Willie Hugh Nelson is an American musician, actor, and activist. The critical success of the album Shotgun Willie (1973), combined with the critical and commercial success of Red Headed Stranger (1975) and Stardust (1978), made Nelson one of the most recognized artists in country music. He was one of the main figures of outlaw country, a subgenre of country music that developed in the late 1960s as a reaction to the conservative restrictions of the Nashville sound. Nelson has acted in over 30 films, co-authored several books, and has been involved in activism for the use of biofuels and the legalization of marijuana.
Merle Ronald Haggard was an American country singer, songwriter, guitarist, and fiddler.
Jamey Johnson is an American country music artist. Signed to BNA Records in 2005, Johnson made his debut with his single "The Dollar", the title track to his 2006 album The Dollar. Johnson was dropped from BNA in 2006 and signed to Mercury Nashville Records in March 2008, releasing his second album, the gold-certified That Lonesome Song. This album produced two singles, the Top 10 hit "In Color" and "High Cost of Living". Johnson has since released two more albums, The Guitar Song in 2010 and Living for a Song: A Tribute to Hank Cochran in 2012. In 2014, he released a 5-song Christmas EP titled The Christmas Song. In addition to most of his own material, Johnson has co-written singles for Willie Nelson and Merle Haggard, Trace Adkins, George Strait, James Otto, Joe Nichols and Jessie James Decker.
Last of the Breed is a two-disc album by American country music artists Willie Nelson, Merle Haggard and Ray Price, released in 2007. It debuted at number 64 on the U.S. Billboard 200, selling about 13,000 copies in its first week. The album has 100,000 copies in the U.S. as of May 2015. The album was ranked number 33 on Rolling Stone's list of the Top 50 Albums of 2007.
"Mama Tried" is a song written and recorded by American country music artist Merle Haggard and The Strangers. It was released in July 1968 as the first single and title track from the album Mama Tried. The song became one of the cornerstone songs of his career. It won the Grammy Hall of Fame Award in 1999, and was selected for preservation in the National Recording Registry due to its "cultural, historic, or artistic significance" on March 23, 2016, just 14 days before Haggard's death.
The discography for American country music singer Merle Haggard includes 66 studio albums, five instrumental albums featuring his backing band the Strangers, as well as several live and compilation albums. Haggard recorded for a variety of major and independent record labels through the years, with significant years spent with Capitol Records, MCA Records, Epic Records and Curb Records, as well as his own label Hag Records.
Buddy Cannon is an American country music songwriter and record producer. Active since the late 1970s, he is known primarily for his work with Willie Nelson and as Kenny Chesney's record producer, for which he won the Academy of Country Music's Producer of the Year award in 2006.
"I Always Get Lucky With You" is a song written by Merle Haggard, Freddy Powers, Gary Church, and Tex Whitson. It was first recorded by Haggard in 1981 and then covered by American country music artist George Jones in April 1983 as the second single from the album Shine On. "I Always Get Lucky with You" became George Jones' ninth and final number one on the country chart as a solo artist. The single stayed at number one for one week and spent thirteen weeks on the country chart.
"Swinging Doors" is a song written and recorded by American country music artist Merle Haggard and The Strangers. It was released in February 1966 as the first single and title track from the album Swinging Doors. The song peaked at number five on the U.S. Billboard Hot Country Singles.
Better Than I Used to Be is the title of the ninth studio album by American country music artist Sammy Kershaw. The album was released on August 31, 2010 via Big Hit Records. It is produced by Buddy Cannon. Two singles were released from the album: "Better Than I Used to Be" and "The Snow White Rows of Arlington". The album, along with the two singles, failed to enter a Billboard chart.
Heroes is the sixtieth studio album by American country music singer Willie Nelson, released by Legacy Recordings on May 15, 2012. Produced by Buddy Cannon, the album contains classic country songs, new songs written by Nelson and his son Lukas, and the classic song from Nelson's repertoire, "A Horse Called Music". Guest appearances include Lukas Nelson, Ray Price, Merle Haggard, Snoop Dogg, Kris Kristofferson, Jamey Johnson, Billy Joe Shaver, and Sheryl Crow.
Living for a Song: A Tribute to Hank Cochran is the fourth studio album by American country music singer Jamey Johnson. It was released in October 2012 via Mercury Nashville on both compact disc and LP record. The album is a tribute to songwriter Hank Cochran.
"Roll Me Up and Smoke Me When I Die" is a Willie Nelson single from his 2012 album Heroes. The song written by Willie Nelson, Buddy Cannon, Rich Alves, John Colgin and Mike McQuerry, features vocals by Snoop Dogg, Kris Kristofferson and Jamey Johnson.
Band of Brothers is the sixty-third studio album by country music singer-songwriter Willie Nelson. The album marks Nelson's return to writing after sixteen years, with nine out of the fourteen tracks being new original songs.
December Day: Willie's Stash, Vol. 1 is a collaboration album by American country music singer-songwriter Willie Nelson and his sister, Bobbie Nelson, released by Legacy Recordings on December 2, 2014. It was the first release of Willie's Stash, a set of archival recordings curated by Nelson. Recorded with his road band, the album includes a track featuring Nelson's longtime bassist Bee Spears, deceased in 2011.
"The Wall" is a song written by country music singer Willie Nelson and producer Buddy Cannon. The track became the first single of Nelson's Band of Brothers.
Django and Jimmie is the sixth and final collaborative studio album by American country music artists Willie Nelson and Merle Haggard. It was released on June 2, 2015, by Legacy Recordings. The album was Haggard's final studio album prior to his death in April 2016.
Summertime: Willie Nelson Sings Gershwin is the sixty-fourth solo studio album by American singer-songwriter Willie Nelson. After being awarded the Gershwin Prize by the Library of Congress, Nelson recorded a set of pop standards written by George and Ira Gershwin. The recording of the album was produced by Buddy Cannon and Matt Rollings. It includes the duets "Let's Call The Whole Thing Off" with Cyndi Lauper and "Embraceable You" with Sheryl Crow.
God's Problem Child is the sixty-sixth solo studio album by American singer-songwriter Willie Nelson. It was released on April 28, 2017, by Legacy Recordings. The album features new songs co-written by Nelson and producer Buddy Cannon. Using their frequent method, Cannon and Nelson wrote the songs exchanging the lyrics in text messages, while Nelson later recorded his vocals in the studio.
Melonie Cannon is an American singer, blending country and bluegrass on her solo albums and session work. Willie Nelson said, "Melonie Cannon is one of the best singers I know."
