Alan Jackson and Lee Ann Womack joined forces for a special performance of a George Strait & Jackson classic.
The superstar pair paid tribute to RAC Clark, the president and Emmy nominated executive producer of Lion’s Heart Entertainment who has produced the ACM Awards since 1999, received the ACM Mae Boren Axton Service Award, with a performance of George Strait and Jackson’s duet “Murder On Music Row” on Wednesday (Aug. 25) during the 2021 ACM Honors award ceremony in Nashville, Tennessee at The Ryman Auditorium.
Co-written by Larry Cordle and Larry Shell, “Murder On Music Row” is a song originally recorded by bluegrass group Larry Cordle & Lonesome Standard Time. The song is the title track to Cordle’s album of the same name.
Soon after its release in 1999, George Strait and Alan Jackson recorded the song as a duet, which quickly gained fame following its release. And although the Strait/Jackson duet was never officially released as a single, it received enough airplay to hit No. 38 on the Billboard Hot Country Singles & Tracks chart.
Watch the performance by Jackson and Womack below.
Following Jackson and Womack’s tribute performance, Clark accepted the ACM Mae Boren Axton Service Award.
“I’m blown away,” Clark said as he was handed his award. “That song was the first song is the first song that I wanted on the Academy Of Country Music Awards in 1999 and I got so much feedback for wanting that to be on the show. George Jones was on the show that year and I wanted ‘Murder On Music Row’ to make a statement because I am passionate about country music. Thank you Alan, Thank you Lee Ann, Thank you Sara.”
Clark then joked, “I can’t think and hold this, I don’t know how you guys do this when you get these awards. I can’t do it,” before sitting the award down on the stage.
In addition to paying tribute to Clark, Jackson and Womack also paid tribute to country icon Loretta Lynn with a special performance of “Louisiana Woman, Mississippi Man” during the honors ceremony.
Hosted by Carly Pearce, the 2021 ACM Honors also featured performances by Ronnie Dunn, Trace Adkins, Caylee Hammack, Lauren Alaina, HARDY, Devin Dawson, Raelynn, Chris Janson, several prolific songwriters and many others.
