Apr 28
I will be away from my laptop today because I’m “sick” but really because my sister’s in town and we’re heading to the “spa.” (Don’t tell Evan, he’ll be all, “You’re fired.”) I don’t know how many of you have seen THIS MONTH’S TEXAS MONTHLY but it’s a special Willie Nelson 75th Birthday issue and, wouldn’t you know it, we have an EXTRA SPECIAL Willie Nelson 75th Birthday section on texasmonthly.com. Even if you’re not a huge Willie fan, you should check it out because my salary is directly tied to the number of hits on the site.
Also, the current issue is totally open this month to non-subscribers because I’m trying to convince my bosses that no one charges for content online anymore and locking features down is un-American and goes against every editorial fiber in my body. So if this little experiment of mine doesn’t work out, they will never, ever listen to me ever again.
It’s actually pretty awesome. Mike Hall did a great job and we took some of his recorded interviews from the story and put the podcasts online. There’s one story from Robert Redford and I was all excited and asked Mike if he had Redford’s number and he was like, I’m not giving that to you, and I was like, why must you stand in the way of my happiness.
My Willie Nelson story: When we were little, my dad came home one night with two albums with this scary looking man on the cover. He told us he had invested in this country singer from *gasp* TEXAS and that we were going to make millions of dollars. He made us listen to these records non-stop until the IRS caught up with Willie and we lost our college funds.
Happy. Birthday. Willie.
The trackback URL is here.
I’ll tell all three people I know to go check it out.
As Bruce Robinson would say,
What would Willie do, when it’s all gone wrong
The answer’s in the words of a sad country song
When you don’t know how to get through
You better ask yourself, “What would Willie do?”
Re: 2. treehugger
Smoke em if you got em.
I was just having a convo (as the kids are calling them these days) with a friend regarding how Willie deserved to have a statue on Town Lake, a la, Stevie Ray Vaughan. I love that SRV is memorialized there, because he is my hero, but I also think that Willie has had just as strong of an influence on the town as anyone else. Why not make a tribute to Willie now, instead of a memorial later?
Now that I am a property owner (read: squatting in an East Austin gentrification project until the real owners move in) and growing roots in this town, I think I’m going to spearhead this project. I’ll start by asking for contributions from all of you. I think anyone with “editor,” “online” and/or “Texas Monthly” in their job title should chip in at the $2500 level, and anyone with “aide” and “legislative” should chip in at the 25-cent level.
Anyone else want to get in on this?
Good idea. I’d also like them to rename the length of I35 “The Road.”
Re: 5.whiskeydent
If we do that, can we rename (again) Lady Bird Lake “Whiskey River”?
PL–The Texas Monthly article on Willie is excellent and that’s a classic cover photo. Well done, TM.
Anything you can do about the ridiculous number of paper inserts included within each monthly issue? Not that the eight to ten subscription cards pasted in each magazine don’t make great coffee table coasters, but, come on, enough is enough.
Re: 6. Chilicook
I agree. I didn’t read a word of it, but I clicked on all the links to get the hitcount up. I like the picture.
/You should have titled the post, “Look At My Willie”
//Happy Birthday Willie! You are the man.
It looks like he’s missing a finger in that photo.
Re: 9. Pinkie Swear
And a thumb, too.
Happy Birthday, Willie!
Why is there no Willie statue at the lake?
Re: 11. treehugger
He ain’t dead yet? And if that’s the reason, I hope it’s a long damn time before he gets one.
Re: 12. poindexter
I’m not familiar with statue protocol, but if it requires death, then I can wait a while too. So, if Lady Bird gets a lake named for her, what does Willie get?
Re: 4. LegeBoy
First street should be named after Willie, as i said back when we renamed it for some Caliifornicator
Re: 6. Goldeneye
yes
Re: 7. Chilicook
good for paper cuts too.
Re: 6. Goldeneye
Whiskey River, though associated with Willie, was written by Johnny Bush.
Maybe Austin could have a Trigger street, named after his guitar. That would be keeping it weird. Or better yet, a song; rename 6th street to “Crazy.”
Re: 14 potted meat
We’ve got a similar problem in Leander-Cedar Park with Parmer becoming Ronald Reagan n of 1431.
Re: 17. treehugger
10-4 on johnny bush.
the idea of 6th street being ‘crazy’, id great, although ‘the nite life’ is good too.
statues:
Astros have Bagwell and Biggo putside MMP, and it’s been gher for years, while they wer not only alive, but still active players
Re: 19. potted meat
Good point re: baseball….or even sports…I don’t know but I bet there’s a statue of Darryl Royal at UT somewheres.
I have many Willie interactions. But my all-time fave is still when, as a mere fan, I went to many nites of him playing all week at the place that is now the County Line on 2222…..
I saw Shel Silverstein drop Willies, guitar, Johnny Paycheck spend 3 songs trying to sit in, and never figuring what key the band was in…and went to my car one nite with my date to take a couple of swigs off a good bottle of Mescal, worm and all……and
When I came back in, I yelled out “Have to be Crazy” wanting to here the great S Fromholtz song done by the master……
Of course, lots of people were yelling out requests, as usual, but Willie stopped everyone, and looked at me, and said, “what do you want to hear?…..
I said “l’d Have to be Crazy”, and Willie very seriously looked at me and said….”We just played that”………. Brought down the house, but my date loved it and the Mescal eased the pain.
Boy I got a lot more, but must have beer and not typing.
Re: 20. treehugger
Somewheres? Must be some rural WTX leaking out.
Re: 17. treehugger
ronald r…….gross.