Archive for the ‘Uncategorized’ Category

New Willie Nelson album, “Border” due in May!

Monday, March 18th, 2024

THe new album will be available on May 31! This album will include 10 newly recorded Willie Nelson studio performances including four new Willie & Buddy Cannon compositions.

You can Pre-order now and listen to the title track here: https://willienelson.komi.io/

Willie Nelson, Luck Reunion Potluck (3/13/24)

Thursday, March 14th, 2024

Thursday, March 14th, 2024

“One by Willie,” by John Sprong; Susan Tedeschi talks about playing in family band

Thursday, March 7th, 2024

www.texasmonthly.com
by: John Sprong

Susan Tedeschi knows family bands. For fourteen years she and her husband, slide guitar virtuoso Derek Trucks, have led the Tedeschi Trucks Band, the Grammy-winning groove-and-blues collective the two formed in 2010, after nearly a decade of sharing bills with their individual bands. Many of those shows also featured Derek’s other group, the Allman Brothers Band, which he’d been playing with since the mid-nineties—and which his uncle, drummer Butch Trucks, had cofounded himself.

But even before meeting Derek, Susan knew the family way was best; after her initial appearance at Farm Aid in 1999, she got tight with Willie and his wife Annie. He took Susan under his wing, giving her and her band spots on his tours, where she saw firsthand the musical and emotional ties that held the Family together. So when she discusses that unique dynamic now, she speaks with lived-it authority, though it’s easy to miss under all the affection

On this week’s episode of One by Willie, she explains all that, focusing on the Willie song that she and Derek most frequently cover, “Somebody Pick Up My Pieces.” It’s a deep cut off his 1998 album with Daniel Lanois, Teatro, and a jumping off point for memories of studying Willie’s songwriting and singing when she was a student at the Berklee College of Music in Boston, as well as the reason she thinks he could have been the blue-collar member of Frank Sinatra’s famous Rat Pack—with meaty cameo appearances by B.B. King, Jessica Simpson, and the Notre-Dame cathedral.

We’ve created an Apple Music playlist for this series that we’ll add to with each episode we publish. And if you like the show, please subscribe and drop us a rating on Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts.

Read entire aritcle and transcript of podcast here.

Thursday, March 7th, 2024

Remembering Willie’s Place

Thursday, March 7th, 2024
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Willie’s Place Theater, at Carl’s Corner, Texas closed in 2011, but will always be one of fan’s favorites place to see Willie Nelson & Family perform.  When the Carl’s Corner truck stop changed hands, the Willie Nelson Theater and Willie Nelson themed truck stop were closed.  It was in operation for about three years, I think, it’s most recent version, anyway.  Truckers, tourists, and Willie Nelson fans loved it.

But the real joy about the place was Willie’s Place theater, and getting to see Willie Nelson and Family perform there.


Willie Nelson, Carl’s Corner, TX (photo by Janis Tillerson)

It was the greatest place;  it had great sound, it was cozy.  There wasn’t a bad seat in the house.  We sat at small tables set pushed up close to the stage, but you could stand at the bar and still make eye contact with Willie.   It was a low stage, and Willie generously spent time after every show talking with fans, signing autographs, hugging people, posing for photos.

Here’s Janis from Texas, hard at work hanging pictures at Carl’s Corner, Texas.  Janis personally framed thousands of pictures of Willie Nelson and Family and Friends and Fans, and hung them on the walls at Willie’s Place Theater.  The photos were sold off the walls when the Truck Stop closed.

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The place was a destination; when Willie did a show there we would all get there as early as we could so we could hang out with friends, eat at the Blue Skies Cafe, wander around and enjoy all the pictures on the wall, and display cases full of memorabilia.

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Janis Tillerson spent the three years Willie’s Place was open gathering pictures from fans, framing them, and hanging them on the wall.  She filled display cases with collections like the Tee-Shirt from the First Farm aid, albums, a miniature Trigger guitar, photos of fans with Willie.

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Willie Nelson fans at Carl’s Corner, Texas, gather before the show.

Willie’s Place, on Sirius/XM Radio, broadcast from it’s studio in the Willie Nelson theater, and if they were on the air you could watch Dallas do his show.

There were three grand openings of Willie’s Place Theater at Carl’s Corner, that I know of.  There might have been more.  One year, there was a stage set up in the parking lot, and Lukas Nelson and 40 Points (his band before Promise of the Real) performed for the fans outside.  Willie surprised everyone by joining Lukas and the band for a few songs, before going inside to do his set with his Family band.   There was a pre fourth of July concert at Carl’s that year, too.    One of the grand openings featured a Barbeque Cook-off,

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The news articles report that Willie Nelson biodiesel plant, located beside the truck stock, is not effected by the foreclosure actions, and will remain in his control, with other partners.

