Kennedy Center Honors: The Show’s Most Memorable Performances

There is a reason for the word Honor is in the title. The Kennedy Center Honors recognize the lifetime contributions of artists in the fields of music, dance, theater, opera, film and television and regularly recognize its recipients with memorable performances.

Since the honors began in 1978, countless artists have been honored, but there are certain honorees that will remain in our hearts forever. Ahead of the 46th annual event honoring Billy Crystal, Renée Fleming, Barry Gibb, Queen Latifah and Dionne Warwick on December 27, we look back at some of the show’s most memorable performances – starting with Lenny Bernstein’s opening statement from the beginning . The Kennedy Center Honors, of course.

Kris Kristofferson, Lyle Lovett, Emmylou Harris and Rosanne Cash honor Johnny Cash in 1996

Three of the country greats performed hits from Cash’s eclectic songbook: “Sunday Morning Coming Down,” “Folsom Prison Blues.” and “Ring of Fire” – but it wasn’t until Cash’s daughter Rosanne took the stage that the legend finally came crashing down (tributes are not told in advance who will pay tribute to them). “My father is a man of paradoxes,” she began. “Growing up on a farm, he was shaped by hard manual labor and developed into a poet with a powerful, sonorous voice. He was raised as a Baptist and yet possesses the soul of a mystic. He has lived a hard life, a hard life, and yet he has an unmatched sensitivity to beauty, elegance and children. The bond that ties all of this together is Johnny Cash, the songwriter. She then sang Cash’s signature tune, “Walk the Line,” which she said was sung at every one of his concerts. (See here).

Beyoncé sings “Proud Mary” in honor of Tina Turner in 2005

The Kennedy Center probably only needed two seconds to decide who would be the best woman to sing the Turner classic. The beloved laureate giggled with joy as Beyoncé took the stage and said: “I’ll never forget the first time I saw you perform.” I have never seen a woman so powerful, so fearless and so incredible in my life. And those legs!” Her subsequent performance was so exciting that even Tom Brokaw shook his head with joy. Beyoncé would perform the song again, but this time with Turner, at the 2008 Grammys.

Jon Stewart and Sting celebrate Bruce Springsteen in 2009

The Kennedy Center pulled out all the stops for “The Boss” and hired Sting for a beautiful choir-accompanied version of “The Rising” that had everyone, including Springsteen, on their feet (you can see it here ). But to kick off the tribute, Jon Stewart took the stage and delivered what was left The The best joke of all time on stage at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts. “I am not a music critic or a historian or an archivist. I can’t tell you where Bruce Springsteen stands in the pantheon of the American songbook. I cannot illuminate the context of his work or his roots or the folk and oral traditions of our great nation. But I’m from New Jersey. And so I can tell you what I believe, and what I believe is this: I believe Bob Dylan and James Brown had a baby. And they left that child, as you can imagine at the time, as same-sex interracial relationships were occurring, they left that child on the side of the road between exits 8A and 9 on the New Jersey Turnpike. This boy is Bruce Springsteen.”

Mavis Staples and James Taylor honor Paul McCartney in 2010

McCartney looked pretty exuberant when Taylor took the stage to perform the Beatles gem “Let it Be.” But then Taylor and Mavis Staples started the really addictive part of the song: that signature close close close followed by the icon Hello Judas – The room exploded as the audience jumped up and glowing orbs began to wave around the dark hall. You should notice a theme here; Any performance at the Kennedy Center with a large choir will be an eye-catcher for the ages.

Heart paid tribute to Led Zeppelin in 2012

The never It gets old looking at it. First, late Zeppelin drummer John Bonham’s son Jason takes the stage behind the drums, prompting a delighted Robert Plant to jump up and point at the lucky boy. Then Ann and Nancy Wilson begin their rousing rendition of “Stairway to Heaven,” accompanied by a large chorus of bowler hat-wearing singers. None of this detracts from the magic that takes place on stage, but the performance is made all the more memorable by the constant camera shots of Plant, John Paul Jones and Jimmy Page. The moment Jones looks at Plant and the legendary singer looks back, you can almost hear their unspoken dialogue: “I know, man. It doesn’t get better The.”

Bruno Mars honors Sting in 2014

Rising from the highest registers of his voice, Mars opened his tribute to Sting with “So Lonely” before launching into his soulful version of “Message in a Bottle”. Between camera shots of Sting’s wife Trudie saying all the words, the stage filled with Sting’s friends before celebrities like Bruce Springsteen, Lady Gaga and Meryl Streep came out to send some “SOS” too. (See here).

Aretha Franklin sings for Carole King in 2015

The lucky winner had none other than the Queen of Soul serenading her with one of her biggest hits: “A Natural Woman.” Gorgeous in her floor-length fur coat (which she took off later in the song to cheers), Franklin began the performance at the piano, which King clearly blew away (didn’t she know the old girl could tickle the ivories, too? ). Then King could no longer contain her excitement at what was happening on stage. It certainly brought tears to President Obama’s eyes. (See here).