An album review of
Willie Nelson’s 70 studio album
BY: PAUL LESLIE
BY: PAUL LESLIE
Whether we’re in the good times or the world is on fire, the only sure thing is that Willie Nelson will release a new album. He’s been doing so year after year since his debut as a recording artist in 1962. There’ve only been a couple of years where there was no new Willie Nelson record. However, in several years there were multiple Willie Nelson records.
As a recording artist, the great volume of Willie’s output is only matched by the quality. We think of 20/20 as being perfect vision. Looking clearly at the year 2020, I find myself wanting to close my eyes more than keeping them open. But I get by with a little help from my friends.
Speaking of which, my good friend Jeff Pike got on the horn to talk about music reviews. He told me, “You can’t give every album a great review, not everyone’s album is perfect.” I replied, “Yes, unless you’re Willie Nelson.” Jeff answered “Well, true.”
This phone call with Jeff is what inspired this review of Willie Nelson’s 70th album entitled “The First Rose of Spring,” produced by Buddy Cannon. Buddy has been credited as record producer of almost every single Willie Nelson release since the 2012 album “Heroes,”
I’ll be expressing what struck me about Willie Nelson’s 70th album.
The First Rose of Spring
The album starts in the soul, which is where Willie’s music lives. The title track, “The First Rose of Spring” tells a mournful story. We think of roses for their beauty, but so often what is beautiful devastates us the most. Willie’s voice has always been suited for the bittersweet. This song written by Nashville heavyweights Allen Shamblin, Randy Houser and Marc Beeson lets you know that this is going to be an album true to country music’s most important component: hard-hitting emotional lyrics.
Blue Star
“Blue Star,” is the second song on the album, which Willie co-wrote with Buddy Cannon. Sonically, this track is great. The steel guitar gives it a nostalgic quality, but it also seems very youthful, hopeful and idealistic. It’s a soothing track and one of the real highlights on the album. It grabbed me instantly.
Don’t Let the Old Man In
Willie Nelson is not old. Despite being 87, I have never thought of him as an old man. I’m betting this is the case for a lot of you. He’s timeless, and“time” is a constant theme in the songs he writes and those he chooses to cover. On the last album “Ride Me Back Home,” he even called time his friend on the brilliant song “Come on Time.”
Growing old and time is the subject of “Don’t Let the Old Man In” written by Toby Keith. Toby wrote it after having a conversation with director Clint Eastwood. Clint’s sage advice inspired this song.
Sometimes worlds collide and in this case, Toby Keith, Clint Eastwood and Willie Nelson came together. One moment in time: a simple conversation is immortalized in song. This is the magic and gift that is songwriting and storytelling.
I’ll Break Out Again Tonight
Willie Nelson continues to be one of the few recording artists keeping traditional country music alive by recording old songs, right along new songs. In Willie’s hands, they go perfectly together, but for lovers of the classics, listen to “I’ll Break Out Again Tonight” written by the late Whitey Shafer. This could only be described as a real country song. Originally recorded by Merle Haggard and Darrell McCall, Willie sounded great singing it.
Just Bummin’ Around
“Just Bummin’ Around” was written by the late Pete Graves. It was a hit for Jimmy Dean back in the 50s and a few of the crooners also did it: Dean Martin, Perry Como and Bobby Darin. How many songs has Willie Nelson recorded? 600 or 700? Maybe more?He’s recorded just about all of the country classics and many standards from the Great American Songbook as well.
In Willie’s hands, you’ve never been more envious of a man who proclaims that he doesn’t have a dime. There is no jazz, pop or country song that Willie cannot sing.
Our Song
Following “Just Bummin’ Around” is “Our Song” written by Chris Stapleton and I must admit it felt like a strange transition, like the sequence of the tracks was off.
Stapleton is a country artist destined for legendary status. A longtime admirer who has called Nelson an influence, Stapleton has said that this was one of the biggest honors of his life. “Our Song,” is the beautiful love ballad on “The First Rose of Spring.”
Stealing Home
Two years ago, I found myself standing outside of a house I grew up in. The garden my father had sweated for was overgrown with weeds and wild shrubs. I peeked into one of the windows and could tell nobody had been inside for years. I regretted seeing this abandoned place.
This is the image that flooded into my mind hearing “Stealing Home,” written by Marla Cannon-Goodman, Casey Beathard, and Don Sampson. Anyone who says there aren’t any great country songs being written these days needs only to listen to this. This one really captures the heart aching human experience of seeing something as it is and not as it was. “Stealling Home” is a knockout. It’s my pick for the best song on the album.
We Are the Cowboys
“We Are the Cowboys,” is a song written by Billy Joe Shaver. Willie and Billy Joe are some of the last of their kind, along with Bobby Bare. Listen to these lyrics: “Cowboys are average American people. Texicans, Mexicans, black men and Jews. They love this old world and they don’t want to lose it. They’re counting on me and they’re counting on you.”
Billy Joe Shaver is one of those writers who can help you completely understand a person you’ve never met. I think America needs more cowboys.
I’m the Only Hell My Mama Ever Raised
“I’m the Only Hell My Mama Ever Raised,” is a song heavily associated with Johnny Paycheck. It was originally released by one of the co-writers Mack Vickery under his stage name Atlanta James. Willie Nelson’s version is great, and somehow he manages to seem more mischievous than devious, even when robbing a liquor store.
Yesterday When I Was Young
One of the things Willie does best is singing the evergreens. His album “Stardust” is one of the premiere collections of standards ever recorded, and “The First Rose of Spring” closes with an international classic. “Yesterday When I Was Young” written by Charles Aznavour, originally recorded in French. It’s a heavy song and everyone from Bing Crosby to Julio Iglesias has interpreted it. Roy Clark probably did the most famous version in English. Willie’s interpretation on this album is now my favorite interpretation of the song.
“Yesterday When I Was Young” is sad, but hauntingly beautiful. The lyrics are angst ridden and perfectly reflective of the music. Willie’s emotional delivery really made me focus on the lyrics more than any version I’ve heard of “Yesterday When I Was Young.”
Time hasn’t stopped Willie from being one of a kind
After listening to the album several times through I felt thankful that these songs found their way to Willie. He made them his own. This is why Willie Nelson is one of, if not the most distinctive singer in American music.
No matter what the song is about, his singing is heartfelt. Like Sinatra, you swear he’s singing to you.
I realized “time” is a constant theme on The First Rose of Spring. Men and women obsess over it, and it’s a source of constant inspiration and contemplation for songwriters and poets around the world. For us listeners, it’s something we all go through and cannot stop.
The “First Rose of Spring” can be a very somber album at times. As the album plays from track to track, we’re reminded that “this too shall pass” applies both to the good times and to the bad. In the year 2020, that can be a relief and it can be a sorrowful reminder.
Release Date: July 3, 2020
Label: Legacy
Tracks / Total Length: 11 songs, 41:21
