Before his death on Sunday (December 29) at the age of 100, Jimmy Carter was already the favorite to win his fourth Grammy Award at the 67th Grammy Awards on February 2nd. His victory seems even more certain. Final voting for the Grammy Awards continues until Friday (January 3).
However, one thing changed with the former president’s death. Carter seemed likely to set a new record as the oldest Grammy winner in history. If he wins the award, it will be posthumous. Technically, the oldest winner will still be blues pianist Pinetop Perkins, who won first prize for his collaboration with Willie “Big Eyes” Smith, “Joined at the Hips.” He was 97 years and 221 days old on February 13, 2011, when he won the Traditional Blues Album Award. , blues harmonica player. (Perkins died about six weeks later, on March 21, 2011.)
Carter was nominated for Best Audiobook, Narration or Storytelling Recording for “Last Sunday in Plains: A Centennial Celebration.” Other nominees in this category include “All You Need Is Love: The Beatles in Their Own Words” (Guy Oldfield, producer), George Clinton’s “…And Your Ass Will Follow” and Dolly Parton’s “ Behind the Seams: My Life in Rhinestones” and Barbra Streisand’s “My Name.” I’m Barbra. (Mr. Oldfield, 55, is the only candidate in this category under 75; Ms. Parton is 78, Ms. Streisand is 82, and Ms. Clinton is 83.)
This will likely be Carter’s fourth win in the division, moving her from a tie with poet Maya Angelou for the most wins in the division. Carter won in 2007 for “Our Endangered Values,” in 2016 for “A Full Life: Reflections at 90,” and in 2019 for “Faith: A Journey for All.” Angelou won in 1994 for “On the Pulse of Morning,” in 1996 for “Phenomenal Woman” and in 2003 for “A Song Flung Up to Heaven.”
Carter also has the potential to extend his record as the U.S. president with the most Grammy Awards. Bill Clinton and Barack Obama have each won two Grammy Awards.
Carter was a latecomer to Grammy glory. He was 82 years old when he won his first Grammy Award. He lost on his first three tries.
If you’re curious, the second-oldest person to ever win a Grammy was in 2022 when he won Best Traditional Pop Vocal Album for his collaboration with Lady Gaga, “Love for Sale.” Tony Bennett was 95 years and 243 days old. (He passed away in 2023.) The third oldest was comedian George Burns, who was 95 years and 31 days old in 1991 when he wrote Gracie: A Love Story” won the award for Best Spoken Word or Non-Music Recording Album. comedy partner Grace Allen; (He died in 1996.) The fourth oldest is Carter, who in 2019 was 94 years and 132 days old and won Best Spoken Word Album for Faith: A Journey for All. Award-winning.
