Joe Perry of Aerosmith to Receive Les Paul Award at 2017 NAMM TEC Gala

Billboard.com reports that Aerosmith's Joe Perry will be the next recipient of the prestigious Les Paul Award for creative excellence which will be presented at the 32nd annual NAMM TEC Awards on Jan. 21 in Anaheim, Calif.

The award, which carries the name of the definitive guitar hero, audio pioneer and inventor Les Paul, who passed away in August 2009, is bequeathed to individuals that have "set the highest standards of excellence in the creative application of recording technology".

"Anytime my name is mentioned in the same sentence as Les Paul, it's a huge honor," says Perry in a statement. "Getting an award bearing his name is the icing on the cake."

As a founding member of Aerosmith, Perry has had a hand in more than 150 million album sales, both as principal songwriter, lead guitarist and as a producer on various works.

Through a career spanning more than 45 years, the band has also collected four Grammys, six Billboard Music Awards, 12 MTV Video Awards and in 2001 earned entry into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Perry and Aerosmith frontman Steven Tyler were recipients of the ASCAP Founders Award and were inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2013.

"Joe Perry was a friend of Les Paul's and is undoubtedly one of the most innovative and talented musicians of our time," says Michael K. Braunstein, executive director, Les Paul Foundation, which presents the award. "His ability to push boundaries of the electric guitar with his signature sound and deft playing ability embodies the true spirit of what Les Paul and the award given in his name stands for."

Past recipients of the Les Paul Award have included Slash, Todd Rundgren, Pete Townshend of the Who, Steve Vai and Lindsey Buckingham of Fleetwood Mac, Brian Wilson, Peter Gabriel, Stevie Wonder and last year's honoree, Grammy-winning producer and Blue Note head Don Was.

Perry recently told reporters his new solo album was "in the can" and hinted at a tentative release date for some or all of the LP in the New Year.

For more information on the NAMM TEC Awards visit www.tecawards.org.

PHOTO CREDIT: Joe Perry's Official Facebook Page