While there are those who always have a smile in the mouth but don't let their eyes smile, there surely exist ones who are thought to be easy to get acquainted with at first glance. Whatever faces they make, they have somehow the confidential and confortable atmosphere. Various persons often get together at them. When the memorial program for the plane crash victims at the World Trade Center Buildings aired worldwide, Willie Nelson took the final role. He used to have looked like an old man, however, he particularly seemed weaker on that day and artists and musicians drew close in a flurry and assisted him. That was so impressive. Meanwhile, I saw Neil Young playing guitar and head-banging and never forgetting self-assertion, and I thought him "He's just doing his own role ! ". After then Willie himself is so fine that he can keep releasing new albums at the age of 75 (as of 2008). Terribly prolific as he is, it is hard to introduce him. But you can find it difficult to follow his nature : despite being a splendid tunesmith, he doesn't stick to self-songwriting and is easy to play with others.
His biggest hit ever is a rendition of Always on My Mind originally released in '72 by Elvis. Since I would chase anything that hit in the U.S., I yearned for and favored this tune. When I heard "Always on My Mind" again, the production of Chips Moman who also did jobs on Stax of sourthern soul and duets of Waylon and Willie, I got goose flesh and was thrilled with his tenor delivered exquisitely off the rhythm. The beautiful and heart-rending voice of Elvis is also good, however, Willie's warm timbre is so trembling that this tune gets more accentuated. Together with Do Right Woman, Do Right Man co-written by Chips and Dan Penn, and Procol Halm's A Winter Shade of Pale featuring Waylon and Bridge Over Troubled Water, his calm voice and the sound background are so significant. The plans that Willie in the country field sings other genres began with "Stardust", produced by a member of MG's of Stax, Booker T Jones. Its title tune, Georgia on My Mind and Blue Skies are the supreme moments when the country's delicacy was added to the interpretation of pops or jazz standards. Its second blew "Somewhere Over the Rainbow" contains Mona Lisa, which should have used as a commercial song in Japan in my memory.
Although Willie became a hitmaker since the mid-'70s through the '80s thanks to his one and only voice, you cannot ignore his previous songwriting years in obscurity. When you listen to "Nite Life" compiling the recordings of small labels in Texas and Liberty in Nashville, or "The Essential Willie Nelson" of RCA where Chet Atkins reigned, you should be astonished at his works out of the country frame. The original of Ray Price's country-politanized Nite Life (heard on "The Essential Ray Price") is like the old big-band blues which have instrumental bridges between vocals. Faron Young's Hello Walls ( "The Golden Age of American Rock'n'Roll : Special Country Edition") or Patsy Cline's Crazy ( "The Definitive Collection"), or various versions of Funny How Time Slips Away which got to be a hit for the first time by Billy Walker (the soaring delivery of Jimmy Elledge heard on "Teenage Crush volume 2" are also found from the renditions by soul men like the Spinners) is good not only at his peculiar lyrics but his own vocals. But I cannot deny that Willie, the good-hearted man with arranged hair, was lacking in the aura of the star which should be a happy advantage. Bloody Mary Morning recorded in around '70 or "Yesterday's Wine"'s title tune, December Day or Me and Paul is too introspective to get a hit. And the fire on his own house led to the departure from RCA and Nashville. Moving to Atlantic where he cut "Shotgun Willie", whic was recorded in New York or else by Arif Mardin and whose title song features the Memphis horns, and "Phases and Stages", the concept album telling the stories of a man and a woman passing each other produced by Jerry Wexler in Muscle Shoals. He didn't get hits but got supported by rock fans or Waylon Jennings.
"Outlaw" Willie with the trademark of long hair and beard had finally succeeded when he had "Red Headed Stranger", recorded in Texas and telling the story of a preacher who shot to death his ex-girlfriend with a man and ran away. This album chiefly contains ones like Blue Eyes Crying in the Rain which are sliced off their extra flesh, and should be one of a few stuffs surely happy to be unexpectedly sold well. His following activity leaping from "Outlaw" can be found on the two disc "The Essential Willie Nelson" covering his entire career. He sings with not only Waylon but from Ray Price (Bob Wills' Faded Love), Merle Haggard (Townes Van Zandt's Pancho and Lefty ), Leon Russell (Heartbreak Hotel ), Julio Igiesias (To All the Girls I've Loved Before ), Ray Charles ( Seven Spanish Angels ) or Emmylou Harris,to U2 or Aerosmith (Steven Tyler fighting windmills and making the least of what Willie has) : I am floored by this kind of carelessness. His real headquarters is his own band. On "Willie and Family Live" featuring Emmylou Harris and the self-starring movie soundtrack and live "Honeysuckle Rose", Willie sings with the solid support, basically laid-back, sometimes cheerful (On the Road Again), sometimes harsh (Broody Mary Morning is done at the speed of punk-rock !), sometimes intimate (Angels Flying Too Close to the Ground ). In the bitter point of view, his creativity peaked off since "Stardust" and he has survived by his legacy. However, his characteristic and warm-hearted voice can be recognized at first hearing, and has the charm like a friend with whom you keep company even at the difficult time. (2008/02/16)