Al Green to be honored with lifetime achievement award

LOS ANGELES (Billboard) - R&B/soul singer Al Green will be honored with the lifetime achievement award at the 12th annual Pioneer Awards, presented by the charitable Rhythm and Blues Foundation. Scheduled for Oct. 4 at New York's Apollo Theatre, the awards ceremony will honor veteran artists who greatly influenced R&B. Last year's lifetime achievement recipient was Stevie Wonder. Early jazz saxophonist Louis Jordan, perhaps known best for his wartime hits "G.I. Jive" and "Caldonia," will be recognized with the organization's legacy award, which pays tribute to a deceased member of the R&B community. Jordan died in 1975. Singers Fontella Bass and Dee Dee Sharp, as well as saxophonist Big Jay McNeely, will be recognized with individual Pioneer Awards, while the Emotions, a gospel-influenced trio, will receive the foundation's group award.