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President Obama and the First Lady hosted a “Celebration of Music from the Civil Rights Movement” at the White House on Tuesday night. The concert was the fifth in a series that is dedicated to what President Obama calls “Music that tells the story of America.”

The first performance was by Yolanda Adams who sang the Sam Cooke classic “A Change is Gonna Come.” This was followed by performances from Bob Dylan, Joan Baez, Smokey Robinson, John Mellencamp, Natalie Cole, John Legend, Seal, The Blind Boys of Alabama, the Howard University Choir, The Freedom Singers, and Dr Bernice Johnson Reagon. Everyone, including President Obama, finished off the concert with a sing-along of “Lift Every Voice and Sing.”

Here’s some highlights from the show.

President Obama’s introduction

Bob Dylan - “The Times, They are a Changin”

Joan Baez - “We Shall Overcome”

Jennifer Hudson and Smokey Robinson - “People Get Ready”

The complete show can be viewed at:
http://www.pbs.org/inperformanceatthewhitehouse/

On 13 February 2010, the Halcyon Gallery in London will open an exclusive exhibition of Bob Dylan’s first paintings on canvas.

The paintings in the ‘Bob Dylan on Canvas’ exhibition are based on drawings and sketches made while on the road during the period of 1989 to 1992 - ‘The Drawn Blank Series.’

Bob Dylan said of his paintings:

“I just draw what’s interesting to me, and then I paint it. Rows of houses, orchard acres, lines of tree trunks, could be anything. I can take a bowl of fruit and turn it into a life and death drama. Women are power figures, so I depict them that way. I can find people to paint in mobile home communities. I could paint bourgeois people too.

I’m not trying to make social comment or fulfil somebody’s vision and I can find subject matter anywhere. I guess in some way that comes out of the folk world that I came up in.”

‘Bob Dylan on Canvas’ is the last UK exhibition of this body of work. It will feature nearly 100 artworks from the musician, including the world premiere of 30 large paintings. The exhibition will run from 13 Feb 2010 to 10 Apr 2010. The Halycon is located at 24 Bruton Street, Mayfair, London. In his upcoming exhibition at the prestigious Statens Museum for Kunst in Copenhagen, Dylan will unveil new works along with selected pieces from ‘The Drawn Blank Series.’

Bob Dylan’s ‘Motel Pool’

Further information on ‘Bob Dylan on Canvas’ is available on the Halycon Gallery website

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.