Mac Davis and his wife Lise Kristen Gerard is seen at the 63rd Annual BMI Country Awards at BMI’s Music Row offices on Tuesday, Nov. 3, 2015, in Nashville, Tenn. (Photo by Wade Payne/Invision/AP)
NASHVILLE, Tennessee (AP) — Songwriter Mac Davis, who wrote the Elvis Presley classic “In the Ghetto,” was honored at the BMI Country Awards in Nashville, Tennessee, on Tuesday with tributes from Luke Bryan and Little Big Town.
Davis was given the BMI Icon award for penning five decades of hits in the pop and country worlds including “Memories,” ”A Little Less Conversation,” and “Texas in my Rearview Mirror.”
The Lubbock, Texas-native was also a film and stage actor, TV and radio personality and had a solo career as a singer. Davis said he was in awe of Elvis’ personality and thanked him for helping him as a songwriter and later as an artist.
“I watched him when he first came to Lubbock, Texas, and he stood on the back of a flatbed truck . and the girls were just screaming and yelling and climbing up and trying to get to him,” Davis told the crowd of songwriters, artists and music industry representatives. “And I said, ‘Man, I want to do that.'”
Rascal Flatts performed Davis’ song “Baby, Don’t Get Hooked on Me,” while the four-part vocal group Little Big Town performed the softly poignant “In the Ghetto.”
“I also want to know how you wrote a lyric that tells a woman to shut her mouth,” Bryan joked before breaking into his best Elvis impression of “A Little Less Conversation.”
Rodney Clawson was named songwriter of the year for his writing credits on seven top country songs, including Kenny Chesney’s “American Kids,” and Lady Antebellum’s “Bartender.”
“Beat of the Music,” performed and co-written by Brett Eldredge, was named the song of the year.
Congratulations to The Browns and Richard Sterban, who shared the stage with Elvis, on the recent announcement of their induction into the Country Music Hall of Fame.
Jim Ed Brown and The Browns, who toured will Elvis, will be inducted into the “Veterans Era Artist” category. The Oak Ridge Boys will be inducted into the “Modern Era Artist” category. Richard Sterban, a member of the Oak Ridge Boys, was also a member of The Stamps, who performed with Elvis.
The official induction ceremony will take place later this year. CMA created the Country Music Hall of Fame in 1961 to recognize noteworthy individuals for their outstanding contributions to the format with Country Music’s highest honor. Also inducted this year is guitarist Grady Martin.
“Today is an overwhelming day not just for me, but for the Brown family” said Jim Ed Brown. “Receiving this honor with my sisters, Maxine and Bonnie, is something I had dreamed about for years, but never knew if it would happen or not. Fame is fleeting, hit records change every week, award show winners and nominees change every year, but being inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame will be forever.”
