Willie Nelson - The Essential Willie Nelson

With 41 tracks drawn from nine record labels, the two-disc Essential Willie Nelson is impressive in its breadth. Disc one is simply superb; it begins with 1961's "Night Life," recorded for the obscure Bellaire label, and moves on to several of Nelson's early 1960s Liberty recordings, an overlooked gem recorded for Monument in 1964 ("I Never Cared for You"), a cherry-picked selection of his RCA and Atlantic sides, and finally his mid-1970s hits for Columbia (where he found his greatest chart success, beginning, in 1975, with the No. 1 single "Blue Eyes Crying in the Rain"). Disc two, however, is hit-or-miss. Classics like "On the Road Again," "Pancho & Lefty," and "Nothing I Can Do About It Now" are offset by such lesser material as "To All The Girls I've Loved Before" (recorded with Latin pop star Julio Iglesias), the phoned-in "City of New Orleans," and the sounds-better-on-paper "Highwayman" collaboration with Johnny Cash, Kris Kristofferson, and Waylon Jennings. (Just because they all made it to No. 1 doesn't make them "essential.") Nelson's two best albums of the 1990s, Across the Borderline and Teatro, are represented by a paltry two songs. The disc ends with collaborations with U2, Lee Ann Womack, and Steven Tyler and Aerosmith (the previously unreleased "One Time Too Many"). None is particularly worthy of a best-of collection. Still, while it doesn't quite live up to its billing, the Essential Willie Nelson offers an excellent career overview of one of country music's true legends. --David Hill Amazon.com

Great CD!!!

This is a great CD with lots of different music! Willie is always good but the combination with other artists and older and newer songs makes this CD special. There was stuff we hadn't heard before!
July 12, 2008

Surprisingly Good

This was a gift for my wife, and since I live with her and occasionally drive in the van with her, I have heard this CD several times. I would not call myself a big Willie Nelson fan, but I have come to appreciate his music, thanks to my wife. There are 2 CD's loaded with songs, and at the current price it is a steal. if you buy this CD you will not be disappointed....unless you hate country music. June 10, 2008

Gotta Love Willy!

Loved this set. The second cd in this set is a compilation of Willie's duets. It's excellent! This one cd is worth the price of the set! February 27, 2008

Great, complete collection of Willie

Not only does this include every song he recorded that I had been looking for, the paper insert details so much background info. The voice is unique, the man is unique, and I couldn't be more pleased with the choices of songs put into this one collection. Highly recommended. January 12, 2008

THE TAO...ERR...WOW OF WILLIE

This 41-track collection is another remarkable capsule of one of the most prolific entertainers in country and pop music. The arrangers over @ Columbia faced an insurmountable task of summarizing nearly 40 years of albums and productions that would adequately showcase the multifaceted talent of Willie Nelson. After rising to the challenge, they succeeded with an excellent Essential assortment.

By chronologically sequencing the recordings, both studio and live, that were regarded as essential in the development of Nelson the immortalized, country music outlaw, the producers were able to reveal the many personalities and vocal arrangements that made Willie a wonderful, all-around entertainer. Among the tunes are Crazy, Georgia on My Mind, Blue Skies, and Pancho & Lefty. Many co-performers alongside Willie also appear; among them are Leon Russell, Ray Price, Merle Haggard, Ray Charles, Waylon Jennings, and, strangely enough, Aerosmith.

For those who are primarily interested in only the FM radio hits, the collection has: Blue Eyes Crying in the Rain (US Pop #21), Good Hearted Woman (US Pop #25), Georgia on My Mind (US Pop #84), Mammas Don't Let Your Babies Grow up to Be Cowboys (US Pop #42), My Heroes Have Always Been Cowboys (US Pop #44), On the Road Again (US Pop #20), Always on My Mind (US Pop #5), and To All the Girls I've Loved Before (w/Julio Iglesias)(US Pop #5)

This is a very nice collection that spans over four decades of country music. The once-Red Headed Stranger has taken on many forms with his music, and thanks to him, we have several different forms of Country genre. Country folk? Check. Country gospel? Check. Outlaw country? Check,check.

For those who want to build a Country music collection, if you need to determine just what style and/or era will be to your liking, then this is a definite must-have, for it will answer many of your questions.
December 27, 2007

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