Willie Nelson The Outlaw

by Thomson, Graeme; Richards, Keith

• ISBN13: 9780753511848
• ISBN10: 0753511843
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2007-05-01
• Publisher: Virgin Books

Summary

With a face that wouldn't look out of place carved into Mount Rushmore, Willie Nelson has done and seen it all. A dope smoking, whisky drinking, latter-day cowboy with Native American blood, four wives, and seven children, Nelson has a career that spans half a century of American music. In this revealing, intimate, and insightful biography, Graeme Thomson goes beyond the myths, talking with Nelson himself, his band, and those who know him best to discover the real Willie Nelson. Nelson's life has been a journey of incredible highs and crashing lows. The armfuls of awards huge record sales, famous friends, and creation of Farm Aid and his annual Fourth of July picnics have been achieved in the shadow of his mother's early desertion, penury, three turbulent marriages, drug busts, drinking, bankruptcy, and his son's suicide. This biography brilliantly describes a complex, compelling man, whose life and music reveal and reflect something fundamental at the very heart of 20th century America, explaining along the way why Willie Nelson is nothing short of a living legend.

Author Biography

Graeme Thomson is the author of Complicated Shadows: The Life and Music of Elvis Costello. He has written for WORD, the Observer, Time Out, MOJO, and the Herald.

Table of Contents

Introduction	p. vii
Happiness	p. 1
1933-1950	p. 4
No Such Thing as an Ex-Wife	p. 18
1950-1957	p. 20
Labour Pains	p. 36
1958-1961	p. 38
Who Gives a Damn?	p. 52
1961-1965	p. 53
Smoking Pot Made It Better	p. 70
1966-1970	p. 72
Where Was I Going to Go?	p. 92
1970-1972	p. 93
Texas Was Always There	p. 109
1972-1973	p. 111
The Outlaw	p. 128
1974-1976	p. 129
You Need Friends	p. 147
1976-1978	p. 149
I Never Listen to the Band	p. 164
1978-1984	p. 166
It Will Have To Be Solved Spiritually	p. 184
1985-1990	p. 186
Bad	p. 204
1990-1992	p. 205
I've Been Out Here So Long	p. 222
1993-1998	p. 224
I Have No Reason To Think About Quitting Anything	p. 240
1999-2005	p. 242
Notes on Sources	p. 261
Biographical Notes	p. 266
Bibliography	p. 269
Acknowledgements	p. 271
Index	p. 273
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