The first "Listeners' Choice Awards" honoring LDS musicians were presented by the LDS Booksellers Association at its annual banquet in August at the Little America Hotel in Salt Lake City.
The awards were given to Wanda Lindstrom, Best Performing Female Vocalist; Kenneth Cope, Best Performing Male Vocalist; Marvin Goldstein, Best Instrumentalist; Kevin Peay and Joel McCausland (Afterglow), Best Performing Group; and Michael McLean, Best Composer.All LDS wholesalers who publish or market LDS music were asked to nominate up to three performers in each of the five categories. Then the nominations were compiled on a ballot and returned to wholesale and retail members of the association whose votes determined the winners.
The winners were invited to attend the banquet and perform a medley of their most recent recordings. All were able to accept the invitation except Brother McLean who had a previous commitment. His award was accepted by his wife, Lynn McLean.
Each winner expressed appreciation for the realization that their music has meaning and purpose in the lives of others, reported Diana Paskett, a member of the association's board of directors and trade book buyer at the Ricks College Bookstore.
"We expect it to be an annual award, but that has not been an official decision of the board yet," she said. "We will definitely do it one more year. And it was so well received, I expect it to actually become larger with several additional categories."
