Brenda Lee, Gene Autry Earn Grammys

Brenda Lee photo courtesy of brendalee.com.

Dec. 22, 2008 — Brenda Lee and Gene Autry will receive Lifetime Achievement Awards from the Recording Academy in February during events leading up to the 51st annual Grammy Awards.

Both artists are already members of the Country Music Hall of Fame, though they share other similarities during the Christmas season, with long-lasting holiday classics among their impressive resumes. Brenda recorded "Rockin’ Around The Christmas Tree" 50 years ago, and the song still ranks among the 10 most-played seasonal performances on country radio in 2008. The song was recorded during the early part of her career when she was marketed as a teen pop artist, though Brenda transitioned into country during the ‘70s and delivered a series of hits for another eight years.

Gene was one of the most popular silver-screen cowboys during the first half of the 20th century, and he used his earnings to build a second career as a businessman, best known as the owner of a network of radio and TV stations and as the original owner of baseball’s Anaheim Angels. Gene’s recording of "Rudolph, The Red-Nosed Reindeer" sold multi-millions of singles, and he also wrote the Christmas classic "Here Comes Santa Claus (Down Santa Claus Lane)," a title inspired by comments he heard children make when he appeared in the Hollywood Christmas Parade in 1946.

The Lifetime honors are a bit of a departure from the Grammy ceremony, in which artists are recognized only for the music they made during the previous year.

Other Lifetime Achievement winners will include Dean Martin, Hank Jones, the Blind Boys of Alabama and folk artist Tom Paxton, whose song "The Last Thing On My Mind" was a country hit for Porter Wagoner & Dolly Parton.

Allen Toussaint, a New Orleans figure who wrote Glen Campbell’s "Southern Nights," will receive a Trustees Award. Clarence "Leo" Fender, who founded a significant instrument manufacturing firm, will be honored with a Technical Grammy.