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Neil Young won his first-ever Grammy and Springsteen won his 20th at the 52nd annual Grammy Awards ceremony tonight (31 January). The biggest winner was Beyonce who took away a record six Grammys, including song of the year for “Single Ladies.”

Young won the Grammy for Best Boxed or Special Limited Edition Package for ‘Neil Young Archives Vol. 1 (1963-1972),’ and he shared the award with his co-art directors Gary Burden and Jenice Heo.

Gary Burden, Jenice Heo and Neil Young accept the Grammy

Young was also nominated for best solo rock vocal performance, but lost out to Bruce Springsteen, who won for “Working on a Dream.” The other nominees for best solo rock vocal performance were Bob Dylan for “Beyond Here Lies Nothin’, John Fogerty for “Change In The Weather” and Prince for “Dreamer.”

Springsteen has now received 20 Grammy awards and has been honoured at the last eight ceremonies. His first Grammy was best male rock vocal performance for “Dancing in the Dark” in 1985. “Working on a Dream” is the title track of Springsteen’s latest album and has become a popular song in concert.

Bruce Springsteen - “Working on a Dream”

Not suprisingly, this year’s ceremony also saw Michael Jackson honoured with a lifetime achievement award, which was accepted by his children Prince Michael and Paris Jackson. This was preceded by a performance of Jackson’s “Earth Song,” with a recording of Jackson accompanied by live performances from Celine Dion, Usher, Carrie Underwood, Smokey Robinson and Jennifer Hudson.

Record of the year went to Kings Of Leon for “Use Somebody.”

Neil Young became the 20th recipient of the MusiCares Person of the Year award on Friday night.

The Grammy Week event was held at Los Angeles Convention Center on 29 January, with more than 2,000 people in attendance. The host Jack Black was reportedly in hilarious form as he introduced a lineup of nearly 30 artists performing 20 Neil Young songs. The image (left) shows Neil Young receiving the award from Neil Portnow, President/CEO of the MusiCares Foundation and The Recording Academy.

Highlights of the event included:

• Stephen Stills and Sheryl Crow duetting on “Long May You Run”
• Emmylou Harris, Patty Griffin and Lucinda Williams’ performing “Comes A Time”
• John Fogerty, Keith Urban and Booker T.’s tearing up the place with their rendition of “Rockin’ In The Free World.”

Stephen Stills and Sheryl Crow pay tribute to Neil Young

Proceeds from the event go to MusiCares’ Emergency Financial Assistance and Addiction Recovery programs.

Jeff Beck and Eric Clapton are to unite for a series of shows next month. The guitar legends, who are both former members of The Yardbirds, will begin their short tour at the London O2 Arena on February 13. They will play separately, before taking to the stage to perform together.

In addition to the gigs with Clapton, Jeff Beck has announced details of a worldwide tour beginning in Seoul, South Korea on March 20 and ending in New Orleans, USA on May 1. Beck will be showcasing songs from his latest studio album, Emotion & Commotion. Beck recorded Emotion & Commotion late last year at Sarm Studios in London with award-winning producers Steve Lipson and Trevor Horn. It is due for release in April.

New touring band

A brand new touring band will join Jeff Beck on stage for all these engagements. The band comprises:

• Michael Walden on drums - Walden featured on Beck’s 1976 album, Wired, and has also collaborated with Stevie Wonder, Aretha Franklin and Tom Jones
• Rhonda Smith on bass - Smith has played bass for Beyonce, Justin Timberlake and Prince
• Jason Rebello on keyboards - Rebello has performed with Sting and Chaka Khan, and also previously with Jeff Beck.

Tour dates

Here’s the full tour details:

Jeff Beck Tour Dates (with Eric Clapton)

February

13 London O2 Arena
14 London O2 Arena
18 New York City Madison Square Garden
19 New York City Madison Square Garden
21 Toronto Air Canada Center
22 Montreal Bell Centre

Jeff Beck’s Emotion & Commotion Tour (First Leg of U.S. Tour)

April

16 San Francisco Nob Hill Masonic Centre
17 Los Angeles Nokia Theatre LA Live
18 Temecula Pechanga Resort & Casino
19 San Diego 4th & B
24 Houston Verizon Wireless Theatre
25 Dallas Nokia Theatre at Grand Prairie
27 Tulsa Brady Theatre
28 Kansas City Starlight Theatre
29 St. Louis Fox Theatre
30 Memphis Beale Street Music Festival

May

1 New Orleans Jazz Festival (Gentilly Stage)

More US dates are expected to be added.

Click here for Jeff Beck ticket information

2009 recap

The 2010 World tour follows a successful 2009 for Jeff Beck, during which he played a sold out World tour, was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame for the second time, and released the platinum-selling “Performing This Week… Live At Ronnie Scott’s.” Preview the tracks below, including “Day in the Life” for which Beck received a Grammy nomination.

Another highlight of 2009 for Jeff Beck was his appearance at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame 25th Anniversary Concert at Madison Square Garden. Here’s his excellent performance of The Beatles’ “Day in the Life” from that show.

The Observor has produced a great series on some of some of the living legends of American music, as recalled by the stars they influenced.

In addition, photographer Jamie-James Medina spent a year taking portraits of these legends for Observor Music Monthly. The results are impressive and are presented with the articles.

The following articles are included in the series:

Jerry Lee Lewis: the hellfire pianist by Ray Davies

Chuck Berry: hail, hail, rock ‘n’ roll by Bobby Gillespie

Little Richard: the outrageous pianist by Richard Hawley

Pete Seeger: pioneer of protest by Billy Brag

Ramblin’ Jack Elliott: folk pioneer by Roger McGuinn

Etta James: blues powerhouse by Adele

Smokey Robinson: the soul of Motown by Corinne Bailey Rae

Little Anthony: the original teen dreamer by Pete Waterman

Ornette Coleman: jazz revolutionary by Seb Rochford

Sonny Rollins: sax colossus by Charlie Watts

Dave Brubeck: piano’s gentle giant by Jamie Cullum

Jimmy Scott: a voice from another world by Sufjan Stevens

Wanda Jackson: rockabilly queen by Imelda May

Kris Kristofferson: the thinking man’s outlaw by Steve Earle

Charlie Louvin: the singer of God-fearing country by Emmylou Harris

Ralph Stanley: preaching the gospel of bluegrass by Martin Carthy

T-Model Ford: boss of the blues by Dan Auerbach

Honeyboy Edwards: Delta bluesman by Paul Jones

Pinetop Perkins: the oldest living bluesman by Seasick Steve

Buddy Guy: guitar visionary by John Mayer

Les Paul: the innovator by Slash

The Living Legend series was conceived before Les Paul’s death, but the portrait and tribute remained part of the series.