The National Academy of Popular Music/Songwriters Hall of Fame celebrated its 31st annual Induction and Awards Dinner on Thursday June 15 at the Sheraton New York Hotel & Towers in New York City.
This year's inductees include some of the most influential songwriters and performers of the 1960s and 1970s in James Brown, Glen Frey, Don Henley, Curtis Mayfield, James Taylor and Brian Wilson. Special Award recipients include Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller (the Jonny Mercer Award), Julian Aberbach (the Abe Olman Publisher Award), Neil Diamond (the Sammy Cahn Lifetime Achievement Award), Johnny Mathis (the Hitmaker Award), and "All of Me" by Gerald Marks & Seymour Simons as well as "You Are My Sunshine" by Jimmy Davis, awarded as Towering Songs.
The National Academy of Popular Music/Songwriters Hall of Fame was founded in 1969 by songwriter Johnny Mercer and publishers Abe Olman and Howie Richmond. The NAPM/SHOF is also devoted to the development of new songwriting talent through workshops, showcases and scholarships.