LIVERPOOL — Since 1993, the Syracuse Area Music Awards have been bestowed upon a wide variety of area musicians and music-industry professionals.
Founded by Frank Malfitano, then director of the historic Landmark Theatre, the awards were modeled after the Grammys or the Oscars. Like those famous awards, at the early Sammys local music professionals voted for the winners in wide number of categories and genres. In recent years, however, the awards have focused specifically on recorded work.
A committee assesses submitted CDs from more than 150 area artists, and makes nominations in 11 recording categories, from Best Jazz to Best Hip-Hop. This year, there are 47 nominees overall, which can be viewed by visiting syracuseareamusic.com.
The 2022 Sammy Awards show will be held at 7 p.m. Friday, March 4, at the OnCenter Crouse Hinds Theater, 411 Montgomery St. in downtown Syracuse. Tickets cost $25 at ticketmaster.com. Online streaming will also be available for $15.
The show will be headlined by Tom Kenny & The Hi-Seas, a Los Angeles-based pop-soul outfit. In the 1980s, Kenny fronted a Syracuse pop band called The Tearjerkers and was a member of the Generic Comics. After moving to California, Kenny because an actor and in 1999 was hired to voice the title character of Nickelodeon’s animated smash hit, “SpongeBob SquarePants,” a job he has held for nearly a quarter century.
The awards show will also feature performances by Jon Rogalia & The Swamp Boys, Letizia and The Real RAW Breed. Awards will be presented in 11 recording categories, as well as the People’s Choice awards for Best Artist or Band, Best Event or Music Series, Best Academic or Musical Organization and Best Venue. The Brian Bourke Award for Best New Artist sponsored by CNYAlive.com will also be announced.
Readers can get in on the Sammys’ action by voting in the annual People’s Choice categories. Each year the web-based competition allows fans to support their favorites in four categories: Artist or Band, Event or Music Series, Academic or Musical Organization and Venue. Voting is free and open to the public through Feb. 28 at syracuseareamusic.com/peoples-choice.
Hall of Fame inductees
The day before the awards show, at 7 p.m. Thursday, March 3, Kenny will be among five inductees to the Sammys Hall of Fame, Upstairs at the Dinosaur Barbecue, 246 W. Willow St., downtown.
Kenny, 59, is being honored for his lifetime achievements. Liverpool bagpiper and teacher Avery Head will accept the educator of the year award, and the three other HOF inductees are roots-rock band Los Blancos (Colin Aberdeen, Mark Tiffault and Steven T. Winston), trumpeter Jeff Stockham and drummer Bobby Avery, real name Bob Tousignant, who recorded hits with such bands a The Music Explosion and Crazy Elephant.
Tickets for the induction dinner cost $30; syracuseareamusic.com/tickets.
Among the new inductees is yours truly, Russ Tarby, a longtime music critic and promoter, who presently serves as program director for the Liverpool Is The Place Summer Concert Series at Johnson Park. He also collaborates with Liverpool Public Library to coordinate its Sunday-afternoon concerts. In those roles, he books an average of 30 free concerts annually here in the village.
For many years, Tarby served as music editor for the Syracuse New Times, reviewed concerts for The Post-Standard and now writes for The Syncopated Times as well as for Eagle Newspapers.
