Gwen Stefani, Steven Tyler Salute Paul McCartney at Kennedy Center Honors

Gwen Stefani, Steven Tyler and Sheryl Crow were among the performers who delivered stirring tributes to legendary entertainers during this year's Kennedy Center Honors. The ceremony, which honored Paul McCartney, Oprah Winfrey, country singer Merle Haggard, composer Jerry Herman and dancer Bill T. Jones, aired on CBS last night (Dec. 28) after being taped in Washington, DC earlier this month.

McCartney was honored with performances of his classic Beatles material by Stefani and Tyler. Stefani joined her No Doubt bandmates onstage for punk-inflected takes on "Hello, Goodbye" and "Penny Lane," while the Aerosmith frontman let loose during a medley of the Beatles' "Abbey Road."

Dave Grohl and Norah Jones also paid tribute to McCartney, performing one of the his biggest solo songs, "Maybe I'm Amazed," as a duet.

Meanwhile, Jennifer Hudson paid tribute to Winfrey with a performance of "I'm Here," from Winfrey-produced Broadway show "The Color Purple." Oprah appears delightfully surprised when Hudson is joined by the Tennessee State University choir halfway through the ballad.

Crow and 1998 Kennedy Center honoree Willie Nelson collaborated on a cover of Haggard's classic "Today I Started Loving You Again." In the video, Haggard seems a bit choked up by the quiet duet.

James Taylor was also on hand to honor to McCartney during the Dec. 6 ceremony, while Kid Rock paid tribute to Haggard as well. Julia Roberts, John Travolta and Barbara Walters were among the non-musical stars who attended the ceremony.