Willie Nelson is 89 years old, with his 90th birthday coming up in April, and he’s still unbelievably productive. Earlier this year, he released A Beautiful Time, his 72nd solo album and his fourth since 2020. Well, the nominations for the 2023 Grammys were announced yesterday (November 15) and they showed that it’s not just about quantity with Nelson, as his new work is still picking up nominations for music’s biggest awards show.
All in all, he walked away with four nominations: Best Country Solo Performance (“Live Forever”), Best Country Song (“I’ll Love You Till The Day I Die”), Best Country Album (A Beautiful Time), and Best Roots Gospel Album (The Willie Nelson Family). Impressively, those nominations stem from three different projects; “Live Forever” is from Live Forever: A Tribute To Billy Joe Shaver and “I’ll Love You Till The Day I Die” appears on A Beautiful Time.
What may be the most surprising about all this is that Nelson actually isn’t this year’s oldest Grammy nominee. That title goes to 96-year-old Mel Brooks, whose All About Me!: My Remarkable Life In Show Business is nominated for Best Audio Book, Narration, And Storytelling Recording. Other notable older nominees include 88-year-old John Mayall and 86-year-old Buddy Guy, whose projects (The Sun Is Shining Down and The Blues Don’t Lie, respectively) are up for Best Traditional Blues Album.
On a related note, earlier this year, Tony Bennett became the second-oldest person to ever win a Grammy; he was 95 years and 243 days old at the time.
Find the full list of 2023 Grammy nominees here.