Willie Nelson honoured with Kris Kristofferson prize
Kristofferson presents inaugural award to old friend and fellow singer
Veteran singer-songwriter Kris Kristofferson presented his old friend Willie Nelson with a lifetime achievement award Sunday from the Nashville Songwriters Association International.
The name of the new prize – the Kris Kristofferson Award. Kristofferson, a founding member of the association, joked that he was embarrassed the NSAI named the award after him.
In his tribute to Nelson, Kristofferson looked back at the time he first came to Nashville in 1965, when it "was the most exciting place for a creative artist to be."
"And the people I hung around with were serious songwriters who were totally unselfish, and their hero and my hero was a guy that nobody else knew. It was Willie Nelson. He's unlike anybody else."
Then guests at Nashville’s Bluebird Café, known for showcasing songwriters, were treated to Nelson and Kristofferson pairing up to play songs like Crazy and Sunday Mornin’ Comin’ Down.
Nelson, now 79, wrote Crazy for Patsy Cline and Funny How Time Slips Away for Billy Walker before becoming a star in his own right in the 1970s with Red Headed Stranger and Blue Eyes Crying in the Rain, both crossover hits.
Nelson had high-profile collaborations with Waylon Jennings and Julio Iglesias, as well as singing in supergroup the Highwayman with Jennings, Johnny Cash and Kristofferson. A prolific songwriter and performer, he continues to tour.
His friend Kristofferson, now 76, is preparing to present some new songs. He has released a new acoustic album Feeling Mortal that reflects on love, family and mortality.