Blues lives lauded

Bland, Rush given nods

By PHIL GALLO

The blues affects each person in a different way and when the music is being extolled, everyone has a distinct way of saying thank you. At the Blues Foundation's fourth annual Lifetime Achievement Awards ceremony, the executive took the international route, the performer made it more personal.

Music from black America, Ahmet Ertegun told a House of Blues crowd of industry personnel, is the one constant he has heard traveling the world over for more than 60 years. Bobby "Blue" Bland, the second honoree at Monday's fete, gave a tip of his hat to his wife and his supporters.

The Blues Foundation, the Memphis-based national blues promotion organization that also hands out the annual W.C. Handy Awards, named to its hall of fame two musicians (Junior Wells and Luther Allison), two label owners (Sam Phillips and Lillian McMurry), a book ("Blues From the Delta") and an album (Albert King's "I'll Play the Blues for You"). Guitarist Bobby Rush was presented with the B.B. King Blues Hero Award.

They then turned the stage over to a quartet of musical all-stars: Stephen Stills, Ruth Brown, Boz Scaggs and Ray Charles.

Ceremony was emcee'd by Warner Bros.' Bob Merlis and MCA's Andy McKaie. The industry event attracted Quincy Jones, who intro'd Ertegun, Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller, Phil Spector, Rob Reiner and singer Brenda Russell.