round panel have written some of the most timeless songs in history. Watching the videos reveals how some of the greatest songwriters do not have the greatest voices, as they freely admit, but have great command of melody and phrasing. Hal David performs “I’ll Never Fall In Love Again,” made famous by Dionne Warwick and discusses its origins. Lamont Dozier reveals how his grandfather’s flirting with women outside his grandmother’s beauty shop inspired “I Can’t Help Myself (Sugarpie Honeybunch).” Mac Davis gives a moving rendition of his Elvis Presley hit “In the Ghetto.” Nickolas Ashford & Valerie Simpson perform “Ain’t No Mountain High Enough and “You’re All I Need To Get By,” and Paul Williams, who moderated the conversation, works his way through “Rainbow Connection” and “Evergreen.”
The Chart Toppers video, from October 18, 2017, focuses on more current writers, performing their then-current hits and the collaborative process. The late busbee performs “My Church,” Dave Basset runs through “Ex’s and Oh’s” while Teddy Geiger and Oak Felder discuss and perform hits they’ve written for Selena Gomez, Shawn Mendes and more
The videos will be posted on the “Museum at Home” page of the GRAMMY Museum website here. They will also be available on the GRAMMY Museum’s YouTube channel.
Hurry though! These videos will be available to the public for 30 days only.
