Albert Lee will pick up the Trailblazer Award and Wildwood Kin will receive The Bob Harris Emerging Artist Award at the UK Americana Awards 2017 it has been announced.
Lee will be recognised by The Americana Music Association UK (AMA-UK) Board at this year’s awards for his contribution to the genre over his long career.
Talking about the award Lee says, “I discovered American country music in the late 50’s and even though I primarily made my living playing R&R and R&B, I never lost my love for the honesty of country. I was certainly an odd man out during this period when the blues was the most popular genre. My perseverance payed off after I moved to California and my playing was finally recognized. It was during this period that I joined Emmylou Harris and Hot Band and played and recorded with many great country artists. It’s an amazing honor to receive the Americana Trailblazer Award for my continued joy in playing.”
Devon trio Wildwood Kin – featuring sisters Emillie and Beth Key and their cousin Meghann Loney – have risen to prominence in part due to their collaborations with Seth Lakeman in 2016.
“We were totally bowled over when we heard about the award; What a huge surprise and privilege. Massive thanks to Bob Harris for the support and belief in what we do – it really means the world to us and we are so excited to be involved and honoured in this way,” Wildwood Kin said in a press release.
This year’s UK Americana Awards will take place at St John at Hackney on 2nd February 2017. It will be hosted by Bob Harris and feature performances from nominees and award winners, including Lifetime Achievement Award winner Richard Thompson.
Tickets for the awards are on sale now:
Balcony http://smarturl.it/amauk2017-balcony
VIP http://smarturl.it/amauk2017-tickets
