His wiki entry starts like this:

Willie Hugh Nelson (born April 29, 1933) is an American musician, singer, songwriter, author, poet, actor, and activist.

Should he be considered one of the great performers of all time. He has an outstanding voice, he is a terrific song-writer, he is travels the road by bus, and is an advocate for smoking weed. He supports farmers, shows up and plays at charity events,and he was once liquidated by the IRS. I think he can relate to musicians of all ages and genres. Willie Nelson has been arrested and jailed several times since 1974 for marijuana possession, mushrooms and other drugs.

Willie has performed duets with many musicians and at age 85 he still performs. And that guitar...Trigger. Nelson was inducted into the County Music HOF in 1993 and received a Kennedy Center Honor in 1998. Willie Nelson has sold over 40 million albums in the USA alone.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 2018-08-11 11:11 by bv.

Yes.

Yes, I think we state that definitively. Next question!

He's clearly one of the greats of American roots music.

Sure. Kind of the opposite to Garth Brooks.

love willie. yes. totally so imo.
his acting performance, including amazing scenes with Pop Staples in the
"Wag The Dog" movie (starring De Niro w Dustin Hoffman and Anne Heche)
is knowing and perfect. I saw it recently, tho it was released in the
late 90's....it's one hell of a movie in most every way.
I faintly also recall that he was in that 'songwriter' movie with Kristofferson very many years ago; but would have to look again to assess that.
he's written some amazing songs. the lead post here is pretty cool.
glad to see him recognized here.

recently saw a VERY cool youtube vid where his luthier is working on that guitar of his.
Just amazing how that guy rides that horse;
and how he has almost destroyed the sinew of the grain
and even the frets with his playing. (that ubiquitous guitar is in "Wag The Dog" also). The tech painstakingly tries to bolster little
threads of wood. Willie refused a fret job tho they are hardly higher
that the actual foundational wood on he 'board'...and etc...
[www.youtube.com]
Cool viewing for folks passionate about maintaining their ride.



Edited 4 time(s). Last edit at 2018-08-12 06:34 by hopkins.

Willie is a great one, and I say that from the confines of the UK.

I love Willie Nelson's music, and find it a great source of mindfulness. I used to like Willie's favourite form of smoking, but quit that in late 1995.

However, getting back to Willie's music: the Rhino box set of Shotgun Willie, Phases & Stages, and Live at the Texas Opryhouse, is fantastic. You can follow it up with The Troublemaker, one of the funkiest gospel albums ever recorded. Likewise, Red Headed Stranger as a concept album is one of the best in any genre.

Furthermore, throw in a brilliant tribute to Kris Kristofferson from 1979, Willie Sings Kristofferson, and Stardust too, which was among the first albums by a non-perceived crooner to cover the Great American songbook, and you have a fascinating decade of music, which is almost on a par with Bowie from Space Oddity to Ashes to Ashes.

If you go forward, then there's his cover of Always On My Mind, which strips down the Elvis version to its bare bones. Likewise, there's some great individual tracks from the 1980s like Horse Called Music, Georgia On A Fast Train, Little Old Fashioned Karma, City of New Orleans.

Furthermore, the first and third Highwayman albums are great. Then you can move into the Don Was produced American Tune, which has a great array of guests, and some great tracks. His version of Dylan's What Was It You Wanted ? is from that album, and his duet with Sinead O'Connor on Don't Give Up is pretty tasty.

Moving into the mid 90s, and Willie made some great albums in Teatro, probably his best, and Spirit, which is even more stripped down than Red Headed Stranger.

There's also a Cindy Walker tribute, which is pretty good: a Western Swing album with Asleep At The Wheel, also good. I like the Songbird Ryan Adams collaboration too, but am not a fan of The Great Divide.

I can also say that his American Classic album is a nifty return to the American Songbook, and his live album with Wynton Marsalis, Two Men With the Blues, is also good.

The T-Bone Burnett produced Country Music does what it says on the tin, and is also a good album. Gods' Problem Child and Last Man Standing are both showcases of Willie writing some great songs, even in his mid 80s.

I also appreciate his collaboration with Calexico on the I'm Not There soundtrack, wherein he covers Bob Dylan's Señor with aplomb.

I am also looking forward to his Frank Sinatra covers album - maybe he can show that young dude, Bob Dylan, how to do these tunes properly ? Hey, I do like the recent Dylan cover albums, but if you listen to Stardust you know where Bob got the idea from.

is this trick question?

Willie is not only one of the greats, but one of the last country greats from his era. Fortunate to have seen him several times over the decades. Love him.
Last Man Standing: [youtu.be]

His pot use and advocacy is well known, but I was a bit surprised to see ole Merle Haggard sharing a spliff with him on this
[youtu.be]

Quote
MisterDDDD
Willie is not only one of the greats, but one of the last country greats from his era. Fortunate to have seen him several times over the decades. Love him.
Last Man Standing: [youtu.be]

His pot use and advocacy is well known, but I was a bit surprised to see ole Merle Haggard sharing a spliff with him on this
[youtu.be]

Ah ! You're not thinking that because Merle wrote "We don't smoke marijuana in Muskogee" ? There's a sense of Randy Newman-esque irony to Okie From Muskogee, which most don't get.

Quote
tomcasagranda

Quote
MisterDDDD
Willie is not only one of the greats, but one of the last country greats from his era. Fortunate to have seen him several times over the decades. Love him.
Last Man Standing: [youtu.be]

His pot use and advocacy is well known, but I was a bit surprised to see ole Merle Haggard sharing a spliff with him on this
[youtu.be]

Ah ! You're not thinking that because Merle wrote "We don't smoke marijuana in Muskogee" ? There's a sense of Randy Newman-esque irony to Okie From Muskogee, which most don't get.

Nah, hadn't even thought of the song.
Just know from a few who know him, his conservative political leanings.
Have always liked him anyway, and this made me like him more.

Have always got and loved the irony of Okie.. a great song!



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 2018-08-11 17:50 by MisterDDDD.

Love him! Gotta see him live, before too late!

TE
Oslo

Quote
keefriffhard4life
is this trick question?

Seems like it... but more likely just a straight up dumb question.

WILLIE NELSON IS A LEGEND!

Cool video right here: Willie Nelson and His Famous Guitar: The Tale of Trigger





_____________________________________________________________
Rip this joint, gonna save your soul, round and round and round we go......



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 2018-08-11 20:40 by Hairball.

Quote
TE
Love him! Gotta see him live, before too late!

TE
Oslo

I couldn't believe my good fortune when he played literally 10 minutes down the road from my apartment back in 2014 at a little open-air theater tucked into the woods.

Alison Krauss and Kacey Musgraves also played, and they were great as well...and it didn't hurt that Kacey is cute as hell.

I just saw him last night on my kayak for free. It was in San Diego,and a very good concert.

Lol

Hell yes!

The guy wrote like 100,000 songs

the shoot 'em dead, brainbell jangler!

Which Stones song would be the right fit for him to play with the Stones as a guest?

I'm thinking about an acoustic version of Melody.

Sweet Virginia ………………



ROCKMAN

I can hear him doing Dear Doctor...
although I think most Stones country songs seem like making fun of country music (to me anyway) so Willie might not cotton to that... but he might... he probably would... ah hell I have no idea if he would or not (and I am not worthy to even suggest what the great Willie Nelson would or would not do)... but still I can hear him doing Dear Doctor in his style. giddy up

Quote
The Sicilian
Which Stones song would be the right fit for him to play with the Stones as a guest?

I'm thinking about an acoustic version of Melody.

I can imagine him doing a perfect version of Dead Flowers either with the Stones, with his own band, or even a solo acoustic version.
Meanwhile, I can see and hear him on this, singing "Well I hope you won't see me in my ragged company..." along with great harmony singing throughout:

Keith Richards & Willie Nelson & Ryan Adams & Hank Williams III - Dead Flowers

_____________________________________________________________
Rip this joint, gonna save your soul, round and round and round we go......



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 2018-08-12 04:12 by Hairball.

Wow, that was FANTASTIC.

He wrote Crazy ….. and if that was all he ever did then he deserves the highest of praise …

You can here hear his early demo version on Crazy The Demo Sessions -- Sugar Hill Records ...…. Before Patsy rides it to the top of the charts



ROCKMAN



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 2018-08-12 05:59 by Rockman.

Quote
Rockman
He wrote Crazy ….. and if that was all he ever did then he deserves the highest of praise …

You can here hear his early demo version on Crazy The Demo Sessions -- Sugar Hill Records ...…. Before Patsy rides it to the top of the charts

thats a good album

Quote
Hairball

Quote
The Sicilian
Which Stones song would be the right fit for him to play with the Stones as a guest?

I'm thinking about an acoustic version of Melody.

I can imagine him doing a perfect version of Dead Flowers either with the Stones, with his own band, or even a solo acoustic version.
Meanwhile, I can see and hear him on this, singing "Well I hope you won't see me in my ragged company..." along with great harmony singing throughout:

Keith Richards & Willie Nelson & Ryan Adams & Hank Williams III - Dead Flowers

You're kidding me, Hairball? A horrible version. The backing musicians drains the singers. Harmony singing? Rather discordant non-singing...

There's some artists that Willie hasn't covered. John Prine springs to mind, as i think Willie would do some excellent Prine covers - Bruised Orange (Chain of Sorrow), Down By The Side of The Road, All The Best, Souvenirs, People Putting People Down, spring to mind.

Stones-wise, I could envisage Willie doing Memory Motel, Silver Train a la Milkcow Blues Boogie album with POTR, Till The Next Goodbye, Sleep Tonight. The possibilities are endless. After all, Willie did cover the Grateful Dead brilliantly on Stella Blue, and he did the Allmans on Midnight Rider from The Electric Horseman OST.

YES.
And Jerry Lee Lewis also.
Two greats and great 'survivors'.

Willie comes from a long way and is still performing and yes he’s great!

when willie packed his bags, and left Nashville , for Austin, he changed country music, he started having july 4th festivals in Austin,and u started seeing , he broaden country music appeal along with Waylon and others

Quote
dgodkin
when willie packed his bags, and left Nashville , for Austin, he changed country music, he started having july 4th festivals in Austin,and u started seeing , he broaden country music appeal along with Waylon and others

So when did it change to hipsters in Austin?