Al Green has made a mark on soul, R&B, and gospel that simply cannot be denied. The singer’s career began as a child in a family quartet in Forest City, Arkansas in the 1950s and has risen to the world stage with his powerful, expressive voice teaching lessons about love and God.

Al Green was born on April 13, 1946 as Albert Greene to a sharecropper who played in his own group. The Greene Brothers played at venues throughout the South until the family moved to Grand Rapids, Michigan, at which point they toured Michigan. Al was kicked out of the group by his father after he was caught listening to Jackie Wilson records. The singer who helped transition from R&B to soul had a profound effect on Green, who spent his early years trying to copy Wilson’s singing style.

After failing to make much of a dent on the independent music label started by band mates from Al Greene & the Creations, he found his start with Willie Mitchell. Mitchell hired him for vocals for a show in Texas and was blown away by Al’s voice. Mitchell signed him to his label, Hi Records, and became his longtime producer.

Green’s first hit album came in 1972 with Let’s Stay Together. The album was his first of six straight number one R&B albums. Al was selling tickets and albums in droves and establishing himself as a star. On October 18, 1974, that all changed.

Longtime friend Mary Woodson suffered a mental breakdown while staying at Al Green’s place as a guest. She imagined that Green rejected her romantically and flung a boiling pot of grits over his back, stomach, and arms, leaving him with third degree burns. Woodson went into another room and committed suicide. The tragedy changed Al’s life. He began to move toward gospel music, releasing his first completely religious album The Lord Will Make a Way, in 1980.

The road to become a successful gospel singer was long, but three years later he became a constant force on the gospel charts. Green eventually moved back to R&B, but never completely dropped his gospel influences. The return to secular music came in 1995, after flirting with it for a while. Once again, it took a while for Al to reestablish himself, but he has become a chart topper again.

Al Green’s newest album, Lay It Down, pairs him with producer Ahmir Thompson fro The Roots. His new work features collaborations wit artists like John Legend and Corinne Bailey Rae and has produced several hit singles. He has released a schedule of concerts for his summer tour, with shows starting on June 19 in Toronto and ending on September 21 in Valley Center, California. Al Green tickets will be available all summer long at The Seats, the best one-stop online ticket broker for your summer concerts.