MS SC580

Recognizes Mississippi songwriter Jim Weatherly of Pontotoc for receiving the 2014 Governor's Arts Award for Excellence in Music, with the awards ceremony held on February 20, 2014, at Belhaven University Center for the Arts.

Honors Weatherly's induction into the Songwriters Hall of Fame on June 12, 2014, joining legends including Smokey Robinson, Bob Dylan, Stevie Wonder, John Fogerty, and James Taylor.

Credits Weatherly with writing Grammy Award-winning songs including "Neither One Of Us Wants To Be The First To Say Goodbye" and "Midnight Train To Georgia" for Gladys Knight & The Pips, which became No. 1 Pop and R&B hits.

Notes Weatherly's background as an All-SEC Quarterback at the University of Mississippi in 1964 and member of the 1962 National Championship Rebel Football Team and 1962-1963 SEC Champions.

Acknowledges Weatherly's previous 2006 induction into the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame and Musicians Hall of Fame, and his 1999 Grammy Hall of Fame induction for "Midnight Train To Georgia."