So I’ve been mourning the loss of the theater, but now I just have to smile about the good times we had there and all the great music we heard.   It was one of those moments in time, great memories for those of us lucky to have been there.  So, goodbye; we’re gonna miss you.

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Luck Potluck (3.13.24)

Thursday, February 22nd, 2024

www.LuckPresents.com

SOLD OUT: On the eve of the Luck Reunion, MARCH 13, 2024, we will break bread with a hill country supper in Willie Nelson’s backyard. This year’s dinner event will host a special group of chefs from across the country, including James Beard Award winners, Top Chef contestants, and up-and-coming culinary talents. Attendees will be serenaded by Jason Boland and Jon Muq, capped off with a performance by the legendary Willie Nelson himself.

Potluck benefits the Luck Family Foundation in support of FarmAid, Wholesome Wave, and Texas Food & Wine Alliance.

Make sure to follow Luck Reunion on social media for ticketing and event updates.

Luck Potluck 2024

Monday, February 19th, 2024

Luck Presents: PotLuck 2024 – Heirloom: A Celebration of Roots Wednesday March 13, 2024

The event will benefit the #LuckFamilyFoundation in support of Farm Aid , Wholesome Wave and Texas Food & Wine Alliance

Happy Birthday, Susie Nelson

Saturday, January 20th, 2024


Best wishes to Susie Nelson for a great birthday.

Heartworn Memories” by Susie Nelson

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Heartworn Memories
A daughter’s personal biography of Willie Nelson
by Susie Nelson

“I wouldn’t want anything to change his loyalty. He has an enormous capacity for being loyal and, as a consequence, people are loyal to him. Paul English stuck with Dad through the lean years, selling his rental property and going without pay in order to help Dad follow his dream. His loyalty and consideration for other extends to everyone around him.

He is almost apologetic whenever he asks anyone to do something for him. ‘It’s almost like he works for you,’ his pilot once told me. He’s still the same appreciative boy from Abbott who used to ask for a ride to the baseball game in West.

In a way, Dad has never left Abbott, never forgotten where he came from. He still drops in on his boyhood friends from Abbott, and he still remembera and keeps in touch with all of the folks who helped him on his way up.

Of course he has never lost his touch with the fans. He will sign autographs as long as there is anybody asking for one. He has said over and over again that he can’t understand performers who think they are bigger than their fans, who won’t sign autographs, who cut the shows short or don’t even show up. ‘I always figure that if my audience shows up, I ought to show up too,’ he says.

The size of the audience doesn’t make any difference. He’ll put on the same show for one person crowded around the bandstand as he will for 70,000 screaming fans.

Dad is an extraordinarily popular figure, a hero and an idol to millions around the world. Very few people in history have the kind of following that Dad has. For some people, going to one of Dad’s concert is like a religious experience.

I think the source of his great and enduring appeal is the fact that he truly believes that in the grand design of the universe, he is no more important, no more unique, no better than any other individual human being on the planet. He communicates a true belief in equality, in tolerance, that we are all in this together. That’s what his music is all about. And that sums Dad up about as well as any I’ve heard.

Paul English tells a story that sums Dad up about as well as any I’ve heard.

After a concert, a woman came up to Dad, ‘I met you in San Antonio five years ago,’ she told him, ‘but I don’t suppose you remember me.’

‘No, I’m sorry, but I don’t,’ he answered, ‘but I sure appreciate you remember me.’

That’s my dad. And I love him.”

– Susie Nelson

Friday, January 19th, 2024

Friday, January 5th, 2024

Sunday, November 26th, 2023

Happy Thanksgiving, thank you farmers

Wednesday, November 22nd, 2023

Farm Aid by the numbers

Monday, November 13th, 2023

www.FarmAid.org

Dear Farm Aid Friends, 

We’re still reminiscing and thinking about all the different aspects of Farm Aid 2023 – from the pre-events to the festival day and beyond. It was amazing to see farmers, artists and music fans all coming together to celebrate family farmer agriculture and to raise awareness about the challenges and opportunities farmers face.

Below are some of the numbers that show why Farm Aid 2023 was so unique!

Mon, Nov 13 at 12:27 PM

Farm Aid 2023 stage

16 Incredible performances on the lineup
.Bob Dylan

2Surprise performances, including Sturgill Simpson (joining Margo Price) and Bob Dylan (backed by 3/5ths of The Heartbreakers along with members of The Dirty Knobs).Willie Nelson

18Songs in Willie’s Nelson’s epic set to end a beautiful day at Ruoff Music Center.

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Demonstrations in the HOMEGROWN Skills Tent; plus an all-day seed swap and mini farm with grazing sheep

35 HOMEGROWN Village exhibits including: The Farmer’s Share of the Food Dollar by National Farmers Union; Farms Reflect our Farmers: Underheard Voices and Imagining the Future of Farming in Indiana by Hoosier Young Farmers Coalition; Connecting the Drops: The Ripple Effects of Water Grabs on our Food System by National Family Farm Coalition; and many more! 
18 Young people from three different local organizations (Future Farmers of America, the Grange, and Human Agriculture Cooperative) staffed HOMEGROWN Youthmarkets at two farm fresh stands.


1,000 Podcast buttons were distributed at the festival and many backstage interviews! 

Listen to our first episode now.

454 Volunteers made the day run smoothly, setting up, breaking down, chopping vegetables, helping festivalgoers make compost, and generally putting smiles on everyone’s faces!
51 Menu items in HOMEGROWN Concessions® served throughout the venue. The ingredients for everything served at Farm Aid 2023 were grown with sustainable practices, on family farms, and with a fair price paid to the farmers
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2023 Farm Aid 2023 festival merch items are in our online store, including tees, hats, sweatshirts and denim jackets, all made with materials that protect our water and soil and that support farmer livelihoods. 

45 Videos shared at our press event that kicked off Farm Aid 2023, with 7 farmers joining Willie, John, Neil, and Dave on stage to talk about agriculture, climate, soil and water and corporate power.
 

22,209 Tickets sold for Farm Aid 2023. Thank you for supporting family farmers by participating in Farm Aid 2023!


275 Farmers, advocates and representatives from organizations that support farmers who attended our Friday Farmer Forum, which featured our first ever Farm Aid People’s Hearing on the Farm Bill.

6People who attended Indiana farm tours featuring 4 farms and 7 farmers who shared their stories of farming in the Midwest
.Farm Aid 2023 airport display

560,000 People passed by our Farm Aid 2023 exhibit at the Indianapolis International Airport!
1,000+Media stories featuring Farm Aid, including 748 print and online stories and 364 TV and radio broadcasts
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60 Cubic yards of materials were composted over the course of our festival, which equals approximately 2.9 tons of compost!

14,798 Pounds of food were donated to Second Helpings, an organization that rescues good food to prepare nutritious meals for hungry children and adults in Greater Indianapolis. Thank you for celebrating family farmers with us this year.

Make sure to show them you support their work year-round by wearing Farm Aid 2023 merch. And, relive the music on our YouTube channel and in our photo and video gallery  Forward Farm Aid
501 Cambridge Street, 3rd Floor, Cambridge, MA 02141 

Photo credits in order: Brian Bruner, Joeff Davis, Sharon Carone, Cathy Tingle, Cathy Tingle, Scott Streble, Kathryn Dale, Scott Streble, Laurie Bonneau, Scott Streble, Farm Aid website, Scott Streble, Scott Streble, Lori Mercer, Michael Stewart Foley, Scott Streble, Scott Streble, Laurie Bonneau.Unsubscribe

Willie Nelson’s 90th Birthday Celebration on CBS (Dec 17, 2023)

Friday, November 3rd, 2023

CBS presents WILLIE NELSON’S 90TH BIRTHDAY CELEBRATION, a concert special honoring the legendary career of music icon Willie Nelson, Sunday, Dec. 17 (8:30-10:30 PM, ET/PT) on the CBS Television Network, and streaming on Paramount+ (live and on demand for Paramount+ with SHOWTIME subscribers, or on demand for Paramount+)*. The news was announced during Nelson’s appearance on “The Late Show with Stephen Colbert” last night, Thursday, Nov. 2.

The star-studded special, recorded live earlier this year across two nights before a sold-out crowd at the legendary Hollywood Bowl, celebrates Nelson’s milestone 90th birthday and the 12-time GRAMMY® Award-winner’s contributions to popular culture and music. This historic concert event of the year features unforgettable collaborations and once-in-a-lifetime performances by Willie Nelson, Beck, Gary Clark Jr., Sheryl Crow, Snoop Dogg, Norah Jones, Miranda Lambert, Dave Matthews, Nelson’s sons Lukas Nelson and Micah Nelson, Keith Richards, George Strait, and Chris Stapleton. The special is hosted by stars Jennifer Garner, Chelsea Handler, Woody Harrelson, Ethan Hawke, Helen Mirren and Owen Wilson.  

“It is the sincere privilege of our lives to have produced these shows celebrating our beloved Willie, and to partner with CBS to bring this special to fans around the world,” said Mark Rothbaum and Keith Wortman, creators and executive producers of WILLIE NELSON’S 90TH BIRTHDAY CELEBRATION. “Viewers will now have the chance to sing, and laugh, and cry and experience the joy of this celebration like never before.” 

WILLIE NELSON’S 90TH BIRTHDAY CELEBRATION is a production of Blackbird Presents. 

*Paramount+ with SHOWTIME subscribers will have access to stream live via the live feed of their local CBS affiliate on the service, as well as on demand. Paramount+ Essential subscribers will not have the option to steam live but will have access to on-demand the day after the special airs.