Willie Hugh Nelson (born April 29, 1933) is an American singer, guitarist, songwriter, actor and activist. He was one of the main figures of the outlaw country subgenre that developed in the late 1960s as a reaction to the conservative restrictions of the Nashville sound. The critical success of his album ''

Shotgun Willie ''Shotgun Willie'' is the 16th studio album by American country music singer-songwriter Willie Nelson, released on June 11, 1973. The recording marks a change of style for Nelson, who later stated that the album "cleared his throat". When Nelson ...

'' (1973), combined with the critical and commercial success of ''

Red Headed Stranger ''Red Headed Stranger'' is the eighteenth studio album by American outlaw country singer Willie Nelson, released in 1975. Following the success of his recordings with Atlantic Records, coupled with the negotiating skills of his manager, Neil Re ...

'' (1975) and ''

Stardust Stardust may refer to: * A type of cosmic dust, composed of particles in space Entertainment Songs * “Stardust” (1927 song), by Hoagy Carmichael * “Stardust” (David Essex song), 1974 * “Stardust” (Lena Meyer-Landrut song), 2012 * ...

'' (1978), made Nelson one of the most recognized artists in country music. Nelson has acted in over 30 films, co-authored several books, and has been involved in activism for the use of

biofuel Biofuel is a fuel that is produced over a short time span from Biomass (energy), biomass, rather than by the very slow natural processes involved in the formation of fossil fuels such as oil. Biofuel can be produced from plants or from agricu ...

s and the

legalization of marijuana The legality of cannabis for medical and recreational use varies by country, in terms of its possession, distribution, and cultivation, and (in regards to medical) how it can be consumed and what medical conditions it can be used for. The ...

. Nelson wrote his first song at age seven and joined his first band at ten. During high school, he toured locally with the Bohemian Polka as their lead singer and guitar player. After graduating from high school in 1950, he joined the

U.S. Air Force The United States Air Force (USAF) is the air service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is one of the six United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Tracing its origins to 1 ...

but was later discharged due to back problems. After his return, Nelson attended

Baylor University Baylor University is a Private university, private Baptist research university in Waco, Texas, United States. It was chartered in 1845 by the last Congress of the Republic of Texas. Baylor is the oldest continuously operating university in Te ...

for two years but dropped out because he was succeeding in music. He worked as a

disc jockey A disc jockey, more commonly abbreviated as DJ, is a person who plays recorded music for an audience. Types of DJs include Radio personality, radio DJs (who host programs on music radio stations), club DJs (who work at nightclubs or music fes ...

at radio stations in his native Texas, and at several radio stations in the

Pacific Northwest The Pacific Northwest (PNW; ) is a geographic region in Western North America bounded by its coastal waters of the Pacific Ocean to the west and, loosely, by the Rocky Mountains to the east. Though no official boundary exists, the most common ...

, all the while working as a singer and songwriter throughout the late 1950s. During that time, he wrote songs that would become country standards, including "

Funny How Time Slips Away "Funny How Time Slips Away" is a song written by Willie Nelson and first recorded by country singer Billy Walker. Walker's version was issued as a single by Columbia Records in June 1961 and peaked at number 23 on the Hot C&W Sides chart befor ...

", "

Hello Walls "Hello Walls" is an American country music song written by Willie Nelson and first recorded by Faron Young. It was number one on ''Billboards country chart for nine weeks in 1961 and spent 23 weeks on the chart. It peaked at number 12 on the ...

", " Pretty Paper", and "

Crazy Insanity, madness, lunacy, and craziness are behaviors caused by certain abnormal mental or behavioral patterns. Insanity can manifest as violations of societal norms, including a person or persons becoming a danger to themselves or to other ...

". In 1960 he moved to

Nashville, Tennessee Nashville, often known as Music City, is the capital and List of municipalities in Tennessee, most populous city in the U.S. state of Tennessee. It is the county seat, seat of Davidson County, Tennessee, Davidson County in Middle Tennessee, locat ...

, and later signed a publishing contract with Pamper Music which allowed him to join

Ray Price Noble Ray Price (January 12, 1926 – December 16, 2013) was an American country music singer, songwriter, and guitarist. His wide-ranging baritone is regarded as among the best male voices of country music, and his innovations, such as prope ...

's band as a bassist. In 1962, he recorded his first album, '' ...And Then I Wrote''. Due to this success, Nelson signed in 1964 with

RCA Victor RCA Records is an American record label owned by Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Group Corporation. It is one of Sony Music's four flagship labels, alongside Columbia Records (its former longtime rival), Arista Records and Epic ...

and joined the

Grand Ole Opry The ''Grand Ole Opry'' is a regular live country music, country-music Radio broadcasting, radio broadcast originating from Nashville, Tennessee, Nashville, Tennessee, on WSM (AM), WSM, held between two and five nights per week, depending on the ...

the following year. After mid-chart hits in the late 1960s and the early 1970s, Nelson grew weary of the corporate Nashville music scene, and in 1972 he moved to

Austin, Texas Austin ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of Texas. It is the county seat and most populous city of Travis County, Texas, Travis County, with portions extending into Hays County, Texas, Hays and W ...

. The ongoing music scene of Austin motivated Nelson to return to performing, appearing frequently at the Armadillo World Headquarters. In 1973, after signing with

Atlantic Records Atlantic Recording Corporation (simply known as Atlantic Records) is an American record label founded in October 1947 by Ahmet Ertegun and Herb Abramson. Over the course of its first two decades, starting from the release of its first recor ...

, Nelson turned to outlaw country, including albums such as ''Shotgun Willie'' and ''Phases and Stages''. In 1975, he switched to Columbia Records, where he recorded the critically acclaimed album ''Red Headed Stranger''. The same year, he recorded another outlaw country album, ''

Wanted! The Outlaws ''Wanted! The Outlaws'' is a compilation album by Waylon Jennings, Willie Nelson, Jessi Colter, and Tompall Glaser, released by RCA Records in 1976. The album consists of previously released material with four new songs. Released to capitalize ...

'', along with

Waylon Jennings Waylon Arnold Jennings (June 15, 1937 – February 13, 2002) was an American singer, songwriter, musician, and actor. He is considered one of the pioneers of the Outlaw country, outlaw movement in country music. Jennings started playing ...

Jessi Colter Mirriam Johnson (born May 25, 1943), known professionally as Jessi Colter, is an American country singer who is best known for her collaborations with her second husband, country musician Waylon Jennings, and for her 1975 crossover hit " I'm Not ...

, and

Tompall Glaser Thomas Paul "Tompall" Glaser (September 3, 1933 – August 12, 2013) was an American country singer who was a key figure in the 1970s outlaw country movement.Honeysuckle Rose'' and recording hit songs like " On the Road Again", "

To All the Girls I've Loved Before "To All the Girls I've Loved Before" is a song written by Hal David (words) and Albert Hammond (music). It was originally recorded by Hammond in 1975 on his album ''99 Miles From L.A.'', but is more famous for a 1984 recording by Julio Iglesi ...

", and "

Pancho and Lefty "Pancho and Lefty", originally "Poncho and Lefty", is a song written by American country singer-songwriter Townes Van Zandt. Perhaps his most well-known song, Van Zandt recorded his original version of this song for his 1972 album ''The Late Great ...

", he joined the country supergroup The Highwaymen, along with fellow singers

Johnny Cash John R. Cash (born J. R. Cash; February 26, 1932 – September 12, 2003) was an American singer-songwriter. Most of his music contains themes of sorrow, moral tribulation, and redemption, especially songs from the later stages of his career. ...

, and

Kris Kristofferson Kristoffer Kristofferson (June 22, 1936 – September 28, 2024) was an American singer, songwriter, and actor. He was a pioneering figure in the outlaw country movement of the 1970s, moving away from the polished Nashville sound and toward a m ...

. In 1985, he helped organize the first

Farm Aid Farm Aid is an annual benefit concert held for American farmers. History On July 13, 1985, before performing "When The Ship Comes In" with Keith Richards and Ron Wood at the Live Aid benefit concert for the 1983–1985 Ethiopian famine, B ...

concert to benefit American farmers; the concerts have been held annually ever since and Nelson has been a fixture, appearing at every one. In 1990, Nelson's assets were seized by the

Internal Revenue Service The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) is the revenue service for the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government, which is responsible for collecting Taxation in the United States, U.S. federal taxes and administerin ...

, which claimed that he owed $32million. The difficulty of paying his outstanding debt was aggravated by weak investments he had made during the 1980s. In 1992, Nelson released '' The IRS Tapes: Who'll Buy My Memories?''; the profits of the double album—destined to the IRS—and the auction of Nelson's assets cleared his debt. During the 1990s and 2000s, Nelson continued touring extensively and released albums every year. Reviews ranged from positive to mixed. He explored genres such as reggae, blues, jazz, and folk. Nelson made his first movie appearance in the 1979 film ''

The Electric Horseman ''The Electric Horseman'' is a 1979 American western comedy-drama film starring Robert Redford and Jane Fonda and directed by Sydney Pollack. The film is about a former rodeo champion who is hired by a cereal company to become its spokesperson ...

'', followed by other appearances in movies and on television. Nelson is a major

liberal Liberal or liberalism may refer to: Politics * Generally, a supporter of the political philosophy liberalism. Liberals may be politically left or right but tend to be centrist. * An adherent of a Liberal Party (See also Liberal parties by country ...

activist and the co-chair of the advisory board of the

National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws The National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws (NORML ) is a social welfare organization based in Washington, D.C., that advocates for the reform of marijuana laws in the United States regarding both Medical cannabis in the United St ...

(NORML), which is in favor of marijuana legalization. On the environmental front, Nelson owns the

biodiesel Biodiesel is a renewable biofuel, a form of diesel fuel, derived from biological sources like vegetable oils, animal fats, or recycled greases, and consisting of long-chain fatty acid esters. It is typically made from fats. The roots of bi ...

brand Willie Nelson Biodiesel, whose product is made from vegetable oil. Nelson is also the honorary chairman of the advisory board of the Texas Music Project, the official music charity of the state of Texas.

Early life and education

Nelson was born in

Abbott, Texas Abbott is a city in Hill County, Texas, United States. It is north of Waco, along Interstate 35. The population was 352 in 2020. History Abbott was founded in 1871 as a stop for the Missouri-Kansas-Texas Railroad and was named for Joseph "J ...

, on April 29, 1933, the son of Ira Doyle Nelson and Myrle Marie (''née'' Greenhaw). His birthday was incorrectly recorded by Dr. F. D. Sims as April 30. He was named Willie by his cousin Mildred, who also chose Hugh as his middle name, in honor of her recently deceased younger brother. Nelson traces his genealogy to the

American Revolutionary War The American Revolutionary War (April 19, 1775 – September 3, 1783), also known as the Revolutionary War or American War of Independence, was the armed conflict that comprised the final eight years of the broader American Revolution, in which Am ...

, in which his ancestor John Nelson served as a major. His parents moved to Texas from

Arkansas Arkansas ( ) is a landlocked state in the West South Central region of the Southern United States. It borders Missouri to the north, Tennessee and Mississippi to the east, Louisiana to the south, Texas to the southwest, and Oklahoma ...

in 1929 to look for work. His grandfather, William, worked as a blacksmith, while his father worked as a mechanic. His mother left soon after he was born, and his father remarried and also moved away, leaving Nelson and his sister Bobbie to be raised by their grandparents, who taught singing back in Arkansas and started their grandchildren in music. Nelson's grandfather bought him a guitar when he was six, and taught him a few

chords Chord or chords may refer to: Art and music * Chord (music), an aggregate of musical pitches sounded simultaneously ** Guitar chord, a chord played on a guitar, which has a particular tuning * The Chords (British band), 1970s British mod ...

, and Nelson sang gospel songs in the local church alongside Bobbie. He wrote his first song at age seven, and when he was nine, he played guitar for local band Bohemian Polka. During the summer, the family picked cotton alongside other Abbott residents. Nelson disliked picking cotton, so he earned money by singing in dance halls, taverns, and honky tonks from age 13, which he continued through high school. His musical influences were

Jimmie Rodgers James Charles Rodgers ( – ) was an American singer, songwriter, and musician who rose to popularity in the late 1920s. Widely regarded as the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Father of Country Music", he is best known for his di ...

Hank Williams Hiram "Hank" Williams (September 17, 1923 – January 1, 1953) was an American singer, songwriter, and musician. An early pioneer of country music, he is regarded as one of the most significant and influential musicians of the 20th century. W ...

Bob Wills James Robert "Bob" Wills (March 6, 1905 – May 13, 1975) was an American musician, songwriter, and bandleader. Considered by music authorities as the founder of Western swing, he was known widely as the King of Western Swing (although Spade C ...

Lefty Frizzell William Orville "Lefty" Frizzell (March 31, 1928 – July 19, 1975) was an American country and honky-tonk singer-songwriter. Frizell is known as one of the most influential country music vocal stylists of all time. He has been cited as in ...

Ernest Tubb Ernest Dale Tubb (February 9, 1914 – September 6, 1984), nicknamed the Texas Troubadour, was an American singer and songwriter and one of the pioneers of country music. His biggest career hit song, "Walking the Floor Over You" (1941), marked ...

Hank Snow Clarence Eugene "Hank" Snow (May 9, 1914 – December 20, 1999) was a Canadian country music guitarist, singer, and songwriter. He recorded 140 albums and charted more than 85 singles on the ''Billboard (magazine), Billboard'' country charts betw ...

Django Reinhardt Jean Reinhardt (23 January 1910 – 16 May 1953), known by his Romani people, Romani nickname Django ( or ), was a Belgium, Belgian-born Romani jazz guitarist and composer in France. He was one of the first major jazz talents to emerge in Europe ...

Frank Sinatra Francis Albert Sinatra (; December 12, 1915 – May 14, 1998) was an American singer and actor. Honorific nicknames in popular music, Nicknamed the "Chairman of the Board" and "Ol' Blue Eyes", he is regarded as one of the Time 100: The Most I ...

, and

Louis Armstrong Louis Daniel Armstrong (August 4, 1901 – July 6, 1971), nicknamed "Satchmo", "Satch", and "Pops", was an American trumpeter and vocalist. He was among the most influential figures in jazz. His career spanned five decades and several era ...

. Nelson attended

Abbott High School Abbott High School is a public high school located in Abbott, Texas (USA) and classified as a 1A school by the UIL. It is part of the Abbott Independent School District located in southern Hill County. In 2015, the school was rated " Met Stan ...

, where he was a halfback on the

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

team, guard on the

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appro ...

team, and

shortstop Shortstop, abbreviated SS, is the baseball positions, baseball or softball fielding position between second base, second and third base, which is considered to be among the Defensive spectrum, most demanding defensive positions. Historically, the ...

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball sport played between two team sport, teams of nine players each, taking turns batting (baseball), batting and Fielding (baseball), fielding. The game occurs over the course of several Pitch ...

. He also raised

pig The pig (''Sus domesticus''), also called swine (: swine) or hog, is an omnivorous, domesticated, even-toed, hoofed mammal. It is named the domestic pig when distinguishing it from other members of the genus '' Sus''. Some authorities cons ...

s with the

Future Farmers of America The National FFA Organization or FFA is an American nonprofit career and technical student organization, which offers middle and high school classes that promote and support agricultural education. Future Farmers of Virginia (FFV) was founded in ...

