Joe Hurley Accepts Top Award for "LIFE," a Memoir of Keith Richards, at 16th Annual Awards Ceremony

(New York, NY) -- New York based pop singer and songwriter, Joe Hurley, who narrated the critically acclaimed "LIFE" with Keith Richards and Johnny Depp, accepted the prestigious Best Audio Book Of The Year Award at tonight's 2011 Audie Awards Ceremony in New York City.  "LIFE," the audio book released by Hachette Audio, captures the rock-n-roll spirit and life of Keith Richards and is narrated by Hurley and award winning actor Johnny Depp. The Audio book has won accolades since its release including New Yorker Magazine,  Amazon's Best of 2010, Publisher's Weekly and numerous celebrities including Jimmy Vivino and Julie Sweeney to name a few.

Hurley took the stage to accept the award and through a surge of emotions, told the story about seeing the Rolling Stones in London, his first rock concert, and now turning to this great privilege in his life which he simply described as a "helluva joy ride."

Long considered the "Academy Award" amongst Audio Books Awards, "LIFE" competed against The Woody Allen Collection, written and narrated by the famed director himself and The Red Pyramid by Rick Riordan and narrated by Katherine Kellgren and Kevin P. Free for the award. "LIFE" also won "Biography Book of the Year" also accepted by Joe Hurley at the ceremony.

"When I heard they needed me on this project, there were no questions asked," said Hurley. "I was sound checking Singing Back Home in Paris when I got the call. I went straight to the airport flew for hours, lost my luggage and had no sleep but we recorded it on time and the result is this amazing memoir to music icon, Keith Richards."

The Audie Awards (Audies) is the only awards program in the U.S.A. devoted solely to spoken word entertainment. They are annually bestowed upon recipients for outstanding audio books. The Audies have been granted by the Audio Publisher Association, a not-for-profit trade organization since 1996. Nominees are announced each year in January.  Winners are announced in the Spring.

Joe Hurley is a singer, songwriter, actor, playwright and voice-over artist and leads the award winning bands Joe Hurley & The Gents and Joe Hurley & Rogue's March. He is the founder and curator of the Allstar Irish Rock Revue, a musical – literary homage to "The Great Irish Songbook," celebrated annually around St. Patrick's Day. Raised in London to Irish parents, Hurley now lives in New York City. His roots in three distinct heritages inspired his eclectic songwriting which has been described as a blend of punk, rock and roll balladry and traditional Irish Folk. Musically, Hurley is often noted for his soulful baritone and storytelling quality of lyrics.  Most recently asked to narrate rock icon Keith Richard's memoir, "LIFE," Hurley joined Osacr winner Johnny Depp in the collaboration which has won rave reviews from media, critics and artists alike. For more information on Joe Hurley go tohttp://www.roguesmarch.com/