VH1 Rock Honors
The VH1 Rock Honors were an annual ceremony paying homage to bands who influenced the sound of rock music. The events began in 2006, and the final event took place in 2008. The general format of each show is for modern bands to "pay tribute" to classic greats of the rock/metal world (by covering a song of theirs), after which time the artist being paid tribute to plays multiple songs. The 2006 and 2007 shows featured four inductees each, whereas the 2008 show featured one (The Who), albeit with multiple bands paying tribute. The shows were directed by David Mallet and produced by Paul Flattery and Greg Sills. Currently, VH1 has no plans for a CD or DVD release of any show.
2006
The ceremony was held at
The ceremony opened with the
The
invited Brian May to join the band.A supergroup was then formed of
2007
The second annual Rock Honors on VH1 hosted by Bam Margera with appearances by Cameron Diaz, Robin Williams, Taylor Hawkins, Billy Bob Thornton, April Margera, Jada Pinkett Smith, and Criss Angel. This year's show paid tribute to iconic rock bands ZZ Top, Heart, Genesis, and Ozzy Osbourne. The show was also held in Las Vegas.
Nickelback started this year's ceremony, playing the hit ZZ Top song, "Sharp Dressed Man". Billy Bob Thornton then announced the Texas trio. After a biography video, the band took the stage and performed their MTV video hit "Gimme All Your Lovin'", followed by "La Grange", Dusty Hill's signature song "Tush" and finished with "Cheap Sunglasses".
Cameron Diaz then took the stage to announce the Seattle Sisters, better known as Heart. After a biography video on the band,
Robin Williams was the next presenter, and announced Genesis. After a biography video,
Next, in honor of Ozzy Osbourne, Bam Margera gave himself a black eye. Jada Pinkett Smith was the next presenter, who announced Osbourne. After a biography video, Queens of the Stone Age performed the Black Sabbath tune "Paranoid". Criss Angel then appeared, honoring Ozzy by biting the head off a mouse. Ozzy then took the stage, performing his new single "I Don't Wanna Stop", followed by "Bark at the Moon" and "Crazy Train". (TV airing cut out the "Bark at the Moon" performance, but it airs as a music video on shows such as Metal Mania.)
2008
An edited show aired on July 17, 2008. The television broadcast included commentary from other musicians, celebrities, and The Who itself describing the band's career and impact. It is also the first program in the series to pay tribute to only one artist.The music performances included:
- Foo Fighters - "Young Man Blues" and "Bargain" (with guest lead vocals by Gaz Coombes of Supergrass)
- Incubus - "I Can See for Miles" and "I Can't Explain"
- Flaming Lips - Tommymedley
- Squeeze Box"
- Pearl Jam - "Love, Reign o'er Me" and "The Real Me"
- The Who - "Baba O'Riley", "Who Are You", "Behind Blue Eyes", "My Generation", and "Tea & Theatre"
Presenters included David Duchovny, Sean Penn, Rainn Wilson, Mila Kunis and Adam Sandler, who performed his own version of "Magic Bus." Performances not used in the TV special will be made available online at VH1.com.
The Foo Fighters presence at the 2008 show makes them the only artist to have played more than one Rock Honors show. It also makes Taylor Hawkins the only person at all three ceremonies. He played in the first and third shows and was a backstage interviewer at the second.