. While still at school, he sang and played guitar in The Texans, a band formed by his sister's husband, Bud Fletcher. The band played in

honky-tonk A honky-tonk (also called honkatonk, honkey-tonk, honky tonk, or tonk) is either a bar that provides country music for the entertainment of its patrons or the style of music played in such establishments. It can also refer to the type of piano ...

s, and also had a Sunday morning spot at KHBR in

Hillsboro, Texas Hillsboro is a city in and the county seat of Hill County, Texas, United States. It is located between Dallas, Fort Worth and Waco, directly on Interstate 35 in North Central Texas. Hillsboro draws trade from throughout the county, and from Inte ...

. Meanwhile, Nelson had a short stint as a relief phone operator in Abbott, followed by a job as a tree trimmer for the local electric company, as well as a

pawn shop A pawnbroker is an individual that offers secured loans to people, with items of personal property used as collateral. A pawnbrokering business is called a pawnshop, and while many items can be pawned, pawnshops typically accept jewelry, ...

employee. After leaving school in 1950, he joined the

; he served for eight months before being medically discharged because of issues with his back. Upon his return, he married Martha Matthews in 1952, and from 1954 to 1956 studied agriculture at

, where he joined the

Tau Kappa Epsilon Tau Kappa Epsilon (), commonly known as or Teke, is a social college fraternities and sororities, fraternity founded on January 10, 1899, at Illinois Wesleyan University. The organization has chapters throughout the United States and Canada, maki ...

fraternity, until dropping out to pursue a career in music. He worked as a nightclub bouncer, autohouse partsman, saddle maker, and tree trimmer again. He later joined

Johnny Bush John Bush Shinn III (February 17, 1935October 16, 2020) was an American country music singer, songwriter, and musician. Nicknamed the "Country Caruso", Bush was best known for his distinctive voice and for writing the song "Whiskey River", a t ...

's band. Nelson moved with his family to

Pleasanton, Texas Pleasanton is a city in Atascosa County, Texas, Atascosa County, Texas, United States. The population was 8,934 at the 2010 United States Census, 2010 census. Pleasanton's official motto is "The City of Live Oaks and Friendly Folks." It is part of ...

, where he auditioned for a job as a DJ at KBOP. The owner of the station, Dr. Ben Parker, gave Nelson the job despite his lack of experience working on radio. With the equipment of the station, Nelson made his first two recordings in 1955: "

The Storm Has Just Begun "The Storm Has Just Begun" is a song by country music singer-songwriter Willie Nelson. Nelson wrote the song at the age of twelve. While working for KBOP in Pleasanton, Texas, in 1955, the song was one of the first two ever recorded by Nelson. ...

" and "When I've Sung My Last Hillbilly Song". He recorded the tracks on used tapes, and sent the demos to the local label SARG Records, which rejected them. He then had stints working for KDNT in Denton, KCUL, and

KCNC KCNC-TV (channel 4), branded CBS Colorado, is a television station in Denver, Colorado, United States, serving as the market's CBS outlet. It is owned and operated by the network's CBS News and Stations division, and maintains studios on Linc ...

Fort Worth Fort Worth is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the county seat of Tarrant County, Texas, Tarrant County, covering nearly into Denton County, Texas, Denton, Johnson County, Texas, Johnson, Parker County, Texas, Parker, and Wise County, Te ...

, where he hosted ''

The Western Express ''The Western Express'' was a country-music radio show transmitted by KCNC in Fort Worth, Texas. The show started in 1947, hosted by disk jockey Charlie Williams. In 1956, the station later hired Willie Nelson, then a struggling singer-songwri ...

'', taught Sunday school, and played in nightclubs. He then decided to move to

San Diego San Diego ( , ) is a city on the Pacific coast of Southern California, adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a population of over 1.4 million, it is the List of United States cities by population, eighth-most populous city in t ...

but, when he was unable to find a job there, he hitchhiked to

Portland, Oregon Portland ( ) is the List of cities in Oregon, most populous city in the U.S. state of Oregon, located in the Pacific Northwest region. Situated close to northwest Oregon at the confluence of the Willamette River, Willamette and Columbia River, ...

, where his mother lived. When nobody picked him up, he ended up sleeping in a ditch before hopping a

freight train A freight train, also called a goods train or cargo train, is a railway train that is used to carry cargo, as opposed to passengers. Freight trains are made up of one or more locomotives which provide propulsion, along with one or more railroad ...

bound for

Eugene Eugene may refer to: People and fictional characters * Eugene (given name), including a list of people and fictional characters with the given name * Gene Eugene, stage name of Canadian born actor, record producer, engineer, composer and musi ...

. A truck driver drove him to a bus station and loaned him $10 for a ticket to reach

Portland Portland most commonly refers to: *Portland, Oregon, the most populous city in the U.S. state of Oregon *Portland, Maine, the most populous city in the U.S. state of Maine *Isle of Portland, a tied island in the English Channel Portland may also r ...

Music career

Beginnings (1956–1971)

Nelson was hired by KVAN in

Vancouver, Washington Vancouver ( ) is a city on the north bank of the Columbia River in the U.S. state of Washington (state), Washington, located in Clark County, Washington, Clark County. Founded in 1825 and incorporated in 1857, Vancouver had a population of 190, ...

, and appeared frequently on a television show. He made his first record in 1956, "

No Place for Me "No Place for Me" is the debut single of country singer-songwriter Willie Nelson. Nelson recorded the song while working as a disc jockey at KVAN in Vancouver, Washington, using a studio of the radio. Through a DJ he met during his time working o ...

", that included

Leon Payne Leon Roger Payne (June 15, 1917 – September 11, 1969), "the Blind Balladeer", was an American country music singer and songwriter. Life He was born in Alba, Texas, United States. He was blind in one eye at birth, and lost the sight in the other ...

's "Lumberjack" on the B-side. The recording failed. Nelson continued working as a radio announcer and singing in Vancouver clubs. He made several appearances in a Colorado nightclub, later moving to

Springfield, Missouri Springfield is the List of cities in Missouri, third most populous city in the U.S. state of Missouri and the county seat of Greene County, Missouri, Greene County. The city's population was 169,176 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 censu ...

. After failing to land a spot on the ''

Ozark Jubilee ''Ozark Jubilee'' is a 1950s American television program that featured country music's top stars of the day. It was produced in Springfield, Missouri. The weekly live stage show premiered on ABC-TV on January 22, 1955, was renamed ''Country Mu ...

'', he started to work as a dishwasher. Unhappy with his job, he moved back to Texas. After a short time in

Waco Waco ( ) is a city in and the county seat of McLennan County, Texas, United States. It is situated along the Brazos River and I-35, halfway between Dallas and Austin. The city had a U.S. census estimated 2024 population of 146,608, making i ...

, he settled in Fort Worth, and quit the music business for a year. He sold Bibles and vacuum cleaners door-to-door, and eventually became a sales manager for the ''

Encyclopedia Americana ''Encyclopedia Americana'' is a general encyclopedia written in American English. It was the first general encyclopedia of any magnitude to be published in North America. With '' Collier's Encyclopedia'' and ''Encyclopædia Britannica, Encyclo ...

''. After his son Billy was born in 1958, the family moved to

Houston Houston ( ) is the List of cities in Texas by population, most populous city in the U.S. state of Texas and in the Southern United States. Located in Southeast Texas near Galveston Bay and the Gulf of Mexico, it is the county seat, seat of ...

, Texas. On the way, Nelson stopped by the

Esquire Ballroom Neon Boots Dancehall & Saloon is a Country and Western Bar (establishment), bar/honky tonk that was founded as the Esquire Ballroom in 1955 by Raymond Proske in Houston, Texas, at 11410 Hempstead northwest of downtown Houston. In the 1970s and 1980 ...

to sell his original songs to house band singer Larry Butler. Butler refused to purchase the song " Mr. Record Man" for $10, instead giving Nelson a $50 loan to rent an apartment and a six-night job singing in the club. Nelson rented the apartment near Houston in

Pasadena, Texas Pasadena () is a city in the U.S. state of Texas, located in Harris County. It is part of the metropolitan area. As of the 2020 U.S. census, the city's population was 151,950, making it the 23rd most populous city in Texas and the second mos ...

, where he also worked at the radio station as the sign-on disc jockey. During this time, he recorded two singles for

Pappy Daily Harold W. Daily (February 8, 1902 – December 5, 1987), better known as "Pappy" Daily, was an American country music record producer and entrepreneur who cofounded the Texas-based record label Starday Records. Daily worked with many of the well ...

D Records D Records was an American record label located in Houston, Texas, United States. It was founded by Pappy Daily. The label closed in 1965, though George Strait recorded his first songs under the label's name from 1978-1980 until he signed to MCA Re ...

Man With the Blues "Man With the Blues" is a song by country music singer-songwriter Willie Nelson. After moving to Fort Worth, Texas, and quitting the music business for a year, Nelson returned to perform on the KAMM (AM), KCUL's Country Hoedown. Through a booking a ...

"/"The Storm Has Just Begun" and "

What a Way to Live ''What a Way to Live'' is the fifth studio album by American country music artist Mark Chesnutt. His first album for Decca Records, it earned RIAA gold album, gold certification in the United States for sales of 500,000 copies. The tracks "She D ...

"/"Misery Mansion". Nelson then was hired by guitar instructor Paul Buskirk to work as an instructor in his school. He sold " Family Bible" to Buskirk for $50 and "

Night Life Nightlife is a collective term for entertainment that is available and generally more popular from the late evening into the early hours of the morning. It includes pubs, Bar (establishment), bars, nightclubs, party, parties, live music, conc ...

" for $150. "Family Bible" turned into a hit for

Claude Gray Claude Gray Jr. (January 25, 1932 – April 28, 2023), nicknamed "The Tall Texan", was an American country music singer and guitar picker best known for his 1960 hit " Family Bible", which has been covered by many different artists. Gray's other ...

in 1960. Nelson moved to

, in 1960, but was unable to find a label to sign him. During this period he often spent time at

Tootsie's Orchid Lounge Tootsie's Orchid Lounge is a honky-tonk bar located on Lower Broadway in Nashville, Tennessee behind the Ryman Auditorium, home in past years and occasionally in the present to the stage and radio show ''The Grand Ole Opry.'' Tootsie's has three ...

, a bar near the Grand Ole Opry frequented by the show's stars and other singers and songwriters. There Nelson met

Hank Cochran Garland Perry "Hank" Cochran (August 2, 1935 – July 15, 2010) was an American country music singer and songwriter. Starting during the 1960s, Cochran was a prolific songwriter in the genre, including major hits by Patsy Cline, Ray Price, Eddy ...

, a songwriter who worked for the publishing company Pamper Music, owned by Ray Price and Hal Smith. Cochran heard Nelson during a jam session with

Buddy Emmons Buddy Gene Emmons (January 27, 1937 – July 21, 2015) was an American musician who is widely regarded as the world's foremost pedal steel guitarist of his day. He was inducted into the Steel Guitar Hall of Fame in 1981. Affectionately known ...

and Jimmy Day. Cochran had just earned a raise of $50 a week, but convinced Smith to pay Nelson the money instead to sign him to Pamper Music. On hearing Nelson sing "Hello Walls" at Tootsie's,

Faron Young Faron Young (February 25, 1932 – December 10, 1996) was an American country singer, musician, and songwriter from the early 1950s into the mid-1980s. His hits including " If You Ain't Lovin' (You Ain't Livin')" and " Live Fast, Love Hard, Die ...

decided to record it. After Ray Price recorded Nelson's "Night Life", and his previous bassist

Johnny Paycheck Johnny Paycheck (born Donald Eugene Lytle; May 31, 1938 – February 19, 2003) was an American country music singer and Grand Ole Opry member notable for recording the David Allan Coe song "Take This Job and Shove It". He achieved his greates ...

quit, Nelson joined Price's touring band as a bass player. While playing with Price and the Cherokee Cowboys, his songs became hits for other artists, including "

" ( Billy Walker), " Pretty Paper" (

Roy Orbison Roy Kelton Orbison (April 23, 1936 – December 6, 1988) was an American singer, songwriter, and guitarist known for his distinctive and powerful voice, complex song structures, and dark, emotional ballads. Orbison's most successful periods were ...

), and, most famously, "

" by

Patsy Cline Patsy Cline (born Virginia Patterson Hensley; September 8, 1932 – March 5, 1963) was an American singer. One of the most influential vocalists of the 20th century, she was known as one of the first country music artists to successfully Cross ...

. Nelson and Cochran also met Cline's husband,

Charlie Dick Charles Allen Dick (May 24, 1934 – November 8, 2015) was an American Linotype operator who was best known as the widower of Country singer Patsy Cline. Early life Dick was born on May 24, 1934, near Whitehall, Virginia. He later moved to Wi ...

at Tootsie's. Dick liked a song of Nelson's he heard on the bar's jukebox. Nelson played him a demo tape of "Crazy". Later that night Dick played the tape for Cline, who decided to record it. "Crazy" became the biggest

jukebox A jukebox is a partially automated music-playing device, usually a coin-operated machine, that plays a user-selected song from a self-contained media library. Traditional jukeboxes contain records, compact discs, or digital files, and allow user ...

hit of all time. Willie Nelson Grand Ole Opry publicity - cropped

Nelson signed with

Liberty Records Liberty Records was a record label founded in the United States by chairman Simon Waronker in 1955 with Alvin Bennett as president and Theodore Keep as chief engineer. It was reactivated in 2001 in the United Kingdom and had two previous rev ...

and was recording by August 1961 at the

Bradley Studios Quonset Hut Studio is the nickname given to Bradley Studios, an independent recording studio complex established in 1954 in Nashville, Tennessee by brothers Harold and Owen Bradley. The first commercial recording studio facility in what would la ...

in Nashville. His first two successful singles as an artist were released by the next year, including " Willingly" (a duet with his soon-to-be second wife,

Shirley Collie Shirley Collie Nelson (born Shirley Angelina Simpson; March 16, 1931 – January 27, 2010) was an American country music and rockabilly singer, yodeler, guitarist and songwriter. From 1963 to 1971, she was the second wife of country star Willie N ...

, which became his first charting single and first Top Ten at No. 10) and " Touch Me" (his second Top Ten, stalling at No. 7). Nelson's tenure at Liberty yielded his first album entitled '' ...And Then I Wrote'', released in September 1962. In 1963 Collie and Nelson were married in

Las Vegas Las Vegas, colloquially referred to as Vegas, is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Nevada and the county seat of Clark County. The Las Vegas Valley metropolitan area is the largest within the greater Mojave Desert, and second-l ...

. He then worked on the west coast offices of Pamper Records, in

Pico Rivera, California Pico Rivera is a city located in southeastern Los Angeles County, California. The city is situated approximately southeast of downtown Los Angeles, on the eastern edge of the Los Angeles basin, and on the southern edge of the area known as the ...

. Since the job did not allow him the time to play music of his own, he left it and bought a ranch in

Ridgetop, Tennessee Ridgetop is a city in Davidson and Robertson counties in the U.S. state of Tennessee. The population was 1,874 at the 2010 census. Demographics 2020 census As of the 2020 United States census, there were 2,155 people, 803 households, and 6 ...

, outside of Nashville.

Fred Foster Fred Luther Foster (July 26, 1931 – February 20, 2019) was an American record producer, songwriter, and music business executive who founded Monument Records and Combine Music. As a record producer he was most closely associated with Roy Orbi ...

