Legendary Guitarist Peter Frampton to Receive Les Paul Innovation Award at 34th Annual NAMM TEC Awards

Legendary Guitarist Peter Frampton to Receive Les Paul Innovation Award at 34th Annual NAMM TEC Awards

by | Jan 17, 2019 | NAMM

Carlsbad, CA
December 6, 2018

GRAMMY® award-winning guitarist, singer, songwriter, and innovator Peter Frampton will receive the prestigious Les Paul Innovation Award at the 34th Annual NAMM Technical Excellence & Creativity Awards (NAMM TEC Awards), being held Saturday, January 26, 2019, in Anaheim, CA. The award is given to those individuals who personify the innovative thinking of Les Paul, the Father of Modern of Music. The Les Paul Foundation partners with NAMM each year to honor the individuals that have set the highest standards of excellence in the creative application of recording technology, which also celebrates the legacy of the late, great Les Paul.

Frampton notes, “It is a distinct honor to receive the Les Paul Innovation Award. I would say that many of my career highlights occurred while holding an instrument in my hands that bears Les Paul’s name. I was lucky enough to know him personally, and I owe him so much. He was a wonderful character as well as a genius! An incredible guitar player as well as the inventor of so much music technology. Les changed the way we record forever. I can only hope that I’ve been able to make a fraction of the positive impact that Les Paul made in his iconic career.”

Frampton is one of music’s renaissance men, having begun a career in his early teens, and still making his mark today in the areas of recording and touring. A multi-platinum-selling artist, he recently celebrated the 42nd anniversary of his fifth solo album, Frampton Comes Alive!, an album that remains one of the top-selling live records of all time with over 17 million copies sold worldwide. In 2007 he won the GRAMMY award for “Best Pop Instrumental Album” for Fingerprintsand in 2014 was inducted into the Musicians Hall of Fame.

“Peter Frampton remains one of the most skillful and celebrated artists in rock history. He also was a friend of Les Paul’s and has played a pivotal role in helping the Foundation keep Les’s legacy alive,” shared Michael Braunstein, Executive Director, The Les Paul Foundation. “Like Les, he is an undeniable master of his instrument and in many ways ahead of his time. We are honored to have Peter join the impressive list of Les Paul Innovation Award recipients.”

Frampton’s storied career began at 16 as the lead singer and guitarist for the British band The Herd. By 18, he co-founded one of the first supergroups – the seminal rock act Humble Pie. His touring years have included work with a whos-who of the top names in music, such as David Bowie, Stevie Nicks, Gregg Allman, Ringo Starr, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Cheap Trick, Steve Miller Band, Bill Wyman’s Rhythm Kings, and many others. Additionally, he took his eponymous Peter Frampton’s Guitar Circus on the road for two years with special guests B.B. King, Buddy Guy, Vince Gill, Larry Carlton, Robert Randolph, Don Felder (formerly of The Eagles), Dean DeLeo (Stone Temple Pilots), Kenny Wayne Shepherd, Sonny Landreth, Robert Cray, and Roger McGuinn (The Byrds).

His session work includes collaborations with artists who have made their mark on the industry including George Harrison, Harry Nilsson, Jerry Lee Lewis, John Entwistle, Mike McCready, and Matt Cameron (Pearl Jam), among many others.

Frampton’s talent has also stretched beyond music and into the realm of television and film. He was called upon by Oscar-winning writer/director Cameron Crowe to serve as technical advisor for the film Almost Famous (2000) and even appeared in the film and composed several songs for the soundtrack. Frampton has appeared as himself in The Simpsons and Family Guy.

Les Paul invented the solid body electric guitar, multi-track recording, overdubbing, echo, reverb and numerous other recording techniques. Without Les Paul, the music industry would not be what it is today. He is often called the “Father of Modern Music,” “The Wizard of Waukesha” and even the “Thomas Edison of Music.” Les founded the Foundation prior to his passing and wanted to inspire young people to invent, create, innovate, and get involved in music while exploring their own creative ideas. Today, The Les Paul Foundation works with organizations throughout the country in support of music education, engineering, and medical research. The Les Paul Innovation Award at NAMM and the Les Paul Spirit Award are two of the most prestigious awards celebrated by the Foundation.

With the honor, Frampton joins Jackson Browne, Joe Perry (Aerosmith), Don Was, Slash, Todd Rundgren, Pete Townshend, Steve Vai, and others, who have received the Les Paul Innovation Award since it began in 1991.

Announced early this year, Leslie Ann Jones, the Grammy-winning groundbreaking engineer, producer, and Director of Music and Scoring for Skywalker Sound, will be inducted into the NAMM TEC Hall of Fame that same night. Jones joins luminaries Rose Mann Cherney, Skunk Baxter, Hal Blaine, Jack Douglas, Nathan East, Geoff Emerick, and others with her induction, the industry’s highest honor for pioneers of audio technology and the music industry’s most accomplished producers and audio technicians.

The NAMM TEC Awards are held during The NAMM Show, the global gathering of music, sound and event technology industries, in Anaheim, California, January 24-27, 2019. They are bestowed annually in honor of the many individuals, companies and technical innovations used in sound recordings, films, broadcast television and video games. Nominees were announced earlier this year. Purchase tickets on site or in advance here for $65 (General Admission) or $195 (VIP). The show begins with a VIP-only reception at 6PM, followed by the awards ceremony at 7PM, held in the Hilton Anaheim Hotel’s Pacific Ballroom. Stand-up comedian and entertainer Demetri Martin will host the ceremony.

ABOUT THE TEC AWARDS

Presented annually by the NAMM Foundation during The NAMM Show, The NAMM TEC Awards recognizes the individuals, companies and technical innovations behind the sound of recordings, live performances, films, television, video games and other media in 23 Technical and 8 Creative Achievement Categories. The Les Paul Innovation Award is given at the event in tribute to musical artists and others whose work has exemplified the creative application of audio technology. Through its Hall of Fame, The TEC Awards also honors the pioneers of audio technology and the music industry’s most accomplished producers and audio technicians. The NAMM Foundation’s TECnology Hall of Fame celebrates innovations and groundbreaking technical achievements of the past. For more information, visit www.tecawards.org

ABOUT LES PAUL FOUNDATION

Les Paul formed his foundation to encourage young people to pursue their curiosity and innovation about music, sound and engineering. Recent grants from the Les Paul Foundation include funding to multiple music education programs and to museums that tell the Les Paul story. The foundation’s comprehensive website at www.lespaulfoundation.org connects viewers to numerous resources. The mission of the Les Paul Foundation is to honor and share the life, spirit and legacy of Les Paul by supporting music education, engineering and innovation as well as medical research. The foundation is based in New York. Follow the Les Paul Foundation at www.facebook.com/lespaulfoundation, www.twitter.com/lespaulfoundation, www.instagram.com/lespaulofficial or click on lespaulfoundation.org.

About NAMM

The National Association of Music Merchants (NAMM) is the not-for-profit association with a mission to strengthen the $17 billion music products industry. NAMM is comprised of approximately 10,300 members located in 104 countries and regions. NAMM events and members fund The NAMM Foundation‘s efforts to promote the pleasures and benefits of music, and advance active participation in music making across the lifespan. For more information about NAMM, please visit www.namm.org, call 800.767.NAMM (6266) or follow the organization on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.

Legendary Photographer Neal Preston at The 2019 NAMM Show

Legendary Photographer Neal Preston at The 2019 NAMM Show

by | Jan 17, 2019 | NAMM

Carlsbad, CA
December 10, 2018

Proceeds from sales of Preston’s prints, books to benefit Behind The Scenes and The NAMM Foundation

Famed rock ‘n’ roll photographer and author Neal Preston has spent decades capturing rock’s most pivotal moments and the personalities who have defined music and pop culture. For over 40 years, Preston has toured with the likes of Led Zeppelin, The Who, Queen, Fleetwood Mac, Bruce Springsteen, among others, and through his work in TV and film, has amassed one of the largest and legendary archives in music photography. This photo collection has traveled the world, and showcased in Germany, Sweden, Switzerland, and now, the timeless images make their way to The 2019 NAMM Show, the global crossroads of the music products, pro audio and event technology industries, in Anaheim, California, January 24-27.

At The NAMM Show, the Lightpower Collection will present coveted images from Preston’s extensive body of work, featuring more than 50 of his iconic pictures spanning legendary album covers, views behind the scenes, moments that made history – the essence of rock ’n’ roll and concert touring.

The Lightpower Collection showcases will be located in two separate areas and take on two themes. The first area will be located at the NAMM Member Center (lobby of the Anaheim Convention Center) and will feature the most iconic and thought-provoking image from Preston, curated by Lightpower and NAMM’s Museum of Making Music. The other location will be in Hall A – at the Behind-the-Scenes booth. The booth display will feature a collection of images, including three never-before-seen of the great, late frontman of Queen, Freddie Mercury, as well as select shots of Led Zeppelin from Preston’s time as the band’s official tour photographer.

In addition to the displays, a selection of Preston’s books, “Exhausted and Exhilarated” and “In the Eye of the Rock’n’Roll Hurricane,” along with prints of his most famous and well-loved photographs will be on sale. All sales will benefit Behind The Scenes, a charity which provides tailored grants to entertainment technology industry professionals, or their surviving family members, who are seriously ill or injured. Proceeds will also help fund The NAMM Foundation, which works to advance active participation in music making across the lifespan by supporting scientific research, philanthropic giving and public service programs.

Preston’s work is just one part of the Lightpower Collection, from Lightpower. Lightpower was founded in 1978 in Germany as a lighting rental company. Since then, Lightpower has grown to be an internationally established distributor for stage and studio lighting equipment. The Lightpower Collection was born out of a company culture that has grown over several years with a passion for collecting rock ’n’ roll art. The collection features photography and album cover artwork from many of the world’s greatest photographers and designers.

The 2019 NAMM Show, the global crossroads of the music instrument, pro audio and event technologies industries, returns to Anaheim, California January 24-27 and will welcome attendees from over 130 countries and regions. Registration is now open for The NAMM Show by visiting www.namm.org Follow the conversation #NAMMShow

About Neal Preston

Preston’s legendary music images include some of the most memorable ever made of rock’s most iconic stars. His photographs have appeared in every conceivable media outlet: on the covers and pages of world-class magazines and newspapers, to books, television shows, feature films, Broadway show programs and billboards, vinyl, CD and DVD packages … literally everywhere. His client list is a virtual who’s-who of rock royalty.

His archive, a body of work spanning over four decades, is regarded as one of the music industry’s most extensive and significant photo collections. It was the key source of photographs for VH-1’s acclaimed “Behind the Music” documentary series, providing over one thousand still photos used in 50 episodes. Rock fans best know Preston as the legendary photographer who has toured with Led Zeppelin, The Who, Queen, Fleetwood Mac, Bruce Springsteen, and countless others. In 1985, Preston was chosen as one of the official photographers for Bob Geldof’s “Live Aid” concert at London’s Wembley Stadium. In 1988 his association with Bruce Springsteen helped land him the job as official tour photographer for Amnesty International’s landmark “Conspiracy of Hope” tour. Aside from his elite status as one of music’s most important photographers, Neal Preston has done much more than shoot musicians. He is also a gifted sport photographer, the most-assigned photojournalist in the history of People Magazine, with almost 700 shoot days to his credit, and a member of the International Cinematographers Guild, for which he worked as the unit and special photographer for feature films like “Almost Famous” and “Vanilla Sky.”

About NAMM

The National Association of Music Merchants (NAMM) is the not-for-profit association with a mission to strengthen the $17 billion music products industry. NAMM is comprised of approximately 10,300 members located in 104 countries and regions. NAMM events and members fund The NAMM Foundation‘s efforts to promote the pleasures and benefits of music, and advance active participation in music making across the lifespan. For more information about NAMM, please visit www.namm.org, call 800.767.NAMM (6266) or follow the organization on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.