Musicrow.com: Americana Music Award Coverage

musicrow.com By Bobby Karl

Rosanne was first up, presenting the Lifetime Achievement Award for Songwriting to Mellencamp. “Americana is the box they put you in when you take your art too seriously to fit in any other box,” she said. She described the honoree as “a quintessentially American artist” and as “the pride of Indiana.”

“A songwriter tries to write something that can become part of the fabric of the listener,” Mellencamp said. “This award shows that some people are still listening, and I appreciate that very much.” Performing solo with acoustic guitar, he sang “Save Some Time to Dream” from his new Rounder CD No Better Than This. Copies of the CD were handed out to all attendees upon entering.