Monument Records Monument Records is an American record label co-founded in 1958 by Fred Foster. Originally founded in Washington, D.C., the label moved to Nashville in 1960, and experienced success over the next two decades with a number of artists including ...

signed Nelson in early 1964, but only one single was released: "I Never Cared For You". By the fall of 1964, Nelson had moved to

at the behest of

Chet Atkins Chester Burton Atkins (June 20, 1924 – June 30, 2001), also known as "Mister Guitar" and "the Country Gentleman", was an American musician who, along with Owen Bradley and Bob Ferguson (musician), Bob Ferguson, helped create the Nash ...

, signing a contract for $10,000 per year. ''

Country Willie – His Own Songs ''Country Willie: His Own Songs'' is the third studio album by country singer Willie Nelson. This was Nelson's third album, his first for RCA Victor. Background Liberty released Nelson’s first two albums, '' ...And Then I Wrote'' and ''Here’s ...

'' became Nelson's first RCA Victor album, recorded in April 1965. That same year he joined the

, and he met and became friends with

after watching one of his shows in

Phoenix, Arizona Phoenix ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of cities and towns in Arizona#List of cities and towns, most populous city of the U.S. state of Arizona. With over 1.6 million residents at the 2020 census, it is the ...

. In 1967, he formed his backing band "The Record Men", featuring Johnny Bush, Jimmy Day, Paul English and David Zettner. During his first few years on RCA Victor, Nelson had no significant hits, but from November 1966 through March 1969, his singles reached the Top 25 in a consistent manner. "One in a Row" (#19, 1966), "The Party's Over" (#24 during a 16-week chart run in 1967), and his cover of

Morecambe & Wise Eric Morecambe (John Eric Bartholomew; 14 May 1926 – 28 May 1984) and Ernie Wise (Ernest Wiseman; 27 November 1925 – 21 March 1999), known as Morecambe and Wise (and sometimes as Eric and Ernie), were an English comic double act, working i ...

's "Bring Me Sunshine" (#13, March 1969) were Nelson's best-selling records during his time with RCA. By 1970, most of Nelson's songwriting royalties were invested in tours that did not produce significant profits. In addition to the problems in his career, Nelson divorced Shirley Collie in 1970. In December, his ranch in Ridgetop, Tennessee, burned down. He interpreted the incident as a signal for a change. He moved to a ranch near

Bandera, Texas Bandera (Spanish: "flag", ) is a town in Bandera County, Texas, United States. The county seat, it lies in the Texas Hill Country, a part of the Edwards Plateau located at the crossroads of the central, southern, and western parts of the stat ...

, and married Connie Koepke. In early 1971 his single "I'm a Memory" reached the top 30. After he recorded his final RCA single, "Mountain Dew" (backed with "Phases, Stages, Circles, Cycles and Scenes"), in late April 1972, RCA requested that Nelson renew his contract ahead of schedule, with the implication that RCA would not release his latest recordings if he did not. Due to the failure of his albums, and particularly frustrated by the reception of '' Yesterday's Wine'', although his contract was not over, Nelson decided to retire from music.

Outlaw country and success (1972–1989)

Nelson moved to

, where the burgeoning hippie music scene (see Armadillo World Headquarters) rejuvenated the singer. His popularity in Austin soared as he played his own brand of country music marked by country, folk and jazz influences. In March, he performed on the final day of the ''Dripping Springs Reunion'', a three-day country music festival aimed by its producers to be an annual event. Despite the failure to reach the expected attendance, the concept of the festival inspired Nelson to create the '' Fourth of July Picnic'', his own annual event, starting the following year. Nelson decided to return to the recording business; he signed Neil Reshen as his manager to negotiate with RCA, who got the label to agree to end his contract upon repayment of $14,000. Reshen eventually signed Nelson to

for $25,000 per year, where he became the label's first country artist. He formed his backing band, '' The Family'', and, by February 1973, he was recording his acclaimed ''

'' at Atlantic Studios in New York City. ''Shotgun Willie'', released in May 1973, earned excellent reviews but did not sell well. The album led Nelson to a new style, later stating that ''Shotgun Willie'' had "cleared his throat". His next release, ''

Phases and Stages ''Phases and Stages'' is the 17th studio album by American country music singer-songwriter Willie Nelson, released in March 1974. It followed the moderate success of his first Atlantic Records release, ''Shotgun Willie''. Nelson met producer Jerr ...

'', released in 1974, was a concept album about a couple's divorce, inspired by his own experience. Side one of the record is from the viewpoint of the woman, and side two is from the viewpoint of the man. The album included the hit single " Bloody Mary Morning". The same year, he produced and starred in the pilot episode of

PBS The Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) is an American public broadcaster and non-commercial, free-to-air television network based in Arlington, Virginia. PBS is a publicly funded nonprofit organization and the most prominent provider of educat ...

' ''

Austin City Limits ''Austin City Limits'' is an American Concert, live music Television show, television program recorded and produced by KLRU, Austin PBS. The show helped Austin become widely known in the United States as the "Live Music Capital of the World", an ...

''. Nelson then moved to

Columbia Records Columbia Records is an American reco ...

, where he signed a contract that gave him complete creative control, made possible by the critical and commercial success of his previous albums. The result was the critically acclaimed and massively popular 1975 concept album ''

''. Although Columbia was reluctant to release an album with primarily a guitar and piano for accompaniment, Nelson and Waylon Jennings insisted. The album included a cover of Fred Rose's 1945 song "

Blue Eyes Crying in the Rain "Blue Eyes Crying in the Rain" is a song written by songwriter Fred Rose. First recorded by Elton Britt in 1946, then made more popular by Roy Acuff in 1947, the song has been covered by many artists, including Hank Williams Sr., Johnny Russe ...

", that had been released as a single previous to the album, and became Nelson's first number one hit as a singer. Throughout his 1975 tour, Nelson raised funds for PBS-affiliated stations across the south promoting ''Austin City Limits''. The pilot was aired first on those stations, later being released nationwide. The positive reception of the show prompted PBS to order ten episodes for 1976, formally launching the show. As Jennings was also achieving success in country music in the early 1970s, the pair were combined into a genre called outlaw country, since it did not conform to Nashville standards. The album ''

'' in 1976 with

and

Tompall Glaser Thomas Paul "Tompall" Glaser (September 3, 1933 – August 12, 2013) was an American country singer who was a key figure in the 1970s outlaw country movement.platinum album Music recording certification is a system of certifying that a music recording has shipped, sold, or streamed a certain number of units. The threshold quantity varies by type (such as album, single, music video) and by nation or territory (see ...

. Later that year Nelson released ''

The Sound in Your Mind ''The'' is a grammatical article in English, denoting nouns that are already or about to be mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The ...

'' (certified gold in 1978 and platinum in 2001) and his first gospel album ''

Troublemaker Troublemaker, The Troublemaker, Trouble Maker, or Trouble Makers may refer to: Film * Troublemaker Studios, a Texan film production company founded by Robert Rodriguez and Elizabeth Avellan * ''Trouble Makers'' (1917 film), a lost silent film dr ...

'' (certified gold in 1986). In the summer of 1977, Nelson discovered that Reshen had been filing tax extensions and not paying the

(IRS) since he took over as his manager. In June, a package containing cocaine was sent from Reshen's office in New York to Jennings in Nashville. The package was followed by the

DEA The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) is a United States federal law enforcement agency under the U.S. Department of Justice tasked with combating illicit drug trafficking and distribution within the U.S. It is the lead agency for domes ...

, and Jennings was arrested. The charges were later dropped, since Reshen's assistant, Mark Rothbaum, stepped in and took the charges. Rothbaum was sentenced to serve time in jail. Impressed by his attitude, Nelson fired Reshen and hired Rothbaum as his manager. In 1978, Nelson released two more platinum albums. One, '' Waylon & Willie'', was a collaboration with Jennings that included "

Mammas Don't Let Your Babies Grow Up to Be Cowboys "Mammas Don't Let Your Babies Grow Up to Be Cowboys" is a country music song first recorded by Ed Bruce, written by him and his wife Patsy Bruce. His version of the song appears on his Ed Bruce (1976 album), 1976 self-titled album for United Artis ...

", a hit single written and performed by

Ed Bruce William Edwin Bruce Jr. (December 29, 1939 – January 8, 2021) was an American country music songwriter, singer, and actor. He was known for writing the 1975 song "Mammas Don't Let Your Babies Grow Up to Be Cowboys" and recording the 1982 cou ...

. Though observers predicted that ''

'' would ruin his career, it went platinum the same year. Nelson continued to top the charts with hit songs during the late 1970s, including "

Good Hearted Woman ''Good Hearted Woman'' is a studio album by American country music artist Waylon Jennings, released in 1972 on RCA Nashville. Background Along with '' Ladies Love Outlaws'', released later in 1972, and ''Lonesome, On'ry and Mean'' (released ear ...

", "Remember Me", "

If You've Got the Money I've Got the Time "If You've Got the Money (I've Got the Time)" is a debut song co-written and recorded by American country music artist Lefty Frizzell, released on September 14, 1950. The song is the second song recorded by Lefty Frizzell during his first session ...

", and "

Uncloudy Day Uncloudy Day, also known as Unclouded Day, is a gospel song. Originally popular in church hymnals, it has come to be recorded many times over the years since, including being an early attention-getter for future star act the Staple Singers. In 1 ...

". During the 1980s, Nelson recorded a series of hit singles including "

Midnight Rider "Midnight Rider" is a song by the American rock band the Allman Brothers Band. It was the second Single (music), single from their second studio album, ''Idlewild South'' (1970), released on Capricorn Records. The song was primarily written by v ...

", a 1980 cover of the

Allman Brothers Allman may refer to: Music *The Allman Brothers Band The Allman Brothers Band was an American rock music, rock band formed in Jacksonville, Florida, in 1969. Its founding members were brothers Duane Allman (slide guitar, lead guitar) and Greg ...

song which Nelson recorded for ''

'', the soundtrack " On the Road Again" from the movie '' Honeysuckle Rose'', and a duet with

Julio Iglesias Julio José Iglesias de la Cueva (; born 23 September 1943) is a Spanish singer and songwriter. Iglesias is recognized as the most commercially successful Spanish singer in the world and one of the top List of best-selling music artists, reco ...

titled "

President Jimmy Carter with Willie Nelson and his guests

In 1982, '' Pancho & Lefty'', a duet album with

Merle Haggard Merle Ronald Haggard (April 6, 1937 – April 6, 2016) was an American singer, songwriter, guitarist, and fiddler. Widely regarded as one of the greatest and most influential figures in country music, he was a central pioneer of the Bakersfield ...

produced by

Chips Moman Lincoln Wayne "Chips" Moman (June 12, 1937 – June 13, 2016) was an American record producer, guitarist, and songwriter. He is known for working in R&B, pop music and country music, operating American Sound Studios and producing hit albums li ...

, was released. During the recording sessions of ''Pancho and Lefty'', Johnny Christopher, a session guitarist and the co-writer of "

Always on My Mind "Always on My Mind" is a Sentimental ballad, ballad written by Wayne Carson, Johnny Christopher, and Mark James (songwriter), Mark James, first recorded by Brenda Lee and first released by Gwen McCrae (as "You Were Always on My Mind") in Mar ...

", tried to pitch the song to an uninterested Haggard. Nelson, who was unaware of

Elvis Presley Elvis Aaron Presley (January 8, 1935 – August 16, 1977) was an American singer and actor. Referred to as the "King of Rock and Roll", he is regarded as Cultural impact of Elvis Presley, one of the most significant cultural figures of the ...

's version of the song, asked him to record it. Produced by Moman, the single of the song was released, as well as the album ''Always on My Mind''. The single topped ''Billboard''s Hot Country Singles, while it reached number five on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100. The release won three awards during the

25th Annual Grammy Awards The 25th Annual Grammy Awards were held on February 23, 1983, at Shrine Auditorium, Los Angeles. They recognized accomplishments by musicians from the previous year. Album of the Year went to Toto for ''Toto IV'', and Song of the Year went t ...

: Song of the Year,

Best Country Song The Grammy Award for Best Country Song (sometimes known as the Country Songwriter's Award) has been awarded since 1965. The award is given to the songwriter(s) of the song, not to the artist, unless the artist is also the songwriter. There have ...

and Best Male Country Vocal Performance. The single was certified platinum, while the album was certified quadruple-platinum and later inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame in 2008. Meanwhile, two collaborations with Waylon Jennings were released: ''

WWII World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

'' in 1982, and '' Take it to the Limit'' in 1983. In the mid-1980s, Nelson, Jennings, Kristofferson, and

formed The Highwaymen, a supergroup who achieved platinum record sales and toured the world. Meanwhile, Nelson became more involved with charity work, such as singing on "

We Are the World "We Are the World" is a charity single recorded by the supergroup USA for Africa in 1985. It was written by Michael Jackson and Lionel Richie and produced by Quincy Jones for the album '' We Are the World''. With sales in excess of 20 milli ...

" in 1984. In 1985, Nelson had another success with '' Half Nelson'', a compilation album of duets with a range of artists such as

Ray Charles Ray Charles Robinson (September 23, 1930 – June 10, 2004) was an American singer, songwriter, and pianist. He is regarded as one of the most iconic and influential musicians in history, and was often referred to by contemporaries as "The Gen ...

and

Neil Young Neil Percival Young (born November 12, 1945) is a Canadian and American singer-songwriter. After embarking on a music career in Winnipeg in the 1960s, Young moved to Los Angeles, forming the folk rock group Buffalo Springfield. Since the begi ...

. In 1980, Nelson performed on the south lawn of the

White House The White House is the official residence and workplace of the president of the United States. Located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue Northwest (Washington, D.C.), NW in Washington, D.C., it has served as the residence of every U.S. president ...

. The concert of September 13 featured First Lady

Rosalynn Carter Eleanor Rosalynn Carter ( ; ; August 18, 1927 – November 19, 2023) was an American activist and humanitarian who served as the first lady of the United States from 1977 to 1981, as the wife of President Jimmy Carter. Throughout her decades of ...

and Nelson in a duet of

Ray Wylie Hubbard Ray Wylie Hubbard (born November 13, 1946) is an American singer and songwriter. Early life Hubbard was born on November 13, 1946, in Soper, Oklahoma. His family moved to Oak Cliff in southwest Dallas, Texas, in 1954. He attended W. ...

's "Up Against the Wall Redneck Mother". Nelson frequently visited the White House, where, according to the biography by Joe Nick Patoski, ''Willie Nelson: An Epic Life'', he smoked marijuana on the White House roof.

Later career (1990s–2000s)

In 1996, Nelson re-recorded the tracks "

" with the band

the Reverend Horton Heat The Reverend Horton Heat is the stage name of American musician James C. Heath (born 1959) as well as the name of his psychobilly trio from Dallas. Heath is a singer, songwriter, and guitarist. A reviewer for the magazine Prick (magazine), ''Pr ...

, and " Bloody Mary Morning" with the

Supersuckers The Supersuckers (formerly known as The Black Supersuckers) are an American rock band, formed in 1988, whose music is influenced by both hard rock and country. AllMusic describes the band as "the bastard sons of Foghat, AC/DC, and ZZ Top after ...

