Country music has always produced prolific songwriters and performers, but there aren’t many who can rival the output of Willie Nelson.
With 103 studio albums to his name, not to mention the amount of live, archival and compilation records there are in addition to this, Nelson is perhaps one of the most industrious voices that the world of country music has ever produced, and to this day, he continues to demonstrate that he’s far from finished with adding to this incredible tally.
Admittedly, Nelson has released a number of covers over the years, meaning that not every single song that features on his records is an original song, but that doesn’t diminish the hard work that goes into what he does. You’ve got to have a broad knowledge of the history of the genre, and of songwriting in general, to know what songs there are available to you to be able to cover and do justice to when producing your own interpretation, and Nelson has always had a knack for selecting the right material to suit his own style.
On top of having a formidable solo career, he was a key member of The Highwaymen during the ‘80s and ‘90s; a supergroup that released three albums and also featured Kris Kristofferson, Johnny Cash and Waylon Jennings, three of the other most celebrated country singers of all time. For him to have worked alongside these artists is not just a career highlight that you’re bound to speak highly of, but an opportunity to further develop your craft, learning from some of the greats and continually trading ideas with one another.
During a 1991 interview with New Zealand chat show, The Holmes Show, the group were asked what some of their favourite country songs of all time were, and considering their own status as some the most formidable in their field, their responses were fascinating insights into what had inspired them over the years.
Kristofferson notably picked out a song that Cash had written, ‘Big River’, which his bandmate took as a compliment of the highest order. On top of this, Cash himself picked out ‘I Love You, Because’ by Leon Payne, made famous by Jim Reeves, while Jennings picked ‘Dreaming My Dreams with You’, a track which was written by Allen Reynolds, but famously recorded by him.
However, the finest selection of the lot came courtesy of Nelson, who proclaimed that it was perhaps one of the finest songs to have ever been made. Coming from the earliest years of country music, and released originally in 1949 by one of the genre’s most untouchable voices, Nelson proclaimed: “I think the best song I’ve ever heard, especially a country song, is ‘I’m So Lonesome I Could Cry’. It’s a Hank Williams song. One verse in particular I think is the greatest lines that I’ve ever heard.”
Referring to the final verse of the song, the lyrics read: “The silence of a falling star lights up a purple sky, and as I wonder where you are, I’m so lonesome I could cry.”
These lyrics are typical of the country style, and give good credence to the claim that the genre has always produced some of the most honest and frank lyricism of any genre. While there are plenty of things to praise about the other members’ selections, Nelson’s is perhaps indicative of what it means to have written a truly timeless country song.
