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Carole King First Woman to Get US Song Honor

Library of Congress salutes her lifetime of work with Gershwin prize

By John Johnson,  Newser Staff

Posted Dec 13, 2012 4:41 PM CST

(Newser) – Carole King makes a little history next spring when she collects the 2013 Gershwin Prize for Popular Song from the US Library of Congress. King is the first woman to win the honor, which salutes a body of songwriting, reports the LA Times. King, 70, made her name with the seminal 1971 album Tapestry, featuring "It's Too Late" and "You've Got a Friend." Before that, however, she had a hand in writing hits such as "Will You Love Me Tomorrow," "One Fine Day," and "Up on the Roof."

Reuters notes that she might be best known for songs written by her but performed by others, including "(You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman" by Aretha Franklin and James Taylor's version of "You've Got a Friend." Previous winners of the award are Stevie Wonder, Paul Simon, Paul McCartney, and the team of Burt Bacharach and Hal David.

Carole King performs on the NBC Today program in 2010.
Carole King performs on the NBC "Today" program in 2010.   (AP Photo/Richard Drew)
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Carole King's 'It's Too Late.'   (YouTube)

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COMMENTS
Showing 3 of 12 comments
enoughalready
Dec 14, 2012 4:24 PM CST
Way to go Carole you deserve it, your a great talented artist enjoyed your music over the years.  
StationaryMan
Dec 14, 2012 9:23 AM CST
Allow me to quote a previous winner(Paul McCartney) "About Friggin Time"
viva_yo
Dec 13, 2012 10:01 PM CST
She's not that much older than myself yet she was writing songs while I was still a little kid.  When did she start writing songs, when she was 12?  A great talent; she certainly deserves it.
 

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