VAN Morrison been awarded a knighthood on Queen Elizabeth II’s Birthday Honours list. The award has been given to the Belfast man in recognition of “services to the music industry and to tourism in Northern Ireland”.
The singer will be known as Sir George — his given name is George Ivan Morrison. The 69-year-old is a six-time Grammy Award winner whose best-known hits include Moondance, Brown Eyed Girl and Have I Told You Lately That I Love You.
He is regarded as having been hugely influential in rock music, having blended blues, country, soul, jazz and Celtic folk with poetic lyrics. Outside of his musical work, Morrison is a man of few words.
A statement from him reads, “Throughout my career I have always preferred to let my music speak for me, and it is a huge honour to now have that body of work recognised in this way.
I would like to take this opportunity to thank all the fans who have supported me on my musical journey.”
The heads of his label, RCA Records, issued a statement which said: “We are thrilled to hear the momentous news that Van Morrison has received such a prestigious and well deserved honor today. All of us at RCA are wishing him a heartfelt congratulations.” This coming Thursday (June 18), Morrison will again be honoured. He is the recipient of this year’s Johnny Mercer Award, which is given annually by the Songwriter’s Hall of Fame”.
