SOCAN (The Society of Composers Authors and Music Publishers of Canada) and the best of Canada's music industry came together last night at Roy Thomson Hall to honour some of this country's most talented songwriters, composers, lyricists and music publishers at the 20th annual SOCAN Awards Gala. Co-hosted by Barney Bentall, Carolyn Dawn Johnson and David Myles, the SOCAN Awards acknowledged members' and other music industry influencers' outstanding achievements from the previous year.
SOCAN members Hedley, Doc Walker, Finger Eleven and Rush, along with Stompin' Tom Connors, Rita MacNeil, Gordon Lightfoot, Jimmy Rankin, Deric Ruttan, Tom Cochrane and Kardinal Offishall, among many others, were in attendance to accept their awards.
Cuban soul rocker Alex Cuba opened the awards gala with an unforgettable performance and later in the evening Carolyn Dawn Johnson and Doc Walker took to the stage for a medley performance of SOCAN Classics. Canadian rapper D-Sisive performed his 2009 ECHO Songwriting Prize winner, "Nobody with a Notepad," and Russell deCarle and Barney Bentall closed the show with a lively tribute to Stompin' Tom Connors.
The evening was filled with celebration and accolades. Awards handed out included: Feist for "1234;" Hedley for "For the Nights I Can't Remember;" Finger Eleven for "I'll Keep Your Memory Vague" in the pop/rock category; Kardinal Offshall and Cristian "DJ Kemo" Bahamonde for "Dangerous" in the urban music category; and Doc Walker for "Beautiful Life" in the country music category. Finger Eleven accepted a second win with the International Song Award for "Paralyzer."
"In my ten years at SOCAN, the music industry has evolved tremendously, both at home and around the world," said André LeBel, CEO of SOCAN. "In Canada, the industry continues to thrive and our members never stop in their work to bring new and exciting music to the global audience. The SOCAN Awards is one way we can show them how proud we are of their contributions; they are truly great Canadian ambassadors to the world."
Each year, SOCAN celebrates music industry pioneers for their involvement in the Canadian music industry and their outstanding successes throughout their careers. Recipients of SOCAN's major achievement awards this year went to Richard Flohil, who received the Special Achievement Award; Stompin' Tom Connors, who received the Lifetime Achievement Award; and Rita MacNeil, who received The National Achievement Award. RUSH - Geddy Lee, Alex Lifeson and Neil Peart received the International Achievement Award in recognition of their outstanding international success in 2008.
SOCAN will recognize outstanding Francophone music creators and publishers at an awards gala on Tuesday November 24 at The Hyatt Regency in Montreal. SOCAN members will join host Michel Rivard in celebration of this year's Francophone SOCAN award recipients.