I came across this on youtube today. It’s a video produced by the Country Music Hall Of Fame, showing an edited version of Emmylou Harris’s induction ceremony. It was beautifully done, and includes performances by several of the musicians she has worked with down through the years, including Buddy Miller, Patti Griffith, Sam Bush, and Vince Gil . It also shows her mom, who was sitting next to her in the auditorium.
The emcee does a great job telling her story with reverence and respect, but my favorite part may be at the end, when Emmylou gives her acceptance speech. I am so often amazed at the way she is so consistently able to be succinct, interesting, reverent, sometimes funny, and always gracious. I’ve heard her in many interviews, onstage, and on live recordings, and she is just consistently all of these. Her music through the last 30+ years, reflects this same degree of integrity. I am certain that grace is part of the core of the kind of person she is. I have a deep respect for her. If you’ve got 8 minutes to watch this, it will be time well spent. If you are so inclined, leave me a comment below.
Long live real country music.
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