, for ''Twisted Willie'', a tribute album featuring rock versions of Nelson's songs performed by artists such as

Jerry Cantrell Jerry Fulton Cantrell Jr. (born March 18, 1966) is an American guitarist, singer, and songwriter. He is best known as the founder, lead guitarist, co-lead vocalist, and main songwriter of the rock band Alice in Chains. The band rose to internatio ...

Mark Lanegan Mark William Lanegan (November 25, 1964 – February 22, 2022) was an American singer and songwriter. First becoming prominent as the lead singer for the early grunge band Screaming Trees, he was also known as a member of Queens of the Stone Age ...

, L7, the Presidents of the United States of America, and

Jello Biafra Eric Reed Boucher (born June 17, 1958), known professionally as Jello Biafra, is an American singer, spoken word artist and political activist. He is the former lead singer and songwriter for the San Francisco punk rock band Dead Kennedys. Init ...

, among others. Proceeds from the sale of the record went to Nelson's Farm Aid. President Bill Clinton greets Willie Nelson

During the 1990s and 2000s, Nelson toured continuously, recording several albums including 1998's critically acclaimed '' Teatro'', and performed and recorded with other acts including

Phish Phish is an American rock band formed in Burlington, Vermont, in 1983. The band consists of guitarist Trey Anastasio, bassist Mike Gordon, drummer Jon Fishman, and keyboardist Page McConnell, all of whom perform vocals, with Anastasio being the ...

, Johnny Cash, and

Toby Keith Toby Keith Covel (July 8, 1961 – February 5, 2024) was an American country music singer, songwriter, record producer, actor, and businessman. Keith released his chart-topping debut single, "Should've Been a Cowboy", in 1993. During the 1990s ...

. His duet with Keith, "

Beer for My Horses "Beer for My Horses" is a song recorded by American country music artists Toby Keith and Willie Nelson. It was written by Keith and Scotty Emerick for Keith's seventh studio album, '' Unleashed''. The song was released as the album's fourth and f ...

", was released as a single and topped the ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertis ...

'' Hot Country Songs charts for six consecutive weeks in 2003, while the accompanying video won an award for "Best Video" at the 2004

Academy of Country Music The Academy of Country Music (ACM) was founded in 1964 in Los Angeles, California, Los Angeles, California as the Country & Western Music Academy. Among the founders were Eddie Miller (songwriter), Eddie Miller, Tommy Wiggins, and Mickey and Chris ...

Awards. A

USA Network USA Network (or simply USA) is an American basic cable television channel owned by the NBCUniversal Media Group division of Comcast's NBCUniversal. It was launched in 1977 as Madison Square Garden Sports Network, one of the first national sports ...

television special celebrated Nelson's 70th birthday, and Nelson released ''

The Essential Willie Nelson ''The Essential Willie Nelson'' is a two-disc compilation of Willie Nelson songs. This digitally remastered compilation covers five decades of Nelson's recording career, and is part of Sony's ''Essential'' series of compilation albums. A 2009 rel ...

'' as part of the celebration. Nelson also appeared on

Ringo Starr Sir Richard Starkey (born 7 July 1940), known professionally as Ringo Starr, is an English musician, songwriter and actor who achieved international fame as the drummer for the Beatles. Starr occasionally sang lead vocals with the group, us ...

's 2003 album, ''

Ringo Rama ''Ringo Rama'' is the thirteenth studio album by English singer-songwriter Ringo Starr, released in 2003. Background and recording As the follow-up to '' I Wanna Be Santa Claus'' (1999), it continues Starr's alliance with Mark Hudson as well ...

'', as a guest vocal on "Write One for Me". Nelson was featured on the album ''True Love'' by

Toots and the Maytals The Maytals, known from 1972 to 2020 as Toots and the Maytals, are a Jamaican musical group, one of the best known ska and rocksteady vocal groups. The Maytals were formed in the early 1960s and were key figures in popularizing reggae music. ...

, which won the

Grammy Award The Grammy Awards, stylized as GRAMMY, and often referred to as The Grammys, are awards presented by The Recording Academy of the United States to recognize outstanding achievements in music. They are regarded by many as the most prestigious ...

in 2004 for Best Reggae Album, and showcased many notable musicians including

Eric Clapton Eric Patrick Clapton (born 1945) is an English Rock music, rock and blues guitarist, singer, and songwriter. He is regarded as one of the most successful and influential guitarists in rock music. Clapton ranked second in ''Rolling Stone''s l ...

Jeff Beck Geoffrey Arnold Beck (24 June 1944 – 10 January 2023) was an English musician. He rose to prominence as the guitarist of the rock band the Yardbirds, and afterwards founded and fronted the Jeff Beck Group and Beck, Bogert & Appice. In 1975, ...

Trey Anastasio Ernest Joseph "Trey" Anastasio III (born September 30, 1964) is an American guitarist, composer, and singer-songwriter best known as the lead guitarist of the rock band Phish, which he co-founded in 1983. He is credited by name as composer of 152 ...

Gwen Stefani Gwen Renée Stefani Shelton ( ; born October 3, 1969) is an American singer-songwriter and fashion designer. Stefani rose to fame as a member and lead vocalist of the band No Doubt, whose hit singles include " Just a Girl", " Spiderwebs", an ...

, and

Keith Richards Keith Richards (born 18 December 1943) is an English musician, songwriter, singer and record producer who is an original member, guitarist, secondary vocalist, and co-principal songwriter of the Rolling Stones. His songwriting partnership wi ...

. In the following year of 2005, Nelson released a

reggae Reggae () is a music genre that originated in Jamaica during the late 1960s. The term also denotes the modern popular music of Jamaica and its Jamaican diaspora, diaspora. A 1968 single by Toots and the Maytals, "Do the Reggay", was the first ...

album entitled ''

Countryman Countryman may refer to: Arts and media * ''Countryman'' (album), an album by Willie Nelson * ''Countryman'' (film), a motion picture set in Jamaica * ''Countryman'' (magazine), a British magazine * ''Countryman'' (newspaper), a rural-themed new ...

'' which featured

Toots Hibbert Frederick Nathaniel "Toots" Hibbert, (8 December 1942 – 11 September 2020) was a Jamaican singer and songwriter who was the lead vocalist for the reggae and ska band Toots and the Maytals. A reggae pioneer, he performed for six decades and ...

on the song "I'm a Worried Man". Nelson headlined the 2005 Tsunami Relief Austin to Asia concert to benefit the victims of the

2004 Indian Ocean earthquake On 26 December 2004, at 07:58:53 local time (UTC+07:00, UTC+7), a major earthquake with a magnitude of 9.2–9.3 struck with an epicenter, epicentre off the west coast of Aceh in northern Sumatra, Indonesia. The Submarine earthquake, undersea ...

, which raised an estimated $75,000 for UNICEF. Also in 2005, a live performance of the Johnny Cash song " Busted" with Ray Charles was released on Charles' duets album '' Genius & Friends''. Nelson's 2007 performance with jazz trumpeter

Wynton Marsalis Wynton Learson Marsalis (born October 18, 1961) is an American trumpeter, composer, and music instructor, who is currently the artistic director of Jazz at Lincoln Center. He has been active in promoting classical and jazz music, often to young ...

at the

Lincoln Center Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts (also simply known as Lincoln Center) is a complex of buildings in the Lincoln Square neighborhood on the Upper West Side of Manhattan. It has thirty indoor and outdoor facilities and is host to 5 ...

, was released as the live album '' Two Men with the Blues'' in 2008; reaching number one in ''Billboard''s Top Jazz Albums and number twenty on the ''Billboard'' 200. The same year, Nelson recorded his first album with

Buddy Cannon Buddy Cannon (born April 20, 1947 in Lexington, Tennessee) is an American country music songwriter and record producer active since the 1970s best known for his work with Kenny Chesney and Willie Nelson. Career Cannon began working in Nashvill ...

as the producer, '' Moment of Forever''. Cannon acquainted Nelson earlier, during the production of his collaboration with

Kenny Chesney Kenneth Arnold Chesney (born March 26, 1968) is an American country singer. With 30 million albums sold worldwide, he released his debut, '' In My Wildest Dreams'', in 1994, and has since released 19 follow-ups. His albums spawned 27 singles tha ...

on the duet "

That Lucky Old Sun "That Lucky Old Sun (Just Rolls Around Heaven All Day)" is a 1949 popular song with music by Beasley Smith and words by Haven Gillespie. Background Like "Ol' Man River", its lyrics contrast the toil and intense hardship of the singer's life ...

", for Chesney's album '' Lucky Old Sun''. In 2009 Nelson and Marsalis joined with Norah Jones in a tribute concert to Ray Charles, which resulted in the '' Here We Go Again: Celebrating the Genius of Ray Charles'' album, released in 2011.

2010s

In 2010, Nelson released ''

Country Music Country (also called country and western) is a popular music, music genre originating in the southern regions of the United States, both the American South and American southwest, the Southwest. First produced in the 1920s, country music is p ...

'', a compilation of standards produced by

T-Bone Burnett Joseph Henry "T Bone" Burnett III (born January 14, 1948) is an American record producer, guitarist, singer, and songwriter. He was a guitarist in Bob Dylan's band during the 1970s. Burnett has won several Grammy Awards for his work on film sou ...

. The album peaked number four in ''Billboard''s Top Country Albums, and twenty on the ''Billboard'' 200. It was nominated for Best Americana Album at the

2011 Grammy Awards The 53rd Annual Grammy Awards were held on February 13, 2011, at the Staples Center in Los Angeles. They were broadcast on CBS with a rating of 26.6 million viewers. Barbra Streisand was honored as the MusiCares Person of the Year two nights pri ...

. In 2011 Nelson participated in the concert ''Kokua For Japan'', a fund raising event for the victims of the

2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami On 11 March 2011, at 14:46:24 Japan Standard Time, JST (05:46:24 UTC), a 9.0–9.1 Submarine earthquake, undersea megathrust earthquake occurred in the Pacific Ocean, east of the Oshika Peninsula of the Tōhoku region. It lasted approx ...

in Japan which raised $1.6 million. In February 2012,

Legacy Recordings Legacy Recordings is an American record label that is a division of Sony Music. Formed in 1990 after Sony's acquisition of CBS Records, Legacy originally handled the archives of Sony Music-owned labels Columbia Records and Epic Records. In 2 ...

signed a deal with Nelson that included the release of new material, as well as past releases that would be selected and complemented with outtakes and other material selected by him. With the new deal, Buddy Cannon returned to produce the recordings of Nelson. After selecting the material and the sound of the tunes with the singer, Cannon's work method consisted in the recording of the tracks with studio musicians, with the takes later completed on a separate session by Nelson with his guitar. Cannon's association to Nelson also extended to songwriting, with singer and producer composing the lyrics by exchanging text messages. Nelson's first release for the Legacy Recordings was ''

Heroes Heroes or Héroes may refer to: * Hero, one who displays courage and self-sacrifice for the greater good Film * ''Heroes'' (1977 film), an American drama * ''Heroes'' (2008 film), an Indian Hindi film Gaming * ''Heroes of Might and Magic'' ...

'', that included guest appearances by his sons

Lukas Lukas is an English form of the Greek name Λουκάς, which is Romanized as Loukas. Popularity In 2013, with the alternative spelling of Lucas, it was the ninth most popular name for boys in Australia. Meaning and different spellings *Amhari ...

and Micah of the band Insects vs Robots, Ray Price, Merle Haggard,

Snoop Dogg Calvin Cordozar Broadus Jr. ( ; born October 20, 1971), better known by his stage name Snoop Dogg (previously Snoop Doggy Dogg), is an American rapper, record producer, and actor. Rooted in West Coast hip-hop, he is widely regarded as one of t ...

, Kris Kristofferson,

Jamey Johnson Jamey Johnson (born July 14, 1975) is an American country music singer and songwriter. Signed to BNA Records in 2005, Johnson made his debut with his single "The Dollar (song), The Dollar", the title track to his 2006 album ''The Dollar (album ...

Billy Joe Shaver Billy Joe Shaver (August 16, 1939 – October 28, 2020) was an American singer and songwriter. Billy Joe was a prominent figure in the outlaw country genre. He is considered one of the great American songwriters of his generation. He has recei ...

and

Sheryl Crow Sheryl Suzanne Crow (born February 11, 1962) is an American singer-songwriter, musician, and actress. She is noted for her Optimism, optimistic and Idealism, idealistic subject matter, and incorporation of genres including Rock music, rock, Po ...

. The album reached number four on ''

''s

Top Country Albums Top Country Albums is a chart published weekly by '' Billboard'' magazine in the United States. The 50-position chart lists the most popular country music albums in the country, calculated weekly by Broadcast Data Systems based on physical sales ...

. His 2013 release '' To All the Girls...'', a collection of duets with all female partners, featured among others

Dolly Parton Dolly Rebecca Parton (born January 19, 1946) is an American singer, songwriter, musician, actress, and philanthropist, known primarily as a country music, country musician. After achieving success as a songwriter for others, Parton's debut album ...

Loretta Lynn Loretta Lynn (; April 14, 1932 – October 4, 2022) was an American country music singer and songwriter. In a career spanning six decades, Lynn released multiple gold albums. She had numerous hits such as "Hey Loretta", "The Pill (song), The P ...

Rosanne Cash Rosanne Cash (born May 24, 1955) is an American singer-songwriter and author. She is the eldest daughter of country musician Johnny Cash and his first wife, Vivian Cash. Although Cash is often classified as a country artist, her music draws f ...

, Sheryl Crow,

Mavis Staples Mavis Staples (born July 10, 1939) is an American rhythm and blues and gospel music, gospel singer and civil rights activism, activist. She rose to fame as a member of her family's band The Staple Singers, of which she is the last surviving memb ...

, Norah Jones,

Emmylou Harris Emmylou Harris (born April 2, 1947) is an American singer, songwriter, musician, bandleader, and activist. She is considered one of the leading music artists behind the country rock genre in the 1970s and the Americana (music), Americana genre ...

Carrie Underwood Carrie Marie Underwood (born March 10, 1983) is an American singer and songwriter. She rose to prominence after winning the fourth season of ''American Idol'' in 2005, returning as a judge beginning with the twenty-third season. Underwood's f ...

and

Miranda Lambert Miranda Leigh Lambert (born November 10, 1983) is an American country music, country singer. Born in Longview, Texas, she started out in early 2001 when she released her self-titled debut album independently. In 2003, she finished in third place ...

. The album entered ''Billboard''s Top Country Albums at number two, marking his highest position on the chart since the release of his 1989 ''A Horse Called Music'', and extending his record to a total of forty-six top ten albums on the country charts. Nelson scored as well his second top ten album on the ''Billboard'' 200, with the release entering at number nine. Nelson's following release was '' Band of Brothers'', in 2014, the first Nelson album to feature the most newly self-penned songs since 1996's '' Spirit''. Upon its release, it topped ''Billboard''s Top Country albums chart, the first time since 1986's '' The Promiseland'', the last Nelson album to top it. The release reached number five on the ''Billboard'' 200, Nelson's highest position on the chart since 1982's ''Always on My Mind''. In December 2014, a duet with

Rhonda Vincent Rhonda Lea Vincent (born July 13, 1962) is an American Bluegrass music, bluegrass singer, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist. Vincent's music career began when she was a child in her family's band The Sally Mountain Show, and it has spanne ...

, "Only Me", topped ''

Bluegrass Unlimited ''Bluegrass Unlimited'' is a monthly music magazine "dedicated to the furtherance of bluegrass and old-time musicians, devotees and associates."

