Al Green

Albert Leornes Greene (born April 13, 1946), known professionally as Al Green, is an American singer, songwriter, pastor and record producer. He is best known for recording a series of soul hit singles in the early 1970s, including "Tired of Being Alone" (1971), "I'm Still in Love with You" (1972), "Love and Happiness" (1973), "Take Me to the River" (1974), and his signature song, "Let's Stay Together" (1972). Green became an ordained pastor and recorded gospel music during the 1980s.

Green was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1995. He was referred to on the museum's site as being "one of the most gifted purveyors of soul music". He has also been referred to as "The Last of the Great Soul Singers". Green is the winner of 11 Grammy Awards, including the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award. He has also received the BMI Icon award and is a Kennedy Center Honors recipient. He was included in Rolling Stone's 2008 list of the "100 Greatest Artists of All Time", ranking at No. 65, as well as its 2023 list of the "200 Greatest Singers of All Time", at No. 10.

Green is a canonical Memphis soul artist. He collaborated closely with many of Memphis's most notable R&B musicians. He had a long partnership with producer/arranger Willie Mitchell and the Hi Rhythm Section, which yielded Green's greatest commercial successes.

Albert Leornes Greene was born on April 13, 1946, in Forrest City, Arkansas, as the sixth of ten children born to Cora Lee and sharecropper Robert G. Greene Jr. At around the age of ten, Al began performing with his sister in a group called the Greene Brothers. During the late 1950s, the Greene family relocated to Grand Rapids, Michigan.

While still a teenager, Al was kicked out of the family home after his devoutly religious father caught him listening to Jackie Wilson.

Biography summary from English Wikipedia, photograph via Wikimedia Commons.