TORONTO — Bryan Adams is headed into the Canadian Songwriters Hall of Fame.
The venerable Canadian rocker has been named one of the first 2022 inductees alongside his frequent collaborator and friend, songwriter Jim Vallance.
Both men will be honoured when the Canadian Songwriters Hall of Fame marks a return to in-person events with a gala ceremony at Massey Hall in Toronto on Sept. 24.
The evening will showcase the class of 2022 inductees, many of them still to be announced, and feature tributes and live performances.
Adams rose to prominence after a mutual friend introduced him to Vallance at a Long and McQuade musical instrument shop in Vancouver in 1978.
Their work resulted in the 1983 album "Cuts Like a Knife" which spawned various hit singles, including "Straight From the Heart." The album helped Adams win the Juno for male vocalist of the year and both of them a shared honour as composers of the year.
They followed that up with "Reckless," which surged to No. 1 on the U.S. and Canadian album charts with hit singles "Summer of '69," "Run to You," and "Heaven," the duo's first chart-topping single.
Adams went on to record a swath of other big rock hits while Vallance penned songs for Glass Tiger, Anne Murray, Joan Jett and co-wrote Heart's "What About Love," which was inducted into the Hall of Fame last year.
They reunited in 2018 for the music and lyrics of Broadway's "Pretty Woman: The Musical."
Adams is set to release his 15th studio album "So Happy It Hurts" on Friday.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published March 9, 2022.
David Friend, The Canadian Press
Note to readers: This is a corrected story. A previous version said Adams and Vallance first met at a record store. In fact, they met at a musical instrument store.
