Members In The News
Tom T. Hall Inducted Into Country Music Hall of Fame
Congratulations to Nashville Songwriter Hall of Fame Member and artist, Tom T. Hall, who received the honor of being inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame in 2008, along with The Statler Brothers, and Emmylou Harris. Visit Tom’s page at the Country Music Hall of Fame site.
Members In The News
Hank Williams, Jr. Honored as a BMI Icon
Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame member Hank Williams, Jr. will be honored as a BMI Icon at the U.S. performing right organization’s 56th annual Country Awards on November 11, 2008. Hank joins a joins an elite list of past honorees that includes other hall of fame members Willie Nelson, Merle Haggard, Dolly Parton, Whisperin’ Bill Anderson, and Loretta Lynn. Learn more about the BMI Icon Awards here.
About
About The Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame Foundation
The Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame Foundation is a non-profit organization dedicated to honoring and preserving the songwriting legacy that is uniquely associated with the Nashville music community. Its purpose is to educate, celebrate and archive the achievements and contributions made by members of the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame to the world.
The Foundation is governed by a 13 member board of directors. Each year the organization inducts a minimum of three songwriters, with an occasional special induction into the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame.
Plans are currently underway for the construction of a permanent facility for the purpose of honoring the hall of fame members and their songwriting legacies
A Brief History of the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame
[Note: Since the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame Foundation originally began as an entity of the Nashville Songwriters Association International, it is necessary to examine the common history of both organizations.]
The brainchild of songwriters Eddie Miller, Buddy Mize and Bill Brock, the Nashville Songwriters Association (NSA) held its first organizational meeting on Dec. 6, 1967, at the Old Professional's Club on 16th Avenue South. About 40 writers attended, including Marijohn Wilkin, Kris Kristofferson, Clarence Selman, Johnny Scoggins, Rusty Adams, Eddie Sovine, Felice & Boudleaux Bryant, Liz & Casey Anderson, Tommy Floyd and Eddie Miller.
By October of 1968, the Nashville Songwriters Association was chartered by the state of Tennessee as a non-profit organization. The first official NSA board members were Liz Anderson, Boudleaux Bryant, Tom T. Hall, Ted Harris, Kris Kristofferson, Vic McAlpin, Bobby Russell, Glenn Sutton, Glen Tubb, Bob Tubert and John Bucky Wilkin. They elected officers Buddy Mize (President), Eddie Miller (Vice President), Johnny Scoggins (Treasurer), Marijohn Wilkin (Secretary) and Clarence Selman (Sergeant at Arms).
In 1970, the board voted to establish the Nashville Songwriters Association's Hall of Fame. A credentials committee unanimously selected the first 21 writers, who were inducted into NSA's Hall of Fame on Monday, October 12, at the Holiday Inn-Vanderbilt during the first annual Hall of Fame Banquet and Ceremony. With about 50 people in attendance, Biff Collie emceed as Gene Autry, Johnny Bond, Albert Brumley, A.P. Carter, Ted Daffan, Vernon Dalhart, Rex Griffin, Stewart Hamblin, Pee Wee King, Vic McAlpin, Bob Miller, Leon Payne, Jimmie Rodgers, Fred Rose, Redd Stewart, Floyd Tillman, Merle Travis, Ernest Tubb, Cindy Walker, Hank Williams and Bob Wills were inducted.
In April of 1976, NSA added “International” to its name to become NSAI. In June of 1977, NSAI opened a Hall of Fame in the lower level of the association's office building at 25 Music Square West. A "temporary" home until the day a proper Hall of Fame could be constructed, the office began a 30-year practice of housing Hall member artifacts and memorabilia, including original hit song manuscripts.
On April 11, 1986, the International Songwriters Foundation – established by charter to house the NSAI Hall of Fame, library, archives and museum – elected Chairman Joe Talbot and its founding board of directors at its inaugural meeting at BMI. On March 2, 1992, the ISF changed its name to the Nashville Songwriters Foundation (NSF). On Dec. 5, 2006, the NSF changed its name to the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame Foundation (NaSHOF).
Today, induction into the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame is one of the nation's highest songwriting honors. Established in 1970, the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame boasts 167 members, including songwriting luminaries such as Johnny Cash, Rodney Crowell, Bob Dylan, Don & Phil Everly, Flatt & Scruggs, Vince Gill, Harlan Howard, Roger Miller, Bill Monroe, Roy Orbison, Dolly Parton, Carl Perkins, Dottie Rambo, Jimmie Rodgers, Cindy Walker, Jimmy Webb, Hank Williams Sr. and Hank Williams Jr.
It was announced in September 2007 that the future home of the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame will be in the historic building at 34 Music Square East, former home of the Quonset Hut, Columbia Studio A, Columbia and Epic Records and Sony Music Nashville.
The Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame will become the first of its kind to emerge from a virtual existance to a physical location.