's'' National Airplay chart. In June 2015, his collaboration with Haggard '' Django and Jimmie'' topped ''Billboard''s Top Country albums chart and reached number seven on the ''Billboard'' 200. In 2017, Nelson released '' God's Problem Child''. The release, consisting mostly of Nelson originals co-written with Cannon, entered the Top country albums at number one, while it reached number ten on the ''Billboard'' 200. In 2018, Nelson sang a song written by

Daniel Lanois Daniel Roland Lanois ( , ; born September 19, 1951) is a Canadian record producer and musician. He has produced albums by artists including Bob Dylan, Neil Young, Peter Gabriel, Robbie Robertson, Emmylou Harris, Willie Nelson, and Harold Budd ...

called "Cruel World" for the

soundtrack A soundtrack is a recorded audio signal accompanying and synchronised to the images of a book, drama, motion picture, radio program, television show, television program, or video game; colloquially, a commercially released soundtrack album of m ...

Rockstar Games Rockstar Games, Inc. is an American video game publisher based in New York City. The company was established in December 1998 as a subsidiary of Take-Two Interactive, using the assets Take-Two had previously acquired from BMG Interactive. Foun ...

's action-adventure video game ''

Red Dead Redemption 2 ''Red Dead Redemption 2'' is a 2018 action-adventure game developed and published by Rockstar Games. The game is the third entry in the ''Red Dead'' series and a prequel to the 2010 game ''Red Dead Redemption''. The story is set in a fictiona ...

''. Lanois wrote the song especially for Nelson. When a hurricane prevented Nelson from recording the song, the production team sent the track to

Josh Homme Joshua Michael Homme ( ; born May 17, 1973) is an American musician, singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and record producer. He is best known as the founder and only continuous member of the rock band Queens of the Stone Age, which he for ...

in the hopes that he could record it in time for the game's release. Nelson was ultimately able to record the song in time in Los Angeles; the team considered combining the two versions into a duet, but ultimately included both versions in the game. Also in 2018, Nelson was one of several artists on '' Restoration'', a cover album containing various country renditions of songs originally by

Elton John Sir Elton Hercules John (born Reginald Kenneth Dwight; 25 March 1947) is a British singer, songwriter and pianist. His music and showmanship have had a significant, lasting impact on the music industry, and his songwriting partnership with l ...

, on which he performed "

Border Song "Border Song" is a song by Elton John with music by John and lyrics by Bernie Taupin. The song initially appeared on the 1970 album ''Elton John'', and was released in the spring of 1970 as the LP's first single. After failing to chart in the U ...

". His 2019 release '' Ride Me Back Home'' charted at number two on the ''Billboard'' Top Country Albums chart. For the title-track, Nelson received the

Grammy Award for Best Country Solo Performance The Grammy Award for Best Country Solo Performance is an award presented at the Grammy Awards, a ceremony that was established in 1958 and originally called the Gramophone Awards. According to the 54th Grammy Awards description guide it is desig ...

2020s

Following the U.S. coronavirus pandemic lockdowns that began in March 2020, Nelson

livestreamed Livestreaming, live-streaming, or live streaming is the streaming of video or audio in real time or near real time. While often referred to simply as ''streaming'', the real-time nature of livestreaming differentiates it from other non- live ...

a series of

benefit concert A benefit concert or charity concert is a type of musical benefit performance (e.g., concert, show, or gala) featuring musicians, comedians, or other performers that is held for a charitable purpose, often directed at a specific and immediate h ...

s. The first two raised $700,000 for people who had suffered financial loss due to effects on the U.S. economy. The third, which was held on April 20, 2020, was a variety show titled '' Come and Toke It''. Some of the content was

cannabis ''Cannabis'' () is a genus of flowering plants in the family Cannabaceae that is widely accepted as being indigenous to and originating from the continent of Asia. However, the number of species is disputed, with as many as three species be ...

-themed, and some of the proceeds will be used to support The Last Prisoner Project, a

restorative justice Restorative justice is a community-based approach to justice that aims to repair the harm done to victims, offenders and communities. In doing so, restorative justice practitioners work to ensure that offenders take responsibility for their ac ...

program relating to persons convicted of cannabis related crimes. The same year, Nelson was approached by

Karen O Karen Lee Orzolek (born November 22, 1978) is a South Korean-born American singer, musician, and songwriter. She is best known as the lead vocalist of the indie rock band the Yeah Yeah Yeahs. Early life Karen Lee Orzolek was born in Seoul, So ...

The Yeah Yeah Yeahs Yeah Yeah Yeahs are an American indie rock band formed in New York City in 2000. The group is composed of vocalist and pianist Karen O (born Karen Lee Orzolek), guitarist and keyboardist Nick Zinner, and drummer Brian Chase. They are complemente ...

to collaborate. They chose to perform

David Bowie David Robert Jones (8 January 194710 January 2016), known as David Bowie ( ), was an English singer, songwriter and actor. Regarded as one of the most influential musicians of the 20th century, Bowie was acclaimed by critics and musicians, pa ...

and

Queen Queen most commonly refers to: * Queen regnant, a female monarch of a kingdom * Queen consort, the wife of a reigning king * Queen (band), a British rock band Queen or QUEEN may also refer to: Monarchy * Queen dowager, the widow of a king * Q ...

Under Pressure "Under Pressure" is a song by the British rock band Queen and singer David Bowie. Originally released as a single in October 1981, it was later included on Queen's tenth studio album ''Hot Space'' (1982). The song reached number one on the U ...

. For his releases of '' The Willie Nelson Family'' (2021) and ''

A Beautiful Time ''A Beautiful Time'' is the 72nd solo studio album by Willie Nelson, released on April 29, 2022, on his 89th birthday. Produced by Buddy Cannon, the album includes original songs by Nelson, as well as covers of the Beatles and Leonard Cohen. On F ...

'' (2022), Nelson received four nominations for the

65th Annual Grammy Awards The 65th Annual Grammy Awards ceremony was held at the Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles on February 5, 2023. It recognized the best recordings, compositions, and artists of the eligibility year – October 1, 2021 to September 30, 2022 – as de ...

winning in two categories: Best Country Solo Performance and Best Country Album. In December 2022, Mark Rothbaum announced the release of a five-part documentary entitled ''Willie Nelson and Family'' released at the 2023

Sundance Film Festival The Sundance Film Festival is an annual film festival organized by the Sundance Institute. It is the largest independent film festival in the United States, with 423,234 combined in-person and online viewership in 2023. The festival has acted ...

. In 2023, Nelson performed at two concerts at the

Hollywood Bowl The Hollywood Bowl is an amphitheatre and Urban park, public park in the Hollywood Hills of Los Angeles, California. It was named one of the 10 best live music venues in the United States by ''Rolling Stone'' magazine in 2018 and was listed on ...

celebrating his 90th birthday and was inducted into the

Rock and Roll Hall of Fame The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame (RRHOF), also simply referred to as the Rock Hall, is a museum and hall of fame located in downtown Cleveland, Ohio, United States, on the shore of Lake Erie. The museum documents the history of rock music and the ...

. In 2024, Nelson was featured in the "Smoke Hour ★ Willie Nelson" and "Smoke Hour II" interludes of

Beyoncé Beyoncé Giselle Knowles-Carter ( ; born September 4, 1981) is an American singer, songwriter, actress, and businesswoman. With a career spanning over three decades, she has established herself as one of the most Cultural impact of Beyoncé, ...

's ''

Cowboy Carter ''Cowboy Carter'' (also referred to as ''Act II: Cowboy Carter'') is the eighth studio album by American singer and songwriter Beyoncé, released on March 29, 2024, via Parkwood Entertainment and Columbia Records. A concept album, ''Cowboy Cart ...

'' album, the second album in her trilogy project. With the death of

in September 2024, Nelson became the last surviving member of The Highwaymen.

Other ventures

Nelson's acting debut was in the 1979 film ''The Electric Horseman'', followed by appearances in '' Honeysuckle Rose'', ''

Thief Theft (, cognate to ) is the act of taking another person's property or services without that person's permission or consent with the intent to deprive the rightful owner of it. The word ''theft'' is also used as a synonym or informal short ...

'', and ''

Barbarosa ''Barbarosa'' is a 1982 American Western film starring Willie Nelson and Gary Busey. It is about a young cowboy on the run from the law who partners with a famous ''bandido'' and learns about life from him. "One of the best overlooked western ...

''. He played the role of Red Loon in '' Coming Out of the Ice'' in 1982 and starred in ''Songwriter'' two years later. He portrayed the lead role in the 1986 film version of his album ''Red Headed Stranger''. Other movies that Nelson acted in include ''

Wag the Dog ''Wag the Dog'' is a 1997 American black comedy political satire film starring Dustin Hoffman and Robert De Niro. Produced and directed by Barry Levinson, the film centers on a spin doctor and a Hollywood producer who fabricate a war in Al ...

'', '' Gone Fishin''' (as Billy 'Catch' Pooler), the 1986 television movie ''

Stagecoach A stagecoach (also: stage coach, stage, road coach, ) is a four-wheeled public transport coach used to carry paying passengers and light packages on journeys long enough to need a change of horses. It is strongly sprung and generally drawn by ...

'' (with Johnny Cash, Waylon Jennings, and Kris Kristofferson), ''

Half Baked ''Half Baked'' is a 1998 American stoner film starring Dave Chappelle, Jim Breuer, Harland Williams, and Guillermo Díaz. The film was directed by Tamra Davis, co-written by Chappelle and Neal Brennan and produced by Robert Simonds. ''Half ...

'', ''

Beerfest ''Beerfest'' is a 2006 American comedy film directed by Jay Chandrasekhar and written by the comedy group Broken Lizard (Chandrasekhar, Kevin Heffernan (actor), Kevin Heffernan, Steve Lemme, Paul Soter, and Erik Stolhanske), who also star in th ...

'', ''

The Dukes of Hazzard ''The Dukes of Hazzard'' is an American action comedy television series created by Gy Waldron that aired on CBS from January 26, 1979, to February 8, 1985, with a total of seven seasons consisting of List of The Dukes of Hazzard episodes, 147 ...

'', ''

Surfer, Dude ''Surfer, Dude'' is a 2008 American comedy film directed by S.R. Bindler and starring Matthew McConaughey. Woody Harrelson claims the film is the most "non-work" he has ever done. McConaughey and Harrelson, who previously appeared together in ''E ...

'' and ''

Swing Vote A swing vote is a vote that is seen as potentially going to any one of a number of candidates in an election, or, in a two-party system, may go to either of the two dominant political parties. It usually comes from voters who are 'undecided' or ...

''. He has also made guest appearances on ''

Miami Vice ''Miami Vice'' is an American crime drama television series created by Anthony Yerkovich and produced by Michael Mann for NBC. The series stars Don Johnson as James "Sonny" Crockett and Philip Michael Thomas as Ricardo Tubbs, Ricardo "Rico" Tub ...

'' (1986's "El Viejo" episode); ''

Delta Delta commonly refers to: * Delta (letter) (Δ or δ), the fourth letter of the Greek alphabet * D (NATO phonetic alphabet: "Delta"), the fourth letter in the Latin alphabet * River delta, at a river mouth * Delta Air Lines, a major US carrier ...

''; ''

Nash Bridges ''Nash Bridges'' is an American police procedural television series created by Carlton Cuse. The show stars Don Johnson and Cheech Marin as two Inspectors with the San Francisco Police Department's Special Investigations Unit (SIU). The seri ...

''; ''

The Simpsons ''The Simpsons'' is an American animated sitcom created by Matt Groening and developed by Groening, James L. Brooks and Sam Simon for the Fox Broadcasting Company. It is a Satire (film and television), satirical depiction of American life ...

''; ''

Monk A monk (; from , ''monachos'', "single, solitary" via Latin ) is a man who is a member of a religious order and lives in a monastery. A monk usually lives his life in prayer and contemplation. The concept is ancient and can be seen in many reli ...

''; ''

Adventures in Wonderland Adventures in Wonderland may refer to: * ''Alice's Adventures in Wonderland'', 1865 English children's novel by Lewis Carroll * ''Adventures in Wonderland'' (1992 TV series), 1992–1995 American live-action/puppet musical television series based ...

''; '' Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman''; ''

King of the Hill ''King of the Hill'' is an American animated sitcom created by Mike Judge and Greg Daniels that initially aired on Fox Broadcasting Company, Fox from January 12, 1997, to September 13, 2009, with four more episodes airing in First-run syndicati ...

''; ''

The Colbert Report ''The Colbert Report'' ( ) is an American late night television, late-night Late-night talk show, talk and news satire television program hosted by Stephen Colbert that aired four days a week on Comedy Central from October 17, 2005, to December ...

''; ''

''; and ''

Space Ghost Coast to Coast ''Space Ghost Coast to Coast'' is an American live-action/ adult animated hybrid television series created by Mike Lazzo for Cartoon Network and first broadcast in 1994. It takes the form of a surreal parody of talk shows, hosted by a reimagi ...

''. In 1988 his first book, '' Willie: An Autobiography'', was published. '' The Facts of Life: And Other Dirty Jokes'', a personal recollection of tour and musical stories from his career, combined with song lyrics, followed in 2002. In 2005 he co-authored ''Farm Aid: A Song for America'', a commemorative book about the twentieth anniversary of the foundation of Farm Aid. His third book, co-authored with long-time friend

Turk Pipkin Turk Pipkin (born July 2, 1953) is an author, actor, comedian and director. He is the co-founder of The Nobelity Project, a non-profit organization which seeks to find solutions to global problems, and which advocates for basic rights for children ...

, ''The Tao of Willie: A Guide to the Happiness in Your Heart'', was published in 2006. In 2007 a book advocating the use of bio-diesel and the reduction of gas emissions, ''On The Clean Road Again: Biodiesel and The Future of the Family Farm'', was published. His next book, ''A Tale Out of Luck'', published in 2008 and co-authored by Mike Blakely, was Nelson's first fictional book. In 2012, it was announced the release of a new autobiography by Nelson, '' Roll Me Up and Smoke Me When I Die: Musings from the Road''. Released on November 13, it was named after the song from his album ''Heroes''. The book contained further biographical details, as well as family pictures and stories about Nelson's political views, as well as his marijuana advocacy. The artwork of the book was designed by Nelson's son, Micah, and the foreword written by Kinky Friedman. In 2015, the publication of a second Nelson autobiography entitled '' It's a Long Story: My Life'' co-authored with

David Ritz David Ritz (born December 2, 1943) is an American author. He has written novels, biographies, magazine articles, and over a hundred liner notes for artists such as Aretha Franklin, Ray Charles, and Nat King Cole. He has coauthored 36 autobiograp ...

, the book was published on May 5, 2015. '' Pretty Paper'', another collaboration with Ritz was published the following year. In 2002, Nelson became the official spokesman of the

Texas Roadhouse Texas Roadhouse is an American steakhouse chain that specializes in steaks in a Texan and Southwestern cuisine style. It is a subsidiary of Texas Roadhouse Inc, which has two other concepts (Bubba's 33 and Jaggers) and is headquartered in Louisv ...

, a chain of steakhouses. Nelson heavily promoted the chain and appeared on a special on

Food Network Food Network is an American basic cable channel owned by Television Food Network, G.P., a unit of Warner Bros. Discovery, who manages and operates it as a division of the Warner Bros. Discovery U.S. Networks Group. The channel airs both televi ...

