Photo: Janis Tillerson
www.swtimes.com
by Scott Smith
Practice? They don’t need no stinkin’ practice.
Modeled loosely after a famous line in the film, “The Treasure of the Sierra Madre,” that school of thought belongs to Mickey Raphael, who has been Willie Nelson’s harmonica player inside the studio and on the road for more than 30 years. Nelson’s band never practices, and often, improvisation will take hold of the on-stage instruments and microphones, Raphael said.
Yeah, the gig becomes the rehearsal, or the sound check is the rehearsal,” said the 59-year-old Nashville, Tenn., resident with a laugh during a recent telephone interview. “Sometimes Willie likes to do a new song for the audience, and the first time we hear it is when we are on the stage.
“We want to keep it fresh, because we’ve been playing some of these songs for years and years now,” added Raphael. “Each night, we like to change things up.”
Raphael said he, Nelson and the rest of Nelson’s band will perform numerous hit singles, beloved album tracks and a surprise or two at 7:30 p.m. Dec. 7 at the Fort Smith Convention Center, 55 S. Seventh St.
“It’s fun coming to places like Fort Smith,” Raphael said. “We’ll play all kinds of songs, so it will be a lot of fun for all of us.”
Raphael does joke about the first time he met Nelson. It happened in the mid-1970s, and Raphael wasn’t in a position to feel awestruck in the presence of Nelson.
“It’s funny because when I first met Willie, I didn’t really know who he was,” said the scholar of Paul Butterfield. “I didn’t know anything about country music – I was more into The Band, The Beatles and The Rolling Stones – and this was a time period when Willie was known as a great songwriter, but it was before he was this mega superstar.”
But then the Dallas native saw and heard Nelson begin to strum his trusty acoustic guitar.
“I heard Willie, and then I was blown away,” Raphael said.
Raphael and Nelson first shared studio tape during the recording of Nelson’s “Red Headed Stranger” album in 1975. That record and Nelson’s 1978 LP, “Stardust,” are among Raphael’s most-treasured works.
“I’ve been very fortunate because of Willie Nelson’s graciousness; he’s been a most gracious dictator,” Raphael joked. “He really has allowed me to record and play with other artists, and I feel fortunate.”
Raphael played harmonica on the title track for Elton John’s “The Fox” album in 1981, and Raphael remembers the laid-back session as if it happened yesterday.
“Elton was great – very fun to work with,” he said. “Elton knew I played with Willie, so Elton came in wearing his track suit that he wore back then, with a cowboy hat and cowboy boots. Elton thought I was a cowboy, and he was very gracious.”
The good times continued when Raphael laid down the strutting harmonica part on Motley Crue’s cover of “Smokin’ in the Boys Room,” and working with The Mavericks for their “Something Stupid” song in the mid-1990s was another high note.
“I was friends with The Mavericks long before they got a record deal,” Raphael said. “When Willie and I would play in Miami, I’d go out in the parking lot and sneak The Mavericks into the gig.”
When Raphael and Nelson were recording with U2 for the song, “Slow Dancing,” Raphael thought his chance to record with the Irish rockers might slip away before his eyes.
“We started playing the song in the studio and there was a power surge or something, and the board – all of the recording equipment – went down,” Raphael said. “I’m standing there, rolling my eyes, thinking that my chance to record with U2 is going out the window.”
Thankfully, the equipment was rebooted and the song was recorded for one of U2’s European releases, he said.
“I played on Snoop’s ‘My Medicine,’ and I’d love to do more work with him,” Raphael said. “I’d love to do more urban music. That would be a lot of fun.”
Raphael’s lengthy resume also includes recordings with Vince Gill, Kenny Chesney, Wynton Marsalis and Emmylou Harris, as well as Johnny Cash, Kris Kristofferson and Waylon Jennings via The Highwaymen recordings and tours.
“I think it’s good to play with other musicians,” Raphael said. “As an artist, it’s good for you, and I’ve been fortunate to have played with the people I have played with so far.”
Curtain Call
Willie Nelson
When: 7:30 p.m. Dec. 7
Where: Fort Smith Convention Center, 55 S. Seventh St.
Tickets range from $35 to $65 and can be purchased by calling (800) 965-9324 and at www.itickets.com. Doors open at 6:30 p.m.
For information, visit www.willienelson.com.