Tom T. Hall, John Prine Among Songwriters Hall Of Fame Inductees

Tom T. Hall, John Prine

Tom T. Hall and John Prine are among those announced as the latest inductees into the Songwriters Hall of Fame. They will join Dallas Austin (“Creep,” “The Boy Is Mine”), Missy Elliott (“The Rain,” “Get Ur Freak On”), Jack Tempchin (“Peaceful Easy Feeling”), and Yusuf/Cat Stevens (“The First Cut Is The Deepest”) as fellow inductees at the organization’s 50th annual induction and awards dinner on Thursday, June 13 in New York City.

SHOF Chairman Nile Rodgers said, “The first thing you need to know is it’s about the song, the second thing you need to know is it’s about the song, the third thing you need to know is it’s about the song. That’s true now more than ever but it has always been about the song; so I’m very proud that in my first year as Chairman of the Songwriter’s Hall of Fame we are recognizing some of the culturally most important songwriters of all time. The 2019 slate of inductees represents diversity and unity across genres and gender, highlighting our dedicated mission to honor music creators who have enriched our lives. These are writers who, in their time, literally transformed music and helped make what’s happening today possible.”

To qualify for induction, a songwriter with a notable catalog of songs qualifies for induction 20 years after the first commercial release of a song. The Songwriters Hall of Fame was established in 1969.

Prine, a two-time Grammy winner and Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame member, as well as a Rock & Roll Hall of Fame nominee, has penned songs including “Sam Stone,” “Angel From Montgomery,” “Paradise,” “Hello In There,” “Illegal Smile,” “That’s The Way The World Goes ‘Round,” “Speed Of The Sound Of Loneliness,” “In Spite of Ourselves,” “I Just Want To Dance With You,” and many more.

In 2018, Prine released his first album featuring new material in 13 years, The Tree Of Forgiveness. The album has earned Prine three nominations at the 61st Grammy Awards including Best Americana Album and Best American Roots Song (for the album track “Summer’s End”). In addition, his inaugural music festival, All The Best, will take place Nov 11-15 in Punta Cana, Dominican Republic.

Tom T. Hall’s music has been lauded by luminaries including President Jimmy Carter and Johnny Cash. Hall recorded 33 top 20 country hits, including “Ballad of Forty Dollars,” “A Week in a Country Jail,” “The Year Clayton Delaney Died,” “(Old Dogs, Children and) Watermelon Wine,” and “I Love.” He also penned the Jeannie C. Riley smash “Harper Valley, P.T.A.,” the Alan Jackson chart-topper “Little Bitty,” and “That’s How I Got To Memphis,” recorded by greats including Bobby Bare, Solomon Burke, Rosanne Cash, Eric Church, Bill Haley, and Buddy Miller.

In later life, Hall collaborated with his wife, Dixie Hall, in composing hundreds of bluegrass music standards. The Hall’s songs placed them in the International Bluegrass Hall of Fame.