Grammys Get Around to Honoring Bowie, Cream

01/10/2006 6:27 PM, E! Online
Josh Grossberg

It's official: David Bowie has entered his golden years.

The British rock legend, along with late comic genius Richard Pryor, power rock trio Cream, country singer Merle Haggard, bluesman Robert Johnson, opera singer Jessye Norman and pioneering folk quartet the Weavers, will be bestowed the 2006 Lifetime Achievement Grammy Awards, the Recording Academy announced Tuesday.

The Lifetime Achievement Award celebrates artists who've created distinguished and influential recordings throughout the course of their career. Recipients are chosen by the Recording Academy's National Trustees committee.

Perhaps the one thing most of the honorees have in common however is the fact that they're a bunch of losers--at least when it comes to taking home Grammys.

Despite the huge impact he's had on generations of musicians through his ever-morphing, genre-hopping recordings, Bowie has never won a Grammy. In fact, he's only managed a single nomination, for Best Video Album in 1985.

Cream, the supergroup of Eric Clapton, bassist Jack Bruce and drummer Ginger Baker known for its psychedelic blues rock jams comprising guitarist, never received a Grammy nomination during their two-year recording career in the mid-1960s. But from 1966 to 1968, the power trio recorded such classics as "Strange Brew," "Sunshine of Your Love" and "Crossroads," and left such an indelible mark onstage that today they're considered one of the greatest live bands of the '60s. They regrouped for a series of shows last year. (Clapton has made up for the slight, however, having claimed 16 trophies for his post-Cream work.)

Despite helping bring folk music to the masses in the 1950s and serving as influence to the likes of Bob Dylan, Paul Simon and Joan Baez, the Pete Seeger-led Weavers never earned a Grammy--perhaps because the quartet was blacklisted during the McCarthy era for its political leanings.

Likewise, Robert Johnson influenced scores of musicians, from the Rolling Stones to Dylan to Clapton to Led Zeppelin, but he died at the age of 27 in 1939, 20 years before the birth of the Grammy Awards. His complete recordings, released in 1990, was the first blues album to sell more than 2 million copies.

Haggard, on the other hand, has two Grammy Awards to his credit. The self-taught musician earned them by pushing the boundaries of country through the use of electric instruments and adding elements of rock 'n' roll. That combined with gritty songs about his hard life, including time spent in prison, made him a superstar in the Bakersfield country scene during the '60s. His hits include "Okie From Muskogee" and "The Fighting Side of Me."

Pryor, who died of heart failure last month after a long battle with multiple sclerosis, won five Grammys for his comedy albums, which often chronicled his scorching stand-up performances. Robin Williams, Eddie Murphy, Chris Rock and Whoopi Goldberg have all hailed Pryor's records as inspirational.

As for Norman, the opera star began her career in Berlin in 1968 and became a sensation in the U.S., earning four Grammys along the way.

"Their work exemplifies the highest artistic and technical standards, creating a timeless legacy that has positively affected multiple generations, and will continue to influence generations to come," Recording Academy president Neil Portnow said in a statement.

The trophies will be handed out during a special ceremony on Feb. 7 and the honorees will be recognized the following night during the 48th Annual Grammy Awards telecast airing live on CBS.