Q Awards 2012: Blur, Muse and Pulp win prizes
Story by Jack Foley
BLUR, Muse and Pulp were among the main winners at the 2012 Q Awards.
Blur were crowned best live act for their Hyde Park gig at the close of the Olympics, beating the likes of The Stone Roses and Radiohead.
While Jarvis Cocker picked up the Inspiration Award for his band Pulp and Muse were named best act in the world.
Other act sto benefit from their involvement in this summer’s Olympics were Underworld, who put together the music for the opening ceremony, and Emeli Sande, who performed at both the opening and closing ceremonies.
The dance act received the Innovation In Sound award from director Danny Boyle, while soul singer Sande was named best solo artist.
Further winners included Plan B for his scathing attack on the British Government, Ill Manors, which won track of the year, and veteran soul singer Bobby Womack, who took home the prize for his latest album, The Bravest Man In The Universe.
The best new act category contained three nominees for the forthcoming Mercury Prize – Alt J, Lianne La Havas and Django Django, and was won by the latter, a four-piece art-rock outfit formed at Edinburgh University.
Killers’ frontman Brandon Flowers was named Q Hero while Dionne Warwick’s interpretation of David and Bacharach’s Walk On By was crowned Q Classic Song.
Q Magazine’s editor Andrew Harrison commented: “It’s been the most incredible year for British music. Our bands and our anthems transformed the Olympics… and amazing comeback shows from Blur and The Stone Roses showed the enduring appeal of our best-loved musicians.”
The 2012 ceremony was hosted by comedian Al Murray and took place at Grosvenor House Hotel in Mayfair.
The winners (and nominees) in full:
Q Best New Act Presented By Merc
Alabama Shakes
Alt-J
Django Django
Lianne La Havas
Frank Ocean
Best track
Florence + the Machine – Shake It Out
Fun – We Are Young
Gotye – Somebody That I Used To Know
Plan B – Ill Manors
Rizzle Kicks – Mama Do The Hump
Best Album
The Black Keys – El Camino
Richard Hawley – Standing At The Sky’s Edge
The Maccabees – Given To The Wild
Paul Weller – Sonik Kicks
Bobby Womack – The Bravest Man In The Universe
Best live act
Blur
The Cribs
Radiohead
Bruce Springsteen
The Stone Roses
Best Video
Arctic Monkeys – R U Mine?
Noel Gallagher’s High Flying Birds – Everybody’s On The Run
Keane – Disconnected
The Killers – Runaways
Nicki Minaj – Starships
Best Solo Artist
Adele
Dizzee Rascal
Noel Gallagher
Emeli Sandé
Florence Welch
Best Act In The World Today
Blur
Coldplay
Lady GaGa
Muse
The Stone Roses
Q Classic Song
Dionne Warwick for Walk On By
Q Idol
The Killers’ Brandon Flowers
Q Spirit Of Independence
The Cribs
Q Innovation In Sound presented by Beats By Dr Dre
Underworld
Q Inspiration Award
Pulp
Q Icon Award
Dexys
Q Classic Album
Manic Street Preachers for Generation Terrorists
Q Hero
Johnny Marr