Willie Nelson
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“That is why we’re here today,” the pastor said. “God is doing a new thing here today in Abbott, Texas. These words were written for a group that had been in exile, a larger number who had dwindled down to a few, a remnant that had faith in God.”
When it was Willie’s turn, he brought it all back home and witnessed like he rarely did when he was the star of the Willie Nelson Show. “Sister Bobbie and I have been going to this church ever since we were born,” he said to the gathering. “I don’t know what persuasion y’all were when you entered this door, but now you’re all members of the Abbott Methodist Church and will be, forever and ever. We’re starting a Department of Peace here in Abbott; we’ve got departments of war everywhere, so go forth and spread the peace.”
Holding a lyric sheet, he sang “Precious Memories” as Bobbie played piano and Leon Russell, tucked away in a corner, ever enigmatic with white hair, gray-and-black jacket, black Hawaiian shirt, and dark sunglasses, played chords on a small Yamaha. Willie didn’t need a lyric sheet to forcefully sing the next song with the opening line, “There’s a family Bible on the table, its pages worn and hard to read...”
Willie introduced a preacher friend from up near Dallas, Dave Rich, who told a story about Willie writing “It’s Not for Me to Understand” back in the mid-1960s. Upon hearing the demo Rich had recorded of the song, Willie jumped from behind a desk and started beating the floor, saying to Pete Drake, “I don’t care if I never get another song recorded, I’m satisfied now.” The song of acceptance and redemption became part of the Yesterday’s Wine song cycle.
He sang “What Happened to Peace on Earth?” solo, then was joined by Paul and Billy and Mickey and Bee for some up-tempo gospel with “Will the Circle Be Unbroken?” and “I’ll Fly Away.”
Daughter Susie Nelson read the closing statement from the Abbott United Methodist Church congregation, affirming “the end of an era is the beginning of another” and that a church is not “a place or building, but the people of God.”
“That’s where we all are today. Thank you for coming out and visiting with us today,” Willie said, leading into “Amazing Grace,” accompanied by piano, harmonica, and the whir of locusts in full summer song and the low rumble of five buses idling, punctuated by an occasional warning whistle from a Katy freight train passing through.
The service was captured by television cameras and microphones for the RFD cable television channel, local stations in Dallas–Fort Worth and Waco, and for KHBR 1560, “Radio for Your Hometown,” the station where Willie Nelson first performed on the radio.
Outside town along Trlica Road, an expansive blue Texas sky laced with puffy clouds lorded over a landscape in full summer glory, with thickets of trees along property lines, clustered around houses, and in groves lining creek and river bottoms, wearing their richest greens. What little corn, wheat, and sorghum remained in the fields had dried up and withered, but tiny white cotton bolls were beginning to emerge on the cotton plants. Giant sunflowers dappled stretches of the rolling countryside with splotches of bright yellow.
The good, God-fearing church people along with other town citizens pressed up close to Honeysuckle Rose IV, trying to peer through the tinted windows of the touring bus belonging to the local boy made good, alongside representatives of the sheriff’s department and fire department who were keeping the street clear. They all appeared to be oblivious to the putrid skunk aroma wafting out of the bus—the telltale sign that someone was burning Willie Weed on this fine Sunday morning. The firemen and the sheriff’s deputies were too busy cheering the little man emerging from the church to mind the odor.
Instamatics, 35-mm film, and digital and cell phone cameras were held high in the air, all aimed at the man slowly making his way into the throng of the faithful who were crowding the twenty-yard path from church door to bus. A noble among his flock, he was one of them. He set off a round of cheers by simply signing the guitar that had been passed over heads in his direction, and another round as he sent it back over the sea of hands to its owner.
That Sunday morning, Abbott looked, sounded, and smelled liked Texas. The gathering attracted all shapes, sizes, and colors, an estuary of humanity where the sacred mingled with the profane, ebbing and flowing around a solitary man, a Texan’s Texan.
Willie Hugh Nelson was living in the moment, “the only time,” he said, “I can do anything about.”
He had done what he’d set out to do. “I think I’ve about covered it,” he said with satisfaction. And he was on to the next.
AUTHOR’S NOTE
The realization that Texans are different from everybody else hit me about an hour after I’d first set foot on Texas soil. I was only two years old, but I distinctly remember my father picking up my mother, my sister, and me at the Greater Fort Worth International Airport and driving us to our new home in Fort Worth, stopping along the way at the Big Apple Barbecue on Highway 183. The waitresses talked funny, and the smoked beef brisket covered in barbecue sauce that we were served tasted like nothing I’d experienced. It was familiar and strange and exotic all at once. Even as the hot spices set fire to my lips and scorched the inside of my mouth, I immediately wanted more.
