To All The Songs I've Heard Before: Willie Nelson

The Red Headed Stranger. The Original Outlaw. Willie Nelson. An American Legend. Can I really say that and be serious? Most assuredly so. A small meek man who has given us some of the greatest songs in country music's history and some of the greatest songs of American history! Grand, huh? Well, let's lay off the superlatives for a minute and just say that Willie Nelson writes beautiful proud music that is stuffed to the brim with emotion and honesty.

Willie, born in 1933 in Texas, was raised mostly by grandparents after his father died and his mother ran away. He had one sister, Bobbie, who has been super close to him his whole life. They were heavily encourged by their grandparents to play music, and so they did, Willie started in with the guitar and Bobbie with the piano. Willie started writing songs at age 7, and was fronting a band all through high school. After a failed stint in the Air Force, Willie started DJ'ing and he recorded his first song in 1956 (in Vancouver, WA!). He sold his first song (as is common in country music), "Family Bible", in 1959, and in 1960 it became a hit (for Claude Gray). Willie moved to Nashville to try to sell more songs and to become a recording artist on his own. Willie was rejected time and time again in regards to his own recordings. He found luck selling songs and penned many huge country hits of the early 60's such as "Hello Walls," "Funny How Time Slips Away," and the ubiquitous "Crazy" made famous by Patsy Cline. Willie was given a recording contract and had a few modest hit singles, but his success faded, and by the early 70's he decided to quit making music all together. Willie moved back to Texas and tried his hand at farming. While the farming didn't work out, Willie became inspired by the farming, the hard working Texan, and the rock'n'roll vibe. Realizing that he was disillusioned with the glitz and sheen and obtrusiveness of the Nashville system and scene, and not with music itself, he went back to work but this time his way. He released a string of albums that he took creative control of, and they showed what a great producer and performer Willie could be in addition to an already recognized songwriter. Yesterday's Wine, Shotgun Willie, and Phases & Stages are all great albums with loose concepts that tie them together. In 1975, Willie released Red Headed Stranger a brilliant album that tells a great tale of lost love, revenge, being on the run, and what you can find if you stop running. A very spare production consisting mainly of Willie's guitar and sister Bobbie's piano. Nineteen mostly short songs tell a story deserving of a movie version, which they made a few years with Willie in the lead role. Red Headed Stranger was Willie's most succeful album to date and greated with wide critical acclaim. It really cemented him as a performer. He continued having success in the late 70's and early 80's with "Mamas Don't Let Your Babies Grow Up To Be Cowboys," "On The Road Again," and the pop crossover hit version of Elvis Presley's "Always on My Mind." Also appearing in a number of films in the late 70s/early 80s (Willie's peak of commercial success) he became an icon for the outlaw country phenomenon (along with Waylon Jennings, Merle Haggard, etc.). "Honeysuckle Rose" a film which appears to be fairly autobiographical about Willie is really enjoyable and feature Willie and his band at their most rocking.

Willie ran into some trouble with the IRS in the late 80's, and they repossessed the majority of his holdings (homes, studios, farms, etc.) and he even put out a double album to raise money to pay of the IRS called The IRS Tapes: Who'll Buy My Memories. The 80's and 90's also saw Willie focusing on his Farm Aid charity concerts, which earned millions and millions for America's struggling farmers.

Consistently putting out albums up till today, Willie has lost some of his chart power, but he still continues to challenge himself and his audience with every release. The 1996 release, Spirit, is a hauntingly sad album about coming to grips with being alone. Spirit is also another spare affair, where Willie's songs and talents seem to shine brightest, focusing on Willie's excellent guitar playing in a more spanish style and it is easily one of the best of his career.

Willie Nelson is an American icon and legend. His face is probably one of the most recognizable. He has a likable way about him (as shown in those very funny tax ads in this years Super Bowl) and has had a wonderful career over the last 45 years. Most importantly, Willie Nelson has given us songs of beautiful sorrow, amazing relief, obscure wisdom, and jubilee. Willie Nelson is The Greatest Band Of All Time.