Veteran singer-songwriter John Prine and his Oh Boy Records label provided lunch for federal Transportation Security Administration workers at Nashville International Airport earlier this week as a thank-you to those who are working without pay during the partial government shutdown.

“The Nashville airport is my second home and everyone there always takes care of me,” Prine wrote in a post to his Instagram account, which included a photo of trays of food surrounded by TSA employees. “It’s nice to be able to do something small for them today.”

His post also encouraged his 93,000 followers who wished to offer more help to make donations to the Second Harvest Food Bank of Middle Tennessee, which Prine said “is doing a great job getting food across the country.”

Prine, 72, traded his job as a mail carrier in suburban Chicago in 1970 for another career as a touring musician after his debut album was championed by fellow singer-songwriter Kris Kristofferson and quickly found fans among music critics and other musicians including Bonnie Raitt and Bette Midler, who recorded hit versions of his songs “Angel From Montgomery” and “Hello In There,” respectively.


He has been based in Nashville for nearly four decades and has continued touring extensively following several rounds of surgery and chemotherapy treatment for different bouts with cancer.

He is nominated for three Grammy Awards in the categories of Americana album for his latest release, “The Tree of Forgiveness,” and twice in American roots song for “Summer’s End” and “Knockin’ on Your Screen Door” from that album.

randy.lewis@latimes.com

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