Thanks to Budrock, Willie Nelson & Family’s lighting director for this cool picture:
Circa 1980s; Red headed Stranger on the left (band bus); second from left the Scout (Paul and part of crew); third from left: Warrier (crew bus for sound and lights crew; on the right: the Original Honeysuckle Rose.
See more great photos and read Turk Pipkin’s article in Texas Highways.
Thanks Phil Weisman, for this cool bus photo with Willie.
Thanks, Budrock.
Brandy Clark, Robert Earl Keen and Dwight Yoakam say hello to Willie before the concert in Cape Girardeau.
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Even at 84, Willie Nelson still spends about 150 days a year on the road (again). At the helm of the Honeysuckle Rose, his tour bus, are Gates “Gator” Moore and Tony Sizemore, who’ve split Willie’s driving duties for nearly 40 years. Calling from a hamburger joint in Nebraska, they offered their tips on driving without GPS.
GATES: Don’t be afraid to override the GPS. We did it last night. We’ll go 30 miles out of the way to bypass a city we suspect will have heavy traffic by the time we get there.
TONY: For interstates, generally, north–south routes have odd numbers, growing larger from west to east. East–west routes are even, getting bigger from south to north. That’s not the kind of thing you’re gonna learn from GPS.
TONY: If I know I have to get off on Omaha Street, I study the map for street names just beyond Omaha. That way, if you see ’em fly by, you say, “Oh, I missed it, I have to go back.”
GATES: If you’re lost, keep it to yourself. Act confident, even if you’ve got no idea where you are. Make a couple turns, make a few educated guesses, and more often than not you’ll come out all right. If somebody asks why you’re late, say you rerouted to avoid construction. Either way, you’ll come out smelling like a rose.
TONY: I’ve never been afraid to call ahead. But asking for instructions is an art.
GATES: People say, “Head out on Main.” Which way is out? Or, “Hit 27.” Hit it how? Insist that they be as specific as possible.
TONY: Even with GPS, read the signs. It’s always nice to see “Holiday Inn, Exit 81,” when that’s your Holiday Inn. And if billboards are advertising the city you meant to leave behind, you know you might be headed the wrong way.
When I ask for directions, people want to help. No one asks why I don’t just use my phone.
Thanks, Budrock.
