Credit: Matt FurmanPaul Williams, who’s written or co-written major hits for some of pop’s biggest stars, will receive the Songwriters Hall of Fame’s highest honor, the Johnny Mercer Award, at the organization’s 51st annual Induction and Awards dinner.
The event is scheduled for June 11 in New York City. The award is presented to a Songwriters Hall of Fame member whose body of work is of such “high quality and impact” that it “upholds the gold standard set by the legendary Johnny Mercer.”
Among the many hits Williams has had a hand in composing: The Carpenters‘ “We’ve Only Just Begun,” “Rainy Days and Mondays” and “I Won’t Last a Day Without You”; Barbra Streisand‘s “Evergreen (Love Song from A Star Is Born)”; Three Dog Night‘s “An Old Fashioned Love Song”; Helen Reddy‘s “You and Me Against the World”; and the classic Muppet Movie tune, “The Rainbow Connection.”
Williams won a Best Original Song Oscar in 1977 and Song of the Year Grammy the following year for the chart-topping “Evergreen,” which he co-wrote with Streisand.
“Paul Williams is a songwriter’s songwriter,” Hall of Fame chairman Nile Rodgers says. “He’s one of the most wonderful and colorful creators of our time and a man who has given the world so much love through [his] songs.”
Williams also has had a successful acting career, and has served as the president and chairman of the American Society of Composers and Publishers (ASCAP) since 2010.
Paul was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2001. As previously reported, this year’s Hall of Fame inductees include Steve Miller, Mariah Carey, Eurythmics‘ Annie Lennox and Dave Stewart, and The Isley Brothers.
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