Red Headed Stranger is the eighteenth studio album by American outlaw country singer Willie Nelson, released in 1975. Following the success of his recordings with Atlantic Records, coupled with the negotiating skills of his manager, Neil Reshen, Nelson signed a contract with Columbia Records, the label that gave him total creative control over his works. The concept for the album was inspired by the "Tale of the Red Headed Stranger", a song that Nelson used to play as a disc jockey on his program in Fort Worth, Texas. After signing with Columbia, he decided to record the song, and arranged the details during his return to Austin, Texas, from a trip to Colorado. It was recorded at low cost at Autumn Sound Studios in Garland, Texas. The songs featured sparse arrangements, largely limited to Nelson's guitar, piano, and drums. Nelson presented the finished material to Columbia executives, who were dubious about releasing an album that they at first thought was a demo. However, Nelson had creative control, so no further production was added.
A concept album, Red Headed Stranger is about a fugitive on the run from the law after killing his wife and her lover. The content consists of songs with brief poetic lyrics and arrangements of older material such as Fred Rose's "Blue Eyes Crying in the Rain", Wolfe Gilbert's "Down Yonder", and Juventino Rosas' "O'er the Waves". Despite Columbia's doubts and the limited instrumentation, Red Headed Stranger was a blockbuster among country music and mainstream audiences. It was certified multiple-platinum, and made Nelson one of the most recognized artists in country music. The cover of "Blue Eyes Crying in the Rain", released as a single before the album, became Nelson's first number-one hit. The title of the album became a lasting nickname for Nelson. It was ranked number 183 on Rolling Stone's list of the 500 Greatest Albums of All Time,[1] and number one on CMT's 40 Greatest Albums in Country Music. In 2010, it was inducted to the National Recording Registry.
In 1986, Nelson starred as the Red Headed Stranger in a movie of the same name, based on the story of the album. The album has had a strong cultural impact; the song "Time of the Preacher" was used often in the British television miniseries Edge of Darkness, and its lyrics were used in the first issue of the comic Preacher.
Background
Nelson first achieved fame as a songwriter in Nashville after writing hits such as "Hello Walls", "Night Life", "Funny How Time Slips Away", "Pretty Paper", and "Crazy". After recording two albums for Liberty, he moved to RCA and recorded over a dozen albums, many produced by Chet Atkins, but his recordings were given the Nashville Sound treatment, orchestration that Nelson felt was largely unnecessary. In 1973, he signed to Atlantic Records by Jerry Wexler, who accepted Nelson's desire to use his own band in the studio and eschew commercial concerns, for US$25,000 per year, he became the first country artist signed by the label.[2] His first album with Atlantic was the critically acclaimed Shotgun Willie,[3] which was followed by one of the first concept albums in country music, Phases and Stages.[4] Following the success of these recordings, Nelson signed with Columbia Records, and was given complete creative control.[5]
During his return to Austin, Texas, after a ski trip in Colorado, Nelson was inspired by his then-wife Connie Koepke to write a western concept album. Koepke suggested the inclusion of Arthur "Guitar Boogie" Smith's "Tale of the Red Headed Stranger",[6] which Nelson sang during his radio shows on KCNC in Fort Worth, Texas, and previously, to his children at bedtime. Nelson decided to write a complete story that included details of events before the ones described in the song.[7][8] As he spontaneously composed the songs, Koepke recorded the lyrics.[9] With his original writings, Nelson included in the story, Fred Rose's "Blue Eyes Crying in the Rain", Wolfe Gilbert's "Down Yonder", Juventino Rosas' "Sobre las Olas (O'er the Waves)", Hank Cochran's "Can I Sleep in Your Arms?", Eddy Arnold's "I Couldn't Believe It Was True", and Billy Callery's "Hands on the Wheel".[10] When he arrived in Austin, Nelson recorded a demo of the songs on a tape recorder accompanied with his guitar at his ranch on Fitzhugh Road.[6]
Recording and composition
Nelson started to look for a studio in Texas to record his new material to avoid the modifications that they did to his recordings in his previous sessions. Engineer Phil York, who was hired freelance by the recently opened Autumn Sound Studios in Garland, Texas, heard about his need. York, an acquaintance of Nelson's harmonicist Mickey Raphael, offered Nelson a day of free recording to boost the popularity of the studio. Autumn's studio, a quiet room with cypress wood paneling, featured the first 24-track studio console in Texas, and came equipped with a Bosendorfer concert grand piano, a 92-key instrument made in Vienna with four extra bass notes that retailed for $25,000.[10] Nelson and his band went to the trial session during January, and recorded five songs. Later, Raphael called back York, announcing that Nelson would record the entire album there.[10] After hearing the tapes by Nelson, the band started to improvise to the song "Blue Eyes Crying in the Rain". Disliking the result, Nelson decided to strip down the instrumentation.[11] Nelson also instructed York to undo the equalization he performed on the tracks, remarking that it was the method his producers used in Nashville.[12] The recording took five days, with an additional day for the mixing, that summed up to US$4,000 in studio costs.[11] The additional costs took the total to US$20,000.[13] Nelson featured arrangements of acoustic guitar, accompanied by piano, played by his sister Bobbie, as well complementary arrangements of drums, harmonica, and mandolin.[14]
A 1947 standard by Fred Rose; in the context of the story, it is used to depict the man's grief over the death of his wife. The single was a hit for Nelson, and was one of the reasons for the album's success.
The title track of the album was written by Edith Lindeman Calisch and Carl Stutz, and made popular by Arthur "Guitar Boogie" Smith. It had previously had been recorded by John D. Loudermilk and Eddy Arnold.[15] While the album initially was inspired by "The Tale of the Red Headed Stranger", Nelson later insisted the story came together quickly after he penned the opening track "Time of the Preacher":[16] "I took my time, all the while staying focused on the preacher's feelings... Hank Cochran's 'Can I Sleep in Your Arms' was the kind of tune the preacher would use to sing himself to sleep. I could also hear the preacher doing a beautiful old ballad by Fred Rose, 'Blue Eyes Crying in the Rain', that had been sung by everyone from Hank Williams to Gene Autry to Conway Twitty. It was another song about lost love whose mantra – 'Love is like a dying ember and only memories remain' – expressed the overall theme and tied all the loose ends together".[16] Author Michael Streissguth considered it Nelson's "first true concept album", composed of new songs and old, arranged in a sequence that formed a story.[17] In Chet Flippo's essay for the 2000 reissue of the album, Nelson commented "I wanted it to be real sparse. I had in mind, I remember, some of my favorite records: Eddy Arnold with just his guitar; Ernest Tubb with just his guitar; so I wanted to have that kind of feel with maybe just some help along the way to keep it from getting too, you know, obnoxious. Or monotonous."[18]
The story begins with "Time of the Preacher", where the character evokes his love for his wife, whom he suspects is unfaithful. In the following song, "I Couldn't Believe It Was True", the infidelity is revealed. This leads to a short version of "Time of the Preacher", wherein the singer ends with the line "Now the lesson is over, and the killing's begun". The reaction of the husband is depicted by Nelson in a medley of "Blue Rock, Montana" and "Red Headed Stranger". The first song describes the double murder of the unfaithful woman and her lover by the Stranger, who states, "And they died with a smile on their faces". This leads to the second song of the medley, which describes the grief of the Stranger.[19] This section is followed by Nelson's cover of the 1947 Fred Rose song "Blue Eyes Crying in the Rain", where the fugitive laments the loss of his wife. In "Red Headed Stranger", the protagonist commits a subsequent murder—he kills a woman who merely reaches out to touch one of his horses. The horse "means more to him than life" because it had belonged to his wife, but the Stranger goes free because it was determined that "you can't hang a man for killin' a woman who's tryin' to steal your horse".[20]
The story continues with the Stranger traveling south. In the song "Denver", the character falls in love with a woman he meets in a bar in town. One of the lines from "Blue Rock, Montana" is repeated, with a variation: "And they danced with a smile on their faces". The following song "Can I Sleep in Your Arms?" shows the Stranger's desire for redemption and love. Next is "Remember Me", where he announces that his vows to his deceased wife are broken and he is free to love. The story ends with "Hands on the Wheel", which depicts the Stranger as an old man who is accompanied by a child, presumably his grandson, and his new love. The song marks the end of the sorrow of the Stranger, and his redemption years later. The album ends with the instrumental song "Bandera".[19]
Release and reception
Initially, Columbia Records was not satisfied with the finished product; the sparsely instrumented acoustic arrangements caused the label's directors to doubt releasing the album as presented, feeling it was under-produced and no more than a demo.[21] Nelson later remembered that "when the chief Columbia bigwig heard the tracks, he said, 'Why are you turning in a demo?' 'Ain't no demo', I explained. 'This is the finished product.'"[22] When Nelson asked the Columbia executive what a finished record was supposed to sound like, the executive replied "Anything but this. The songs feel disconnected. The mood is too down. And the sound is far too flat. You need to go back in and polish it."[22] Nelson's manager Neil Reshen and Waylon Jennings then traveled to New York City to play the album for Columbia president Bruce Lundvall. Lundvall had suggested that the album be sent to Nashville producer Billy Sherrill for further overdubbing. An infuriated Jennings called Lundvall a "tone-deaf, tin-eared sonofabitch".[23] When he first heard it, Sherrill asked, "Did he make this in his living room? It's a piece of shit! It sounds like he did this for about two bucks. It's not produced."[24] However, Nelson had complete creative control, and it was released without any further modifications.[13] Reflecting on the album's success, Columbia executive Rick Blackburn later commented "Red Headed Stranger was a hit for all the wrong reasons. It didn't follow the formula, the fashionable mix of the day. There were 1,000 reasons that record should not be a hit. But the Red Headed Stranger project took on Willie's personality and became a hit for the right reasons – because it was Willie Nelson. It was Willie's statement."[25]
Rolling Stone writer Paul Nelson considered "Red Headed Stranger "extraordinarily ambitious, cool, tightly controlled". The reviewer remarked that the album "ties precise, evocative lyrics", and called the result "haunting yet utterly unsentimental"."[29] Meanwhile, critic Robert Christgau wrote, "Some of the individual pieces are quite nice, but the gestalt is the concept album at its most counterproductive—the lyrics render the nostalgic instrumental parts unnecessarily ironic and lose additional charm in narrative context."[30]
Music critic Chet Flippo wrote an article in Texas Monthly that was titled "Mathew, Mark, Luke and Willie: Willie Nelson's latest album is more than a good country music; it's almost Gospel": "The difference between Nelson's Red Headed Stranger and any current C&W album, and especially what passes for a soundtrack for Nashville, is astounding. What Nelson has done is simply unclassifiable; it is the only record I have heard that strikes me as otherworldly. Red Headed Stranger conjures up such strange emotions and works on so many levels that listening to it becomes totally obsessing".[31]Billboard described the album as "lots of instrumental work, with particularly fine piano by Bobbie Nelson, and the usual highly stylized Willie Nelson vocals".[32] In Mother Jones Joe Nick Patoski wrote: "Texans have known for 15 years what Red Headed Stranger finally revealed to the world – that Nelson is simply too brilliant a songwriter, interpreter, and singer – just too damn universal – to be defined as merely a country artist".[33]
The Fort Worth Star-Telegram noted the use of Nelson's usual backing band instead of session musicians. The review praised Mickey Raphael's playing on "Hands on the Wheel" and Bobbie Nelson's on "Bandera", while it also remarked that the style of the album reflected "the Nelson of several years ago" with its "aura of quiet intensity".[34] John Edminston, from The Paris News, declared: "Red Headed Stranger, if nothing else, will bring Willie to the forefront as one of the nation's top country-western recording artists. And that's where he belongs".[35]
Legacy
Red Headed Stranger's critical success cemented Nelson's outlaw image, and made him one of the most recognized artists in country music.[5] The title of the album became a nickname for Nelson.[36] The cover of Fred Rose's 1945 song "Blue Eyes Crying in the Rain", that had been released as a single previous to the album, became his first number one hit as a singer.[37]
Nelson met publisher and screenwriter William D. Wittliff in 1977 at a Mexican restaurant in Austin through writer Bud Shrake. Because of the success of the album, Wittliff decided to write a script for Nelson based on the story of the Red Headed Stranger. In 1979, Wittliff finished a draft of the project, which was turned over to Universal Studios. The studio budgeted the film at $14 million and sent the script to Robert Redford, who turned it down. The movie project was tabled, and Wittliff and Nelson had to buy the script back from Universal. The script then went to HBO, who assigned the project a budget of $5 million, but this project was not completed either. Finally, Nelson and Wittliff decided to finance the film themselves. In Red Headed Stranger, Nelson portrayed the role of the stranger, and the movie was released in 1986.[38]
In 2002, the 1975 original recording of the album was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame.[39]
In 2000, Red Headed Stranger was reissued on CD. The new released included the bonus tracks "Bach Minuet In G", "I Can't Help It (If I'm Still In Love With You)", "A Maiden's Prayer" and "Bonaparte's Retreat".[18] In 2003, the album was ranked at number 184 on Rolling Stone's list of the 500 Greatest Albums of All Time,[9] maintaining the rating in a 2012 revised list,[40] before dropping to number 237 in a 2020 revised list.[41] In 2006, it was ranked number one in Country Music Television's 40 Greatest Albums in Country Music.[26] In 2009, Red Headed Stranger was added to the National Recording Registry as it was considered that it was "culturally, historically, or aesthetically important, and/or informs or reflects life in the United States".[42] In 2020, Legacy Recordings reissued Red Headed Stranger on its original LP format.[43]
In 1996, Nell Zink wrote in CMJ New Music Monthly: "His Red Headed Stranger was the Sgt. Pepper's of country music, the first record to follow a coherent theme instead of merely compiling radio singles".[44]Stephen Thomas Erlewine in AllMusic described Red Headed Stranger as "really elusive, as the themes get a little muddled and the tunes themselves are a bit bare. It's undoubtedly distinctive – and it sounds more distinctive with each passing year – but it's strictly an intellectual triumph and, after a pair of albums that were musically and intellectually sound, it's a bit of a letdown, no matter how successful it was".[45] In 2003, it was included among the top 1,000 albums of Zagat Survey magazine, and was rated five stars out of five. The magazine wrote "Supporters (of the album) spread the gospel that it's just a quintessential outlaw recording, but perhaps the greatest country album ever with a spare style that changed the way C&W was played".[46]
Sputnikmusic wrote: "The Red Headed Stranger is simple and bare. Following the story of a preacher man that kills his cheating wife and her lover, ol' Willie spins the tale with a laid back nonchalance that just seems to ooze out of him, his aching chords and somber melodies encapsulating the futility and pain of his character's situation [...] The Red Headed Stranger is timeless. Willie Nelson's captivating story telling, and the minimalist majesty of his music fills a well worn grove in the hearts of those that enjoy the folk roots of the United States."[47] Writing for Pitchfork, Rebecca Bengal deemed it "a big and beautiful dream made real by simple and spare music", noting Nelson's "uncanny ability to bend the listener’s perception of time".[48] The Encyclopedia of Popular Music defined it as a "country classic" [49]
Willie Hugh Nelson is an American country singer, guitarist and songwriter. He was one of the main figures of the outlaw country subgenre that developed in the late 1960s as a reaction to the conservative restrictions of the Nashville sound. The critical success of his 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. 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.
"Crazy" is a song written by Willie Nelson and popularized by country singer Patsy Cline in 1961. Nelson wrote the song while living in Houston, working for Pappy Daily's label D Records. He was also a radio DJ and performed in clubs. Nelson then moved to Nashville, Tennessee, working as a writer for Pamper Music. Through Hank Cochran, the song reached Patsy Cline. After her original recording and release, Cline's version reached number two on Billboard's Hot Country Singles, also crossing to the pop chart as a top 10 single.
Stardust is the 22nd studio album by Willie Nelson, released in April 1978. Its ten songs consist entirely of pop standards that Nelson picked from among his favorites. Nelson asked Booker T. Jones, who was his neighbor in Malibu at the time, to arrange a version of "Moonlight in Vermont". Impressed with Jones's work, Nelson asked him to produce the entire album. Nelson's decision to record such well-known tracks was controversial among Columbia executives because he had distinguished himself in the outlaw country genre. Recording the album took only ten days.
Shotgun Willie is the 16th studio album by American country music singer-songwriter Willie Nelson, released on June 11, 1973. The recording marks a change of style for Nelson, who later stated that the album "cleared his throat". When Nelson refused to sign an early extension of his contract with RCA Records in 1972, the label decided not to release any further recordings. Nelson hired Neil Reshen as his manager, and while Reshen negotiated with RCA, Nelson moved to Austin, Texas, where the ongoing hippie music scene at the Armadillo World Headquarters renewed his musical style. In Nashville, Nelson met producer Jerry Wexler, vice president of Atlantic Records, who was interested in his music. Reshen solved the problems with RCA and signed Nelson with Atlantic as their first country music artist.
Phases and Stages is the 17th studio album by American country music singer-songwriter Willie Nelson, released in March 1974. It followed the moderate success of his first Atlantic Records release, Shotgun Willie. Nelson met producer Jerry Wexler at a party where Nelson sang songs from an album he planned to record. The single "Phases and Stages" was originally recorded the same year. Nelson recorded the album at Muscle Shoals Sound Studios in two days and Wexler produced it.
Wanted! The Outlaws is a compilation album by Waylon Jennings, Willie Nelson, Jessi Colter, and Tompall Glaser, released by RCA Records in 1976. The album consists of previously released material with four new songs. Released to capitalize on the new outlaw country movement, Wanted! The Outlaws earned its place in music history by becoming the first country album to be platinum-certified, reaching sales of one million.
Waylon & Willie is a duet studio album by American singers Waylon Jennings and Willie Nelson, released by RCA Records in 1978. In the US, it stayed at #1 album on the country album charts for ten weeks and would spend a total of 126 