I’ve been trying to figure out Texas and Texans ever since. Fifty-two years later, I realized the answer had been right in front of me for most of my life. I first encountered the smiling friendly face as a black-and-white image flickering on Channel 11, singing songs live from Panther Hall on The Cowtown Jamboree and on The Ernest Tubb Show in a voice that could have come only from Texas. I grew familiar with the voice by listening to KCUL, the country and western radio station, although versions of “Hello Walls” and “Crazy” sung by other people were Top 40 hits in Fort Worth. The first interview was in Austin in 1973 for Zoo World magazine. After thirty-five years of writing about him and many others, I can now safely say that no single public person living in the twentieth or twenty-first century defines Texas or Texans better than Willie Hugh Nelson.
Texans by nature are independent, freethinking, open, outgoing, and friendly. Iconoclasts, they respect tradition but are not beholden to it. Whether it’s God or sin, they tend to embrace excess. The good ones have a whole lot of heart. They are creatures of geography and exude a sense of place in an increasingly homogenized world. They reflect the climate and sometimes are a little crazy from the heat. They are wanderers and explorers, keen to improvise, curious enough to go places they shouldn’t. They are loud and boisterous when they need to be. They seem to go out of their way to make friends with strangers. They are great storytellers and some of the most distinctive music makers on earth. You know Texas music when you hear it, just like you know Willie’s music.
A certain Red Headed Stranger was once said to say, “Don’t let the truth get in the way of a good story.” I tried my best to ignore that sage advice once I took on this project. On the back side, all I can say is that getting all the facts straight while piecing together the history of a culture once considered too low, too sordid, and too wild to be worth documenting in print was no sure thing. Many characters were too busy living life to the fullest, sometimes under the influence, and sometimes living proof of the adage “If you can remember the sixties, you weren’t there.” Others took their stories with them when they passed. Then there were those who were inclined to con for the pure sport of it.
Fortunately, my subject was accommodating and open—exactly the person I’ve always known him to be. He’s the story. I’m just the teller.
In that spirit, my special thanks to Willie Hugh and his family for opening their lives to me; my wife, Kris, and sons, Jake and Andy, for their support and for putting up with me; my sister, Christina Patoski, especially for the stash of Country Song Roundups and other vintage publications; Margaret Patoski for being the mother she is; and Lindy Barger and Johnny Reno for the all-star honkalicious support.
I thank my editor, John Parsley, my agent, Jim Fitzgerald, my copyeditor, Pamela Marshall, and my publisher, Mich
ael Pietsch (don’t give up your day job), for making this book happen; my assistants, Sarah McNeely and Joel Minor, for the support, heavy lifting, feedback, and safety net; photo editor Kathy Marcus for the images; Joe “King” Carrasco and the Crowns and Alejandro Escovedo and the True Believers for the on-the-job training; Nick Tosches for the sage advice; and Bill Crawford for the help, advice, and the Opry passes.
Many thanks to Mark Rothbaum; Miss Bobbie Lee Nelson; Lana Nelson; Connie Nelson; Annie Nelson; Freddy Fletcher; Paul, Billy, and Oliver English; Sibyl Neely; Evelyn Flood; Paula Carlene Nelson; Shirley Nelson; Gates and Pamela Moore; David E. Anderson; the fine citizens of Abbott, Texas, and Hill County; the volunteers at the Abbott Methodist Church, especially Donald Reed, Joyce Clements Reed, Jackie Clements, and Faye Dell Clements; Morris Russell; Jimmy Graves; Laurie Nichols Carrell; Mickey Raphael; Jody Payne; Flaco Lemons; Steve Davis and Connie Todd at the Southwestern Writers Collection at Texas State University, San Marcos, Texas; Bud Shrake; Tim O’Connor; Tim Hamblin and the Austin History Center; Jhon Case; Charlie Owens; Casey James Monahan and the governor’s Texas Music Office; Elaine Shock and Shock, Inc.; Jurgen Koop and Rich Kienzle and Bear Family Records for the scholarship; Douglas Hanners and the Austin Record Convention; Lynda and Johnny Bush; Rick Crow; Kevin Connor; Billy Cooper; Poodie Locke and Poodie’s Hilltop Bar & Grill; Brenda Colladay at the Grand Ole Opry archives; George Hamilton IV and George Hamilton V; John Lomax III; Buddy Prewitt Jr.; Linda Banks; Kenny Koepke; Tunin’ Tom Hawkins; Billy Joe Shaver; Ray Benson; Jim Haber; Floyd Domino; Billy Cooper; Tracy Pitcox of the Heart of Texas Country Music Museum in Brady, Texas; Darrell and Mona McCall; Jeannie Seely; Hank Cochran; Aaron Allen and the fine folks at KCTI, Gonzales, Texas; Bill Mack, Cindy Mack, Truman, and the Open Road gang on XM Satellite Radio; Eddie Stubbs; Cowboy Jack Clement; Eddie Kilroy of Willie’s Place on XM Satellite Radio; Freddy Powers; Sammy Allred at KVET-FM; Kevin Connor and Music & Entertainment Television, Austin, Texas; Jody Denberg and other friends at KGSR-FM, Austin, Texas; Coach Darrell K and Edith Royal; Larry and Pat Butler; Ronald Greer; Jerry Bradley; Herky Williams; Nick Hunter; Al Bianculli; Evelyn Shriver; Susan Nadler and Bandit Records; Kissy Black; Martha Moore; Susan Levy; Chet Flippo and CMT; Peter Blackstock; Grant Alden and the fine folks at No Depression magazine; Jerry Retzloff; Les Leverett; Jimmy Moore; Jimmy C. Newman; Joe Gracey and Kimmie Rhodes; Bob Hedderman; Edwin O. Wilson; Jim Franklin; Micael Priest; Mike Tolleson; Cleve Hattersley; Kinky Friedman; Dave Rich; Bruce Lundvall; Tamara Saviano; John Kunz; John T. Davis; Steve Wynn; Alicia Villegas; Sylvie Simmons; Terri Minnick; Ed Melton; Tim and Andra Shepard; Roland Swenson, and Louis Black; Nick Barbaro and the Austin Chronicle and South by Southwest; Ed Ward; Jake Bernstein and the Texas Observer; Greg Curtis and Texas Monthly magazine; Robert Macias; Randy Brudnicki, Louie Bond, and Charles Lohrmann and Texas Parks & Wildlife magazine; Stoney Burns and Buddy magazine; Kirby Warnock; Mark Shimmel; Diann Bayes and the Hillsboro Chamber of Commerce; Ronnie Pugh and the Nashville Public Library; John Rumble and the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum; Clark County Public Library, Washington; Oregon Historical Association; Searcy County Library, Arkansas; Bruce Tabb, special collections librarian, University of Oregon Library; Craig Adams and the Portland Radio Guide; Ed Dailey; Gene Breeden; Rick Crow; Herb Steiner; Mary Buelow; Fort Vancouver Regional Library District, Washington; Tom Kellam and the Fort Worth Public Library, Texas; Lee Woodward; Lawton Williams; Clark County Historical Museum, Washington; Max Hall; Bobby Gibson; Leon Smith; Stephen Bruton; Sumter Bruton; Gene Kelton; John Young of the Waco Tribune-Herald; Beverly Moore; Bobby Earl Smith; Frank and Jeanie Oakley and the Willie Nelson General Store; Tracee Crump; Larry Gieschen, periodicals librarian, Texas State University; James Luther and Mary Lindsay Dickinson; George J. Emmel; Ed Enoch; Gary Burton; Booker T. Jones; Owen McFadden and the BBC; Carlyn Majer; Jack Kinslow; Logan Rogers; Phil York; Kandy Kicker; Carolyn Emanuel; Alison Beck; Jimmy Herrington; David Bartlett; Randy Meadows; Mark Fields; Ernie and Tracey Renn; Johnny Hughes; David Dennard; Gordon Perry; Bud Kennedy; Bob Bruton; Martha Moore; Curtis Potter; Felix Rejcek; Charlie Ryan; Fran Weatherholt; Wendy Goldstein; Delbert McClinton; Mel Tillis; Claude Gray; Bobby Bare; Leona Williams; Gerald Wexler; Luke Lewis; Lost Highway Records; and all the other good people who helped make this possible.
NOTES
Somewhere in America
Information taken from field notes.
Abbott
INTERVIEWS
Bobbie Nelson, Willie Nelson
ORAL HISTORIES
Wilcox, Mildred Turney. Oral history. Edwin (Bud) Shrake Papers. San Marcos, TX: Southwestern Writers Collection.
BOOKS
Nelson, Willie, with Bud Shrake. Willie: An Autobiography. New York: Simon and Schuster, 1988.
WEB SITES
Willienelson.com
East of Western Grove on Pindall Ridge
INTERVIEWS
Laurie Nichols Carrell, Evelyn M. Flood, Jeff Henthorne, Sibyl Neely, Irene Nichols Young
ORAL HISTORIES
Wilcox, Mildred Turney. Oral history. Edwin (Bud) Shrake Papers. San Marcos, TX: Southwestern Writers Collection.
Young, Sybil Greenhaw. Oral history. Edwin (Bud) Shrake Papers. San Marcos, TX: Southwestern Writers Collection.
BOOKS
Boone County Historical and Railroad Society. History of Boone County. Narrative by Roger V. Logan Jr. Turner, ME: Turner Publishing, 1998.
Grayson, Lisa. A Beginner’s Guide to Shape-Note Singing. Chicago: Chicago Sacred Harp Singers, 2001.
Handbook of Texas. Austin: Texas State Historical Association, 2007.
Harrell, Mary Frances, ed. History and Folklore of Searcy County, Arkansas. Harrison, AR: New Leaf Press, 1977.
Lackey, Walter F. History of Newton County. Salem, MA: Higginson Books, 1984.
Lair, Jim, and the Carroll County Historical and Genealogical Society. Carroll County Families: These Were the First. Dallas: Taylor Publishing, 1991.
Niswonger, Thomas, ed. Newton County Family History Vol. 2. Jasper, AR: Newton County Historical Society, 1999.
Turney-McMindes, Helen Cavaness. Marion County Arkansas in 1890. Ozark, MO: Dogwood Printing, 1992.
ADDITIONAL SOURCES
Holcomb, George. Harrison Daily Times, Harrison, AR.
McMurrin, Kathleen. Boone County genealogist, Boone County, AR.
Miller, Jim. Boone County Library, Harrison, AR.
Newton County Historical Society, Jasper, AR.
Sacred Harp Singing. Anniston, AL: Sacred Harp Musical Heritage Association.
“Sacred Harp Singing in Texas,” TexasFaSoLa.org.
Smith, Marilyn. Boone County Museum, Harrison, AR.
Steel, Warren. University of Mississippi, Oxford, MS.
Whyte, Geraldine. Searcy County Library, Marshall, AR.
WEB SITES
Freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.com/~rkinfolks/ (Rkinfolks)
Stillisstillmoving.com
Willienelson.com
Abbott
INTERVIEWS
Faye Dell Clements, Jackie Clements, Jimmy Graves, James (Slim) Hand, Marie Urbanovsky Kershen, Helen Urbanovsky Lenart, Donald Reed, Joyce Clements Reed, Felix Rejcek, Morris Russell, Jerry Frank Ruzicka, Leo Ruzicka, Fran Weatherholt
ORAL HISTORIES
Nelson, Willie. Oral history. American Routes radio program. New Orleans: American Public Media, November 29, 2000.
Shelton, W. B. Oral history. Edwin (Bud) Shrake Papers. San Marcos, TX: Southwestern Writers Collection.
Varnon, Zeke. Oral history. Edwin (Bud) Shrake Papers. San Marcos, TX: Southwestern Writers Collection.
Wilcox, Mildred Turney. Oral history. Edwin (Bud) Shrake Papers. San Marcos, TX: Southwestern Writers Collection.
Young, Sybil Greenhaw. Oral history. Edwin (Bud) Shrake Papers. San Marcos, TX: Southwestern Writers Collection.
BOOKS
Abbott Centennial Planning Committee. Abbott, Texas, 1881–1981: A History.
Belton, TX: Centex Press, 1981.
Bailey, Ellis. A History of Hill County, 1863–1965. Waco, TX: Texian Press, 1966.
Cooper, Daniel. Lefty Frizzell: The Honky-tonk Life of Country Music’s Greatest Singer. New York: Little, Brown, 1995.
George-Warren, Holly. Public Cowboy No. 1: The Life and Times of Gene Autry. New York: Oxford University Press, 2007.
Handbook of Texas. Austin: Texas State Historical Association, 2007.
Hillbilly Hit Parade of 1951. New York: Peer International.
Hillsboro Con Survey City Directory. Chillicothe, OH: Mullin-Kille Company, 1948.
Morrison and Fourmey’s Waco City Directory, 1951.
Nelson, Willie. Willie Nelson: The Facts of Life and Other Dirty Jokes. New York: Random House, 2002.
Nelson, Willie, with Bud Shrake. Willie: An Autobiography. New York: Simon and Schuster, 1988.
Nelson, Willie, with Turk Pipkin. The Tao of Willie: A Guide to Happiness in Your Heart. New York: Gotham, 2006.
Pugh, Ronnie. Ernest Tubb: The Texas Troubadour. Durham, NC: Duke University Press, 1996.
Texas Almanac. Dallas: Dallas Morning News, 2005.
Willie Nelson Family Album. Compiled by Lana Nelson. Amarillo, TX: H. M. Poirot & Company, 1980.
ARTICLES
Nelson, Susie. “Old-time Religion Was Genesis of Nelson’s Love for Music.” Dallas Times Herald, August 25, 1987.
ADDITIONAL SOURCES
Hill County Genealogical Society, Hillsboro, TX.
Hill County Library, Hillsboro, TX.
Kienzle, Rich. Liner notes. From Legends of Country Music: Bob Wills and His Texas Playboys. Sony Legacy, 2006.
McFadden, Owen. “Outlaw: The Willie Nelson Story.” Broadcast on BBC2, London, November 14, 21, and 28, and December 5, 2006.
McLennan County Library, Waco, TX.
Nelson, Willie. Willie Nelson songbook. Texas Music Archives, San Marcos, TX: Southwestern Writers Collection.