At The 2017 NAMM Show, Canadian songwriter-musician and Rock & Roll Hall of Fame inductee Robbie Robertson was presented with The National Association of Music Merchants (NAMM) "Music for Life" award for his decades of musical contributions, which have influenced musical genres, songwriting and guitarists, as well as numerous film scores, compositions and even his own autobiography, Testimony.

The award was presented during the organization's opening "Breakfast of Champions" session by NAMM President and CEO Joe Lamond, who introduced Robertson with acknowledgement of his illustrious career as a musical innovator:

"Emerging from the melting pot of blues, jazz, folk and rock and roll, Robbie Robertson came of age during a time of great musical and social change which is still reverberating today. And with a seat at the table of some of the most memorable music moments of our lifetime, he has inspired countless to pick up an instrument and find their own voices."

The theme of the morning was innovation and Robertson shared his perspective on what continues to drive him:  "You are influenced by people you admire…No matter how long you've been doing something, you're still absorbing, you're still learning. You learn one thing and then something else comes along and it challenges you and it raises you to a new place. The challenges that make you want to wake-up early is one of the greatest gifts of life."

Past recipients have included business leaders, public officials and musicians, including Stevie Wonder, Yoko Ono, Henry Mancini, Smokey Robertson, and the 2016 recipient, Graham Nash. It is awarded each January during the global music products gathering, The NAMM Show, held in Anaheim, CA.

-- City and Colour fans (and there are a lot of them out there) will be pleased to learn two previously unreleased tracks, “Peaceful Road” and “Rain,” will be released via Dine Alone on March 3. Both tracks were cut in Nashville during recording sessions for 2015's #1 album, If I Should Go Before You.

-- Sony Music announced the re-launching of their label Monument Records this week, with respected industry veterans Jason Owen and Shane McAnally (a Grammy-winning producer and songwriter) serving as co-presidents of the label. Caitlyn Smith and Walker Hayes are Monument’s leading artists. An imprint of Sony Music Entertainment, Monument Records will employ a staff based in Nashville.

-- Toronto’s world-renowned Tafelmusik Baroque Orchestra announced yesterday that Italian violinist Elisa Citterio would become the orchestra’s music director, effective in July. She succeeds Jeanne Lamon, who retired in 2014, after 33 years in the job.

-- There’s still money in music memorabilia. That was shown on Wed. night when a marquee sign from famed LA rock 'n' roll club Whisky a Go Go sold for $48.3K (US) at auction. The West Hollywood club was recognized by the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2006, but its museum didn’t make the purchase.

-- Hulu released the first episode of its new virtual reality (VR) music show On Stage on its Hulu VR app Thursday. The show, which is being produced in cooperation with Live Nation, promises a closer look at some of music’s biggest stars. The first episode features Lil Wayne, who is shown skateboarding and performing. Earlier this month, Hulu announced its partnership with Live Nation, which has also been doing some live VR streaming of concerts with NextVR. A second episode of On Stage featuring Major Lazer is set to air later this year.

-- Adam Ant’s North American tour encountered tragedy earlier this week when guitarist and musical director Tom Edwards died suddenly, of suspected heart failure, on Jan. 25. Shows set for Philadelphia and New York were postponed, but at last report the tour will resume with a show at Toronto’s Danforth Musical Hall on Jan. 29.

-- Canadian synth-pop artist FOXTROTT (a.k.a. Marie-Hélène L. Delorme) has just put out a video documentary that explores the process behind the artist’s trilogy of music videos for the tracks ‘Driven’, ‘Shaky Hands’ and ‘Shields’, singles from her critically acclaimed album A Taller Us.