Music legend Johnny Cash, the “Man in Black”, was recently honored with a unique recognition award created by Bennett Awards. Cash received the honor from the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame and Case Western Reserve University as part of the 21st annual Music Masters series. Each year, the Music Master series honors an artist whose career changed the shape and sound of rock and roll music.
Cash was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2003. His music transcended musical boundaries, spanning rock and roll, country, rockabilly, blues, folk and gospel. He recorded over a dozen Number One country hits, including “I Walk the Line”, “Folsom Prison Blues”, and “A Boy Named Sue”. Later in his career, he put his own personal spin on current rock songs like Depeche Mode’s “Personal Jesus” and Nine Inch Nails “Hurt”. Cash died in 2003, shortly after the death of his wife June Carter Cash.
For the 9th year, the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame used Bennett Awards’ unique, musically themed sculpture award “Harmonize”, designed by Tom Bennett, for this Music Masters Award. This unique sculpture design is based on a stylized musical note. The sculpture award is mounted on a round marble base engraved with the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame logo on its top, and the recipient information on its side. Past recipients of this award include Chuck Berry, Aretha Franklin, Janis Joplin, Jerry Lee Lewis, Les Paul, Fats Domino, the Everly Brothers, Smokey Robinson, and Dave Bartholomew.
Cash was honored with ths award as part of a special award ceremony and tribute concert held October 21, 2016, at Playhouse Square’s State Theatre in Cleveland, Ohio. The concert included performances by a set of artists as diverse as Cash’s own body of music, including the Oak Ridge Boys, the band “X”, and Social Distortion’s Mike Ness.