Luminaries from the film, music and writing worlds have honoured Tom Waits and folk singer John Prine for their songwriting at a ceremony filled with words and song.
Waits’ wife, Kathleen Brennan, also was honoured.
John Mellencamp, Elvis Costello and Roseanne Cash took turns performing renditions of the artists’ music at the Song Lyrics of Literary Excellence Awards on Monday at the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library in Boston.
Author Colum McCann, director Jim Jarmusch and country singer Sturgill Simpson reflected on the artists’ accomplishments in speeches.
Waits and Prine each performed a song from their long repertoires when accepting their awards. Prine says he’s “stunned” and honoured by the award, bestowed biennially by the writers’ group PEN New England.
Honorees are chosen by a committee that includes U2’s Bono and Salman Rushdie.
