I have a few favorite movies, a few favorite songs, a few favorite authors and books. But I have only one favorite songwriter.

It was back in my high school days that I first discovered Kris Kristofferson. I listened to songs he'd written, songs that have since become more than classics. They've become standards.

'Sunday Morning Comin' Down'. 'For The Good Times'. 'Help Me Make It Through The Night'. 'Me And Bobby McGee'. And that's just the tip of the songwriting iceberg.

I've long admired the craftsmen and craftswomen who construct a great song, who can string words together and make magic. A truly good song tells a story. A truly great song will have that one incredible line in it, a line that makes me go 'Wow'! And then there's Kris. So many of his songs have not one, but two, three, four, five magical lines in them, each better than the one before. I have about 40 'favorite' Kristofferson songs, but I suppose if pressed, I might take 'The Pilgrim: Chapter 33' as my top choice.

Now Kris will be honored by his contemporaries and admirers.

(AP) - Kris Kristofferson will be the subject of a tribute concert in Nashville on March 16.

Willie Nelson, Rosanne Cash, Eric Church and Lady Antebellum are among the performers. Dierks (DURKS) Bentley, Ryan Bingham, Emmylou Harris, Jamey Johnson, Darius Rucker and Trisha Yearwood will also play.

The event will be taped for a show called "The Life and Songs of Kris Kristofferson." A release date or where it might air was not given.

The Associated Press Contributed To This Story

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