. The chain installed ''Willie's Corner'', a section dedicated to him and decked out with Willie memorabilia, at several locations. In 2004, Nelson and his wife Annie became partners with Bob and Kelly King in the building of two Pacific Bio-diesel plants, one in

Salem, Oregon Salem ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of Oregon, and the county seat of Marion County, Oregon, Marion County. It is located in the center of the Willamette Valley alongside the Willamette River, w ...

, and the other at Carl's Corner, Texas (the Texas plant was founded by Carl Cornelius, a longtime Nelson friend and the eponym for Carl's Corner). In 2005, Nelson and several other business partners formed Willie Nelson Biodiesel ("Bio-Willie"), a company that was marketing bio-diesel bio-fuel to truck stops. The fuel was made from vegetable oil (mainly soybean oil), and can be burned without modification in

diesel engine The diesel engine, named after the German engineer Rudolf Diesel, is an internal combustion engine in which Combustion, ignition of diesel fuel is caused by the elevated temperature of the air in the cylinder due to Mechanics, mechanical Compr ...

s. Nelson registered his company with Earth Biofuels and he became a board member. In 2007, Nelson forfeited six million shares of the company as he left the board. By 2008, he reopened Willie's Place, a truck stop in Carl's Corner, Texas. The U.S. Bankruptcy Court allowed Nelson to invest in it. The establishment had about 80 employees, and was used as a concert hall with a bar and a dance floor. Willie's Place also featured BioWillie pumps. At the time, the government of the United States offered a one dollar tax credit to producers of biodiesel. As the competition grew, the tax credit was discontinued while the prices of fossil fuels continued to drop. Nelson and his partners defaulted the $4,75 million loan they took for the construction of Willie's Place. Nelson then paid $35,000 back, while a judge later rejected the request of his creditors to receive more money from him.

TravelCenters of America TravelCenters of America LLC is the largest publicly traded full-service truck stop and travel center company in the United States. The company operates full service centers, convenience stores, and restaurants under the TravelCenters of America ...

bought Willie's Place during its foreclosure in 2011. The BioWillie plant was then put on the market for sale. Nelson kept the trademark for BioWillie, which is sold in the islands of Maui and Hawaii. Meanwhile, Nelson owns shares of Big Island Biodiesel in Hawaii and SeQuential-Pacific Biodiesel in Oregon. In 2010, Nelson founded with the collaboration of producers and filmmakers Luck Films, a company dedicated to produce feature films, documentaries and concerts. The next year, he created the

Willie's Roadhouse Willie's Roadhouse (formerly Willie's Place) is a channel on the Sirius XM Radio that specializes in playing traditional country music and older country hit songs from the 1960s, 1970s, and 1980s. It is available on channel 61 (previously 59) and ...

show which aired on channel 56 of

SiriusXM Sirius XM Holdings Inc. is an American broadcasting corporation headquartered in Midtown Manhattan, New York City, that provides satellite radio and online radio services operating in the United States. The company was formed by the 2008 merge ...

radio. The channel was a result of the merger of his two other channels ''The Roadhouse'' and ''Willie's Place''. In November 2014, it was announced that Nelson would be the host of the television series ''Inside Arlyn'', shot at Arlyn Studio in Austin, Texas. The thirteen-episode first season would feature artists being interviewed by Nelson and

Dan Rather Daniel Irvin Rather Jr. (; born October 31, 1931) is an American journalist, commentator, and former national evening news anchor. He began his career in Texas, becoming a national name after his reporting saved thousands of lives during Hurrica ...

, followed by a performance. The series concept received attention from cable channels that requested to see the pilot episode. Following the legalization of marijuana in different states, Nelson announced in 2015 through spokesman Michael Bowman the establishment of his own marijuana brand, Willie's Reserve. Plans to open chain stores in the states where marijuana was legalized were announced, to be expanded state-to-state if marijuana legalization is further expanded. Bowman called the brand "a culmination of (Nelson's) vision, and his whole life". In 2017, Nelson appeared as himself in

Woody Harrelson Woodrow Tracy Harrelson (born July 23, 1961) is an American actor. He first became known for his role as bartender Woody Boyd on the NBC sitcom ''Cheers'' (1985–1993), for which he won a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in ...

's live film, ''

Lost in London ''Lost in London'' (also known as ''Lost in London LIVE'') is a 2017 American independent biographical comedy-drama film written, starring, and directed by Woody Harrelson in his directorial debut. The film also stars Owen Wilson and Willie Nel ...

''. In June 2017, he appeared alongside Merle Haggard in the documentary ''

The American Epic Sessions ''The American Epic Sessions'' is a documentary film in which an engineer restores the fabled long-lost first electrical sound recording system from 1925, and twenty contemporary artists pay tribute to the momentous machine by attempting to recor ...

'' directed by Bernard MacMahon. They performed a song Haggard had composed for the film, "The Only Man Wilder Than Me", and

's classic "Old Fashioned Love", which they recorded live direct to disc on the first electrical sound recording system from the 1920s. It was the last filmed performance of the pair. ''

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. The magazine was first known fo ...

'' commented that "in the final performance of Sessions, Willie Nelson and Merle Haggard perform the duet 'The Only Man Wilder Than Me.' Haggard has a look of complete joy on his face throughout the session in the old-timey recording setup once used by his musical heroes."

Music style

Nelson uses a variety of music styles to create his own distinctive blend of country music, a hybrid of jazz, pop, blues, rock and folk. His "unique sound", which uses a "relaxed, behind-the-beat singing style and gut-string guitar" and his "nasal voice and jazzy, off-center phrasing", has been responsible for his wide appeal, and has made him a "vital icon in country music", influencing the " new country, new traditionalist, and

alternative country Alternative country (commonly abbreviated to alt-country; also known as alternative country rock, insurgent country, Americana, or y'allternative) is a loosely defined subgenre of country music and/or country rock that includes acts that diffe ...

movements of the 1980s and 1990s".

Guitars

In 1969, the Baldwin company gave Nelson an amplifier and guitar with their "Prismatone" pickup. During a show in

Helotes, Texas Helotes ( ) is a city in Bexar County, Texas, United States, located on the far northwestern side of San Antonio. It is part of the San Antonio-New Braunfels metropolitan statistical area. Its population was 9,030 at the 2020 census. History ...

, Nelson left the guitar on the floor of the stage, and it was later stepped on by a drunk man. He sent it to be repaired in Nashville by

Shot Jackson Harold Bradley "Shot" Jackson (September 4, 1920-January 24, 1991) was an American country guitarist best known for playing Dobro and pedal steel guitar. He also designed and manufactured guitars under the name Sho-Bud. Biography Jackson moved t ...

, who told Nelson that the damage was too great. Jackson offered him a

Martin Martin may refer to: Places Antarctica * Martin Peninsula, Marie Byrd Land * Port Martin, Adelie Land * Point Martin, South Orkney Islands Europe * Martin, Croatia, a village * Martin, Slovakia, a city * Martín del Río, Aragón, Spain * M ...

N-20

classical guitar The classical guitar, also known as Spanish guitar, is a member of the guitar family used in classical music and other styles. An acoustic wooden string (music), string instrument with strings made of catgut, gut or nylon, it is a precursor of the ...

, and, at Nelson's request, moved the pickup to the Martin. Nelson purchased the guitar unseen for $750 and named it after

Roy Rogers Roy Rogers (born Leonard Franklin Slye; November 5, 1911 – July 6, 1998), nicknamed the King of the Cowboys, was an American singer, actor, television host, and Rodeo, rodeo performer. Following early work under his given name, first as a c ...

' horse "Trigger". The next year Nelson rescued the guitar from his burning ranch. Constant strumming with a

guitar pick A guitar pick (American English) is a plectrum used for guitars. Picks are generally made of one uniform material, such as some kind of plastic (nylon, Delrin, celluloid), rubber, felt, Tortoiseshell material, tortoiseshell, wood, metal, glass, ...

over the decades has worn a large sweeping hole into the guitar's body near the sound hole—the N-20 has no

pickguard A pickguard (also known as a scratchplate) is a piece of plastic or other (often laminated) material that is placed on the body of a guitar, mandolin or similar plucked string instrument. The main purpose of the pickguard is to protect the guita ...

since classical guitars are meant to be played fingerstyle instead of with picks. Its soundboard has been signed by over a hundred of Nelson's friends and associates, ranging from fellow musicians to lawyers and football coaches. The first signature on the guitar was

Leon Russell Leon Russell (born Claude Russell Bridges; April 2, 1942 – November 13, 2016) was an American musician and songwriter who was involved with numerous bestselling records during his 60-year career that spanned multiple genres, including rock a ...

's, who asked Nelson initially to sign his guitar. When Nelson was about to sign it with a marker, Russell requested him to scratch it instead, explaining that the guitar would be more valuable in the future. Interested in the concept, Nelson requested Russell to also sign his guitar. In 1991, during his process with the IRS, Nelson was worried that Trigger could be auctioned off, stating: "When Trigger goes, I'll quit". He asked his daughter, Lana, to take the guitar from the studio before any IRS agent arrived there, and then deliver it to him in

Maui Maui (; Hawaiian language, Hawaiian: ) is the second largest island in the Hawaiian archipelago, at 727.2 square miles (1,883 km2). It is the List of islands of the United States by area, 17th-largest in the United States. Maui is one of ...

. Nelson then concealed the guitar in his manager's house until his debt was paid off in 1993.

Political views and activism

Nelson is vocal supporter of a number of causes. Along with

and

John Mellencamp John J. Mellencamp (born October 7, 1951), previously known as Johnny Cougar, John Cougar, and John Cougar Mellencamp, is an American singer-songwriter. He is known for his brand of heartland rock, which emphasizes traditional instrumentation ...

, he set up

in 1985 to assist and increase awareness of the importance of family farms, after

Bob Dylan Bob Dylan (legally Robert Dylan; born Robert Allen Zimmerman, May 24, 1941) is an American singer-songwriter. Described as one of the greatest songwriters of all time, Dylan has been a major figure in popular culture over his nearly 70-year ...

's comments during the

Live Aid Live Aid was a two-venue benefit concert and music-based fundraising initiative held on Saturday, 13 July 1985. The event was organised by Bob Geldof and Midge Ure to raise further funds for relief of the 1983–1985 famine in Ethiopia, a m ...

concert that he hoped some of the money would help American farmers in danger of losing their farms through mortgage debt. The first concert included Dylan,

Billy Joel William Martin Joel (born May 9, 1949) is an American singer, songwriter, and pianist. Nicknamed the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Piano Man" after his Signature song, signature 1973 song Piano Man (song), of the same name, Joel has ha ...

B.B. King Riley B. King (September 16, 1925 – May 14, 2015), known professionally as B.B. King, was an American blues guitarist, singer, songwriter, and record producer. He introduced a sophisticated style of soloing based on fluid string bending, sh ...

, and Neil Young among many others, and raised over $9 million for America's family farmers. Besides organizing and performing in the annual concerts, Nelson is the president of the board of Farm Aid. Nelson is a co-chair of the

(NORML) advisory board. He has worked with NORML for years, promoting marijuana legalization. In 2005 Nelson and his family hosted the first annual "Willie Nelson & NORML Benefit Golf Tournament", leading to a cover appearance and inside interview in the January 2008 issue of ''

High Times ''High Times'' was an American monthly magazine (and cannabis brand) that advocates the legalization of cannabis as well as other counterculture ideas. The magazine was founded in 1974 by Tom Forcade. The magazine had its own book publishing d ...

'' magazine. After Nelson's arrest for possession of marijuana in 2010, he created Willie Nelson's TeaPot Party under the motto "Tax it, regulate it and legalize it!" Nelson got 19 write-in votes for President of the United States in the Minnesota Legal Marijuana Now presidential primary held on March 5, 2024. In 2001, following the

September 11 attacks The September 11 attacks, also known as 9/11, were four coordinated Islamist terrorist suicide attacks by al-Qaeda against the United States in 2001. Nineteen terrorists hijacked four commercial airliners, crashing the first two into ...

, Nelson participated in the benefit telethon '' America: A Tribute to Heroes'', leading the rest of the celebrities singing the song "

America the Beautiful "America the Beautiful" is an American patriotic song. Its lyrics were written by Katharine Lee Bates and its music was composed by church organist and choirmaster Samuel A. Ward at Grace Church (Newark), Grace Episcopal Church in Newark, New ...

". In 2010, during an interview with

Larry King Larry King (born Lawrence Harvey Zeiger; November 19, 1933 – January 23, 2021) was an American TV and radio host presenter, author, and former spokesman. He was a WMBM radio interviewer in the Miami area in the 1950s and 1960s and beginning in ...

, Nelson expressed his doubts with regards to the attacks and the official story. Nelson explained that he could not believe that the buildings could collapse due to the planes, attributing instead the result to an implosion. Willie Nelson 930 club 2012 - 12

Nelson supported

Dennis Kucinich Dennis John Kucinich ( ; October 8, 1946) is an American politician. Originally a Democratic Party (United States), Democrat, Kucinich served as U.S. Representative from Ohio's Ohio's 10th congressional district, 10th congressional district fro ...

's campaign in the 2004 Democratic presidential primaries. He raised money, appeared at events, and composed the song "Whatever Happened to Peace on Earth?", criticizing the

war in Iraq This is a list of wars involving the Republic of Iraq and its predecessor states. , style="background:#F88" , Coalition of Gulf War, Coalition victory * Kuwait, State of Kuwait resumes self-governance over all Kuwaiti sovereign territory * Esta ...

. He recorded a radio advertisement asking for support to put musician/author

Kinky Friedman Richard Samet "Kinky" Friedman (November 1, 1944 – June 27, 2024) was an American singer, songwriter, novelist, humorist, politician, and columnist for ''Texas Monthly'', who styled himself in the mold of popular American satirists Will Roger ...

on the ballot as an independent candidate for the

2006 Texas gubernatorial election 6 (six) is the natural number following 5 and preceding 7. It is a composite number and the smallest perfect number. In mathematics A six-sided polygon is a hexagon, one of the three regular polygons capable of tiling the plane. A hexagon a ...

. Friedman promised Nelson a job in Austin as the head of a new Texas Energy Commission due to his support of bio-fuels. In January 2008, Nelson filed a suit against the

Texas Democratic Party The Texas Democratic Party is the affiliate of the Democratic Party in the U.S. state of Texas and one of the two major political parties in the state. The party's headquarters are in Austin, Texas. President Lyndon B. Johnson was a Texas Democ ...

, alleging that the party violated the

First First most commonly refers to: * First, the ordinal form of the number 1 First or 1st may also refer to: Acronyms * Faint Images of the Radio Sky at Twenty-Centimeters, an astronomical survey carried out by the Very Large Array * Far Infrared a ...

and Fourteenth Amendments of the

United States Constitution The Constitution of the United States is the Supremacy Clause, supreme law of the United States, United States of America. It superseded the Articles of Confederation, the nation's first constitution, on March 4, 1789. Originally includi ...

by refusing to allow co-plaintiff Kucinich to appear on the primary ballot because he had scratched out part of the

loyalty oath Loyalty is a Fixation (psychology), devotion to a country, philosophy, group, or person. Philosophers disagree on what can be an object of loyalty, as some argue that loyalty is strictly interpersonal and only another human being can be the obj ...

on his application. Nelson is an advocate for better treatment for horses and has been campaigning for the passage of the American Horse Slaughter Prevention Act (H.R. 503/S. 311) alongside the

Animal Welfare Institute The Animal Welfare Institute (AWI) is an American non-profit charitable organization founded by Christine Stevens in 1951 with the goal of reducing suffering inflicted on animals by humans. It is one of the oldest animal welfare organizations in ...

. He is on its board of directors and has adopted a number of horses from ''Habitat for Horses''. In 2008, Nelson signed on to warn consumers about the cruel and illegal living conditions for calves raised to produce milk for dairy products. He wrote letters to

Land O'Lakes Land O'Lakes, Inc. is an American member-owned agricultural cooperative based in the Minneapolis-St. Paul suburb of Arden Hills, Minnesota, United States, focusing on the dairy industry. The cooperative has 1,959 direct producer-members, 751 ...

and Challenge Dairy, two of the major corporations that use milk from calves raised at California's Mendes Calf Ranch, which employs an intensive confinement practice that was the subject of a lawsuit and campaign brought by the

Animal Legal Defense Fund The Animal Legal Defense Fund is an American animal law advocacy organization. Its stated mission is to protect the lives and advance the interests of animals through the legal system. It accomplishes this by filing high-impact lawsuits to pr ...

. Nelson is seen in the film '' The Garden'' supporting the impoverished community South Central Farm in Southern Los Angeles. A supporter of the

LGBT LGBTQ people are individuals who are lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, or questioning. Many variants of the initialism are used; LGBTQIA+ people incorporates intersex, asexual, aromantic, agender, and other individuals. The gro ...

movement, Nelson published in 2006 through

iTunes iTunes is a media player, media library, and mobile device management (MDM) utility developed by Apple. It is used to purchase, play, download and organize digital multimedia on personal computers running the macOS and Windows operating s ...

a version of

Ned Sublette Ned Sublette (born 1951) is an American composer, musician, record producer, musicologist, historian, and author. Sublette studied Spanish Classical Guitar with Hector Garcia at the University of New Mexico and with Emilio Pujol in Spain. He s ...

's "

Cowboys Are Frequently, Secretly Fond of Each Other A cowboy is a professional pastoralist or mounted livestock herder, usually from the Americas or Australia. Cowboy(s) or The Cowboy(s) may also refer to: Film and television * ''Cowboy'' (1958 film), starring Glenn Ford * ''Cowboy'' (1966 film), ...

", that met instant success. During an interview with ''

Texas Monthly ''Texas Monthly'' (stylized as ''TexasMonthly'') is a monthly American magazine headquartered in Downtown Austin, Texas. Founded in 1973 by Michael R. Levy, ''Texas Monthly'' chronicles life in contemporary Texas, writing on politics, the Natura ...

'' in 2013, regarding the

Defense of Marriage Act The Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) was a United States federal law passed by the 104th United States Congress and signed into law by President Bill Clinton on September 21, 1996. It banned federal recognition of same-sex marriage by limitin ...

and

same-sex marriage in the United States The legal recognition of same-sex marriage in the United States expanded from one state in 2004 (Massachusetts) to Same-sex marriage law in the United States by state, all fifty states in 2015 through various court rulings, state legislation ...

, Nelson responded to a comparison the interviewer made with the civil rights movement, stating: "We'll look back and say it was crazy that we ever even argued about this". He also presented two logos with the pink equal sign, symbol of the LGBT movement. The first one, featured the sign represented with two long braids; while the second one, featured the sign represented with two marijuana cigarettes. The use of the logos became popular quickly in social networking sites such as Twitter and Facebook. In June 2018, Nelson deplored the

Trump administration family separation policy The family separation policy under the First presidency of Donald Trump, first Trump administration was a controversial immigration enforcement strategy implemented in the United States from 2017 to 2018, aimed at Immigration policy of the f ...

. During his Fourth of July Picnic, he performed a song with

Beto O'Rourke Robert Francis "Beto" O'Rourke ( , ; ; born September 26, 1972) is an American politician who served as the United States House of Representatives, U.S. representative for from 2013 to 2019. A member of the Democratic Party (United States) ...

, the Democratic candidate for the Senate election in Texas. Nelson endorsed O'Rourke, and received negative reactions from the conservative part of his followers. On September 29, 2018, Nelson offered a free concert in Austin supporting the candidate's run. The last number he performed was "

Vote 'Em Out "Vote 'Em Out" is a single by Willie Nelson, released on October 11, 2018, amidst the 2018 Senate election in Texas. Background In June 2018, Willie Nelson released a public statement criticizing the Trump administration family separation policy. ...

", a new track that was subsequently released as a single.

Personal life

Nelson has been married four times and has eight children. His first marriage was to Martha Matthews from 1952 to 1962. The couple had three children: Lana, Susie, and Willie "Billy" Hugh Jr. The latter died by suicide in 1991. The marriage was marked by violence, with Matthews assaulting Nelson several times, including one incident when she sewed him up in bedsheets and beat him with a broomstick. Nelson's next marriage was to

in 1963. The couple divorced in 1971, after Collie found a bill from the maternity ward of a Houston hospital charged to Nelson and Connie Koepke for the birth of Paula Carlene Nelson. Nelson married Koepke the same year, and they had another daughter, Amy Lee Nelson. Following a divorce in 1988, he married his current wife, Annie D'Angelo, in 1991. They have two sons, Lukas Autry and Jacob Micah. In 2012, Nelson learned that he fathered a daughter with his friend Mary Haney. Born on January 22, 1953, Rene Butts (born Lynda Renee Barley) met Nelson and she shared a picture of both of them on Father's Day in 2016. Butts died in 2017. Nelson owns "Luck, Texas", a ranch in

Spicewood Spicewood is an Unincorporated area#United States, unincorporated community in Travis County, Texas, Travis County and partially in Burnet County, Texas, Burnet County, Texas, United States. According to the Texas Almanac, the community had an est ...

, and also lives in Maui, Hawaii with several celebrity neighbors. While swimming in Hawaii in 1981, Nelson's lung collapsed. He was taken to the Maui Memorial Hospital and his scheduled concerts were canceled. Nelson temporarily stopped smoking cigarettes each time his lungs became congested, and resumed when the congestion ended. He was then smoking between two and three packs per day. After suffering from pneumonia several times, he decided to quit either marijuana or tobacco. He chose to quit tobacco. In 2008, he started to smoke marijuana with a carbon-free system to avoid the effects of smoke. In 2004, Nelson underwent surgery for

carpal tunnel syndrome Carpal tunnel syndrome (CTS) is a nerve compression syndrome associated with the collected signs and symptoms of Pathophysiology of nerve entrapment#Compression, compression of the median nerve at the carpal tunnel in the wrist. Carpal tunn ...

, as he had damaged his wrists by continuously playing the guitar. On the recommendation of his doctor, he canceled his scheduled concerts and only wrote songs during his recovery. In 2012, he canceled a fund-raising appearance in the Denver area. He suffered from breathing problems due to high altitude and emphysema and was taken to a local hospital. His publicist Elaine Schock confirmed soon after that Nelson's health was good and that he was heading to his next scheduled concert in Dallas, Texas. After repeated instances of pneumonia and emphysema through the years, Nelson underwent

stem-cell therapy Stem-cell therapy uses stem cells to treat or prevent a disease or condition. , the only FDA-approved therapy using stem cells is hematopoietic stem cell transplantation. This usually takes the form of a bone marrow or peripheral blood stem cel ...

in 2015 to improve the state of his lungs. During his childhood, Nelson grew interested in martial arts. He ordered self-defense manuals on

jujitsu Jujutsu ( , or ), also known as jiu-jitsu and ju-jitsu (both ), is a Japanese martial art and a system of close combat that can be used in a defensive or offensive manner to kill or subdue one or more weaponless or armed and armored opponent ...

and judo that he saw advertised in ''

Batman Batman is a superhero who appears in American comic books published by DC Comics. Batman was created by the artist Bob Kane and writer Bill Finger, and debuted in Detective Comics 27, the 27th issue of the comic book ''Detective Comics'' on M ...

'' and ''

Superman Superman is a superhero created by writer Jerry Siegel and artist Joe Shuster, which first appeared in the comic book ''Action Comics'' Action Comics 1, #1, published in the United States on April 18, 1938.The copyright date of ''Action Comics ...

'' comic books. Nelson started to formally practice

kung fu Chinese martial arts, commonly referred to with umbrella terms Kung fu (term), kung fu (; ), kuoshu () or wushu (sport), wushu (), are Styles of Chinese martial arts, multiple fighting styles that have developed over the centuries in Greater Ch ...

after he moved to Nashville, in the 1960s. During the 1980s, Nelson began training in

taekwondo Taekwondo (; ; ) is a Korean martial art and combat sport involving primarily kicking techniques and punching. "Taekwondo" can be translated as ''tae'' ("strike with foot"), ''kwon'' ("strike with hand"), and ''do'' ("the art or way"). In ad ...

and now holds a second-degree black belt in that discipline. During the 1990s, Nelson started to practice the Korean martial art GongKwon Yusul. In 2014, after 20 years in the discipline, his Grand Master Sam Um presented him with a fifth-degree black belt in a ceremony held in Austin, Texas. A 2014 '' Tae Kwon Do Times'' magazine interview revealed that Nelson had developed an unorthodox manner of training during the lengthy periods of time he was on tour. Nelson would conduct his martial arts training on his tour bus "The Honeysuckle Rose" and send videos to his supervising Master for review and critique. In March 2021, Nelson recorded a version of the popular standard " I'll Be Seeing You" that was used on a

public service announcement A public service announcement (PSA) is a message in the public interest disseminated by the media without charge to raise public awareness and change behavior. Oftentimes these messages feature unsettling imagery, ideas or behaviors that are des ...

by the

Ad Council The Advertising Council, commonly known as Ad Council, is an American nonprofit organization that produces, distributes, and promotes public service announcements or PSAs on behalf of various sponsors, including nonprofit organizations, non-gover ...

to encourage

COVID-19 vaccination in the United States The COVID-19 vaccination campaign in the United States is an ongoing mass immunization campaign for the . The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) first granted emergency use authorization to the Pfizer–BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine, Pfizer– ...

. Earlier in January 2021, Nelson and his sister received the

Moderna COVID-19 vaccine The Moderna COVID19 vaccine, sold under the brand name Spikevax, is a COVID-19 vaccine developed by the American company Moderna, the United States National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), and the Biomedical Advanced ...

. In May 2022, Nelson postponed several shows after he contracted

COVID-19 Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by the coronavirus SARS-CoV-2. In January 2020, the disease spread worldwide, resulting in the COVID-19 pandemic. The symptoms of COVID‑19 can vary but often include fever ...

. Nelson's wife detailed that he was severely affected by the illness, and that he received a treatment including Paxlovid,

monoclonal antibodies A monoclonal antibody (mAb, more rarely called moAb) is an antibody produced from a Lineage (evolution), cell lineage made by cloning a unique white blood cell. All subsequent antibodies derived this way trace back to a unique parent cell. Mon ...

, and steroids. Nelson resumed his tour in September 2022. During June 2024, Nelson had to cancel his performances at Outlaw Music Festival due to health complications and was ordered to rest for four days by a doctor.

Legal issues

Nelson has been arrested several times for marijuana possession. The first occasion was in 1974 in

Dallas Dallas () is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the most populous city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of Texas metropolitan areas, most populous metropolitan area in Texas and the Metropolitan statistical area, fourth-most ...

, Texas. In 1977, after a tour with Hank Cochran, Nelson traveled to

The Bahamas The Bahamas, officially the Commonwealth of The Bahamas, is an Archipelagic state, archipelagic and island country within the Lucayan Archipelago of the Atlantic Ocean. It contains 97 per cent of the archipelago's land area and 88 per cent of ...

. Nelson and Cochran arrived late to the airport and boarded the flight without luggage. The bags were later sent to them. As Nelson and Cochran claimed their luggage in the Bahamas, a customs officer questioned Nelson after marijuana was found in a pair of his jeans. Nelson was arrested and jailed. As Cochran made arrangements to pay the bail, he took Nelson a six-pack of beer to his cell. Nelson was released a few hours later. Inebriated, he fell after he jumped celebrating and was taken to the emergency room. He then appeared before the judge, who dropped the charges but ordered Nelson to never return to the country. In 1994, Texas Highway patrolmen found marijuana in his car near Waco, Texas. His requirement to appear in court prevented his attending the Grammy awards that year. While traveling to

Ann W. Richards Dorothy Ann Richards (née Willis; September 1, 1933 – September 13, 2006) was an American politician who served as the 45th governor of Texas from 1991 to 1995. A Democrat, she first came to national attention as the Texas State Treasurer, ...

' funeral in 2006, Nelson, along with his manager and his sister, Bobbie, were arrested in

St. Martin Parish, Louisiana St. Martin Parish () is a parish located in the U.S. state of Louisiana, founded in 1811. Its parish seat is St. Martinville, and the largest city is Breaux Bridge. At the 2020 census, the population was 51,767. St. Martin Parish is part of ...

, and charged with possession of marijuana and hallucinogenic mushrooms. Nelson received six months probation. On November 26, 2010, Nelson was arrested in

Sierra Blanca, Texas Sierra Blanca is an unincorporated area in Hudspeth County, Texas, United States. It is also the county seat of the county and the namesake of a census-designated place (CDP) in which it is located. The town is part of the Trans-Pecos region of f ...

, for possession of six ounces of marijuana found in his tour bus while traveling from Los Angeles back to Texas. He was released after paying bail of $2,500. Prosecutor Kit Bramblett supported not sentencing Nelson to jail due to the small amount of marijuana involved, but suggested instead a $100 fine and told Nelson that he would have him sing "Blue Eyes Crying in the Rain" for the court. Judge Becky Dean-Walker said that Nelson would have to pay the fine but not to perform the song, explaining that the prosecutor was joking. Nelson's lawyer Joe Turner reached an agreement with the prosecutor. Nelson was set to pay a $500 fine to avoid a two-year jail sentence with a 30-day review period, which in case of another incident would end the agreement. The judge later rejected the agreement, claiming that Nelson was receiving preferential treatment for his celebrity status; the offense normally carried a one-year jail sentence. Bramblett declared that the case would remain open until it was either dismissed or the judge changed her opinion.

Issues with the Internal Revenue Service

In 1990, the IRS seized most of Nelson's assets, claiming that he owed $32 million. In addition to the unpaid taxes, Nelson's situation was worsened by the weak investments he had made during the early 1980s. In 1978, after he fired his manager Neil Reshen, Nelson was introduced by Dallas lawyer Terry Bray to the accounting firm

Price Waterhouse PricewaterhouseCoopers, also known as PwC, is a multinational professional services network based in London, United Kingdom. It is the second-largest professional services network in the world and is one of the Big Four accounting firms, along ...

. To repay the debt Reshen had created with the IRS, Nelson was recommended to invest in tax shelters that ultimately flopped. While the IRS disallowed his deductions for 1980, 1981 and 1982 (at a time that Nelson's income multiplied), due to penalties and interests, the debt increased by the end of the decade. His lawyer, Jay Goldberg, negotiated the sum to be lowered to $16 million. Later, Nelson's attorney renegotiated a settlement with the IRS in which he paid $6 million, although Nelson did not comply with the agreement. Nelson released '' The IRS Tapes: Who'll Buy My Memories?'' as a double album, with all profits destined for the IRS. Many of his assets were auctioned and purchased by friends, who donated or rented his possessions to him for a nominal fee. He sued Price Waterhouse, contending that they put his money in illegal tax shelters. The lawsuit was settled for an undisclosed amount and Nelson cleared his debts by 1993.

Legacy

Nelson is widely recognized as an American icon. He was inducted into the

Country Music Hall of Fame The Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum in Nashville, Tennessee, is one of the world's largest museums and research centers dedicated to the preservation and interpretation of American vernacular music. Chartered in 1964, the museum has amass ...

in 1993, and he received the

Kennedy Center Honors The Kennedy Center Honors are annual honors given to those in the performing arts for their lifetime of contributions to Culture of the United States, American culture. They have been presented annually since 1978, culminating each December in ...

in 1998. In 2011, Nelson was inducted to the National Agricultural Hall of Fame, for his labor in Farm Aid and other fund raisers to benefit farmers. In 2015 Nelson won the

Gershwin Prize The Library of Congress Gershwin Prize for Popular Song is an award given to a composer or performer for their lifetime contributions to popular music. Created in 2007 by the United States Library of Congress, the prize is named after brothers ...

, the lifetime award of the

Library of Congress The Library of Congress (LOC) is a research library in Washington, D.C., serving as the library and research service for the United States Congress and the ''de facto'' national library of the United States. It also administers Copyright law o ...

. In 2018, The Texas Institute of Letters inducted him among its members for his songwriting. He was included by ''

'' on its ''100 Greatest Singers'' and ''100 Greatest Guitarists'' lists. In 2003, Texas Governor Perry signed bill No. 2582, introduced by State Representative Elizabeth Ames Jones and Senator

Jeff Wentworth Earl Jeffrey Wentworth (born November 20, 1940) is a Republican Party (United States), Republican former member of the Texas Senate from San Antonio, Texas, San Antonio. He represented Texas Senate, District 25, District 25 in the upper legislat ...

, which funded the ''Texas Music Project'', the state's official music charity. Nelson was named honorary chairman of the advisory board of the project. In 2005, Democratic Texas Senator Gonzalo Barrientos introduced a bill to name of the

Travis County Travis County is located in Central Texas. As of the 2020 census, the population was 1,290,188. It is the fifth-most populous county in Texas. Its county seat and most populous city is Austin, the state's capital. The county was established i ...

section of

State Highway 130 The following highways are numbered 130: Canada * New Brunswick Route 130 * Ontario Highway 130 * Prince Edward Island Route 130 Costa Rica * National Route 130 (Costa Rica), National Route 130 India * National Highway 130 (India) Japan * Jap ...

after Nelson, and at one point 23 of the 31 state senators were co-sponsors of the bill. The legislation was dropped after two Republican senators,

Florence Shapiro Florence Donald Shapiro (born May 2, 1948) is an American politician from Texas Texas ( , ; or ) is the most populous U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana ...

and Wentworth, objected, citing Nelson's lack of connection to the highway, his fund raisers for Democrats, his drinking, and his marijuana advocacy. An important collection of Willie Nelson materials (1975–1994) became part of the

Wittliff collections The Wittliff Collections, located on the seventh floor of the Albert B. Alkek Library at Texas State University, was founded by William D. Wittliff in 1986. The Wittliff Collections include the Southwestern Writers Collection and the Southwest ...

of Southwestern Writers,

Texas State University Texas State University (TXST) is a public university, public research university with its main campus in San Marcos, Texas, United States, and another campus in Round Rock, Texas, Round Rock. Since its establishment in 1899, the university has ...

San Marcos, Texas San Marcos () is a city and the county seat of Hays County, Texas, United States. The city is a part of the Greater Austin, Greater Austin Metropolitan Area. San Marcos's limits extend into Caldwell County, Texas, Caldwell and Guadalupe County, T ...

. The collection contains lyrics, screenplays, letters, concert programs, tour itineraries, posters, articles, clippings, personal effects, promotional items, souvenirs, and documents. It documents Nelson's IRS troubles and how Farm Aid contributions were used. Most of the material was collected by Nelson's friend Bill Wittliff, who wrote or co-wrote ''Honeysuckle Rose'', ''Barbarosa'' and ''Red Headed Stranger''. In 2014, Nelson donated his personal collection to the

Dolph Briscoe Center for American History The Dolph Briscoe Center for American History is an organized research unit and public service component of the University of Texas at Austin named for Dolph Briscoe, the 41st governor of Texas. The center collects and preserves documents and a ...

. The items include photographs, correspondence, song manuscripts, posters, certificate records, awards, signed books, screenplays, personal items and gifts and tributes from Nelson's fans. In April 2010, Nelson received the "Feed the Peace" award from The Nobelity Project for his extensive work with Farm Aid and overall contributions to world peace. On June 23, 2010, he was inducted into the Library of Congress's National Recording Registry. Nelson is an honorary trustee of the Dayton International Peace Museum. In 2010, Austin, Texas renamed Second Street to Willie Nelson Boulevard. The city also unveiled Willie Nelson statue, a life-size statue to honor him, placed at the entrance of ''Austin City Limits new studio. The non-profit organization Capital Area Statues commissioned sculptor Clete Shields to execute the project. The statue was unveiled on April 20, 2012. The date selected by the city of Austin unintentionally coincided with the number 4/20, 420 (cannabis culture), associated with cannabis culture. In spite of the coincidence and Nelson's advocacy for the legalization of marijuana, the ceremony was scheduled also for 4:20 pm. During the ceremony, Nelson performed the song "Roll Me Up and Smoke Me When I Die". The same year, Nelson was honored during the 46th Annual Country Music Association Awards as the first recipient of the Willie Nelson Lifetime Achievement Award, Lifetime Achievement Award, which was also named after him. In 2013, he received an honorary doctorate from the Berklee College of Music. The following year, he was part of the inaugural class inducted into the ''Austin City Limits'' Hall of Fame. Also included among the first inductees was his friend Darrell Royal, whose jamming parties that Nelson participated in were the source of inspiration for the show. For many years, Nelson's image was marked by his red hair, often divided into two long braids partially concealed under a bandanna. In the April 2007 issue of Stuff Magazine Nelson was interviewed about his long locks. "I started braiding my hair when it started getting too long, and that was, I don't know, probably in the 70's." On May 26, 2010, the Associated Press reported that Nelson had cut his hair, and Nashville music journalist Jimmy Carter published a photograph of the pigtail-free Nelson on his website. Nelson wanted a more maintainable hairstyle, as well helping him stay cool more easily at his Maui home. In October 2014, the braids of Nelson were sold for $37,000 at an auction of the Waylon Jennings estate. In 1983, Nelson cut his braids and gave them to Jennings as a gift during a party celebrating Jennings' sobriety. Nelson's touring and recording group, the Family, is full of longstanding members. The original lineup included his sister Bobbie Nelson, drummer Paul English, harmonicist Mickey Raphael, bassist Bee Spears, drummer/percussionist Billy English (Paul's younger brother), and guitarist Jody Payne. The current lineup only includes Nelson himself, Raphael, and Billy English from the classic lineup, as Jody Payne retired (before dying in 2013), Bee Spears died in 2011, Paul English died in 2020, and Willie's sister Bobbie Nelson died in 2022. ''Willie & Family'' tours North America in the bio-diesel bus ''Honeysuckle Rose'', which is fueled by Bio-Willie. Nelson's tour buses were customized by Florida Coach since 1979. The company built the ''Honeysuckle Rose I'' in 1983, which was replaced after a collision in Nova Scotia, Canada, in 1990. The interior was salvaged and reused for the second version of the bus the same year. Nelson changed his tour bus in 1996, 2005 and 2013, currently touring on the ''Honeysuckle Rose V''.

Discography

;Solo studio albums *'' ...And Then I Wrote'' (1962) *''Here's Willie Nelson'' (1963) *''Country Willie: His Own Songs'' (1965) *''Country Favorites-Willie Nelson Style, Country Favorites: Willie Nelson Style'' (1966) *''Make Way for Willie Nelson'' (1967) *''The Party's Over and Other Great Willie Nelson Songs, The Party's Over'' (1967) *''Texas in My Soul'' (1968) *''Good Times (Willie Nelson album), Good Times'' (1968) *''My Own Peculiar Way'' (1969) *''Both Sides Now (Willie Nelson album), Both Sides Now'' (1970) *''Laying My Burdens Down'' (1970) *''Willie Nelson and Family, Willie Nelson & Family'' (1971) *'' Yesterday's Wine'' (1971) *''The Words Don't Fit the Picture'' (1972) *''The Willie Way'' (1972) *''

'' (1973) *''Country Winners'' (1973) *''

'' (1974) *''

'' (1975) *''

'' (1976) *''The Troublemaker (album), The Troublemaker'' (1976) *''To Lefty from Willie'' (1977) *''

'' (1978) *''Sings Kristofferson, Willie Nelson Sings Kristofferson'' (1979) *''Pretty Paper (album), Pretty Paper'' (1979) *''Family Bible (Willie Nelson album), Family Bible'' (1980) *''Somewhere Over the Rainbow (Willie Nelson album), Somewhere Over the Rainbow'' (1981) *''Always on My Mind (Willie Nelson album), Always on My Mind'' (1982) *''Tougher Than Leather (Willie Nelson album), Tougher Than Leather'' (1983) *''Without a Song (album), Without a Song'' (1983) *''City of New Orleans (album), City of New Orleans'' (1984) *''Angel Eyes (Willie Nelson album), Angel Eyes'' (1984) *''Me and Paul, Me & Paul'' (1985) *''Partners (Willie Nelson album), Partners'' (1986) *'' The Promiseland'' (1986) *''Island in the Sea'' (1987) *''What a Wonderful World (Willie Nelson album), What a Wonderful World'' (1988) *''A Horse Called Music'' (1989) *''Born for Trouble (album), Born for Trouble'' (1990) *'' The IRS Tapes: Who'll Buy My Memories?'' (1992) *''Across the Borderline'' (1993) *''Moonlight Becomes You (album), Moonlight Becomes You'' (1994) *''Healing Hands of Time'' (1994) *''Just One Love'' (1994) *'' Spirit'' (1996) *'' Teatro'' (1998) *''Night and Day (Willie Nelson album), Night and Day'' (1999) *''Me and the Drummer'' (2000) *''Milk Cow Blues (album), Milk Cow Blues'' (2000) *''Rainbow Connection (album), Rainbow Connection'' (2001) *''The Great Divide (Willie Nelson album), The Great Divide'' (2002) *''Nacogdoches (album), Nacogdoches'' (2004) *''It Always Will Be'' (2004) *''

'' (2005) *''You Don't Know Me: The Songs of Cindy Walker'' (2006) *''Songbird (Willie Nelson album), Songbird'' (2006) *'' Moment of Forever'' (2008) *''American Classic (Willie Nelson album), American Classic'' (2009) *''

'' (2010) *''Remember Me, Vol. 1'' (2011) *''

'' (2012) *''Let's Face the Music and Dance (album), Let's Face the Music and Dance'' (2013) *'' To All the Girls...'' (2013) *'' Band of Brothers'' (2014) *''Summertime: Willie Nelson Sings Gershwin'' (2016) *''For the Good Times: A Tribute to Ray Price'' (2016) *'' God's Problem Child'' (2017) *''Last Man Standing (Willie Nelson album), Last Man Standing'' (2018) *''My Way (Willie Nelson album), My Way'' (2018) *'' Ride Me Back Home'' (2019) *''First Rose of Spring'' (2020) *''That's Life (Willie Nelson album), That's Life'' (2021) *'' The Willie Nelson Family'' (2021) *''

'' (2022) *''I Don't Know a Thing About Love'' (2023) *''Bluegrass (album), Bluegrass'' (2023) *''The Border (album), The Border'' (2024) *''Last Leaf on the Tree'' (2024) *''Oh What a Beautiful World'' (2025)

Filmography

Bibliography

* ''Willie: An Autobiography'', Simon & Schuster, 1988, with Bud Shrake * ''The Facts of Life and Other Dirty Jokes'', Random House, 2002 * ''Farm Aid: A Song for America'', Rodale Books, foreword by Willie Nelson, 2005 * ''The Tao of Willie: A Guide to the Happiness in Your Heart'', Gotham, 2006, with Turk Pipkin * ''On the Clean Road Again: Biodiesel and the Future of the Family Farm'', Fulcrum Publishing, 2007 * ''A Tale Out of Luck'' (a novel), Center Street, 2008, with Mike Blakely * ''Roll Me Up and Smoke Me When I Die: Musings From the Road'', William Morrow, foreword by Kinky Friedman, 2012 * ''It's a Long Story: My Life'', Little, Brown and Company, 2015 with David Ritz * ''Pretty Paper'', Penguin Random House, 2016 with David Ritz * ''Willie Nelson's Letters to America'', HarperCollins, 2021 with Turk Pipkin * ''Me and Sister Bobbie: True Tales of the Family Band'', Penguin Random House, 2021 with Bobbie Nelson and David Ritz * ''Sister, Brother, Family: An American Childhood in Music'', Penguin Random House, 2021 with Bobbie Nelson and Chris Barton * ''Me And Paul: Untold Stories of a Fabled Friendship'', HarperCollins, 2022 with David Ritz * ''Energy Follows Thought: The Stories Behind My Songs'', HarperCollins, 2023 with Mickey Raphael and David Ritz

References

Sources

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External links

* * [ Willie Nelson] at AllMusic *
Willie Nelson Interview with reporter Jim Ruddy about "A Horse Called Music" in 1989
from Texas Archive of the Moving Image.
Willie Nelson performs with Dallas Symphony Orchestra
1989 from Texas Archive of the Moving Image {{DEFAULTSORT:Nelson, Willie Willie Nelson, 1933 births Living people 20th-century American guitarists 20th-century American male actors 20th-century American singer-songwriters 20th-century American writers 21st-century American male actors 21st-century American singer-songwriters 21st-century American writers Activists from Hawaii Activists from Texas American alternative country musicians American anti–Iraq War activists American cannabis activists American country guitarists American country singer-songwriters American environmentalists American LGBTQ rights activists American male guitarists American male singer-songwriters American male writers American male taekwondo practitioners American reggae musicians Baylor University alumni Blue Note Records artists Businesspeople in the cannabis industry Challenge Records artists Columbia Records artists Country Music Hall of Fame inductees Country musicians from Texas Gershwin Prize recipients Gold Star Records artists Grammy Award winners Grammy Legend Award winners Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award winners Grand Ole Opry members Guitarists from Hawaii Guitarists from Texas Hawaii Democrats Kennedy Center honorees Liberalism in the United States Liberty Records artists Lost Highway Records artists Male actors from Texas Military personnel from Texas Musicians from Austin, Texas Outlaw country singers American political music artists Progressive country musicians People from Hill County, Texas People from Maui RCA Victor artists Singer-songwriters from Hawaii Singer-songwriters from Texas Texas Democrats The Highwaymen (country supergroup) members Third Man Records artists United States Air Force airmen Writers from Austin, Texas

Early life and education

Music career

Beginnings (1956–1971)

Outlaw country and success (1972–1989)

Later career (1990s–2000s)

2010s

2020s

Other ventures

Music style

Guitars

Political views and activism

Personal life

Legal issues

Issues with the Internal Revenue Service

Legacy

Discography

Filmography

Bibliography

See also

References

Sources

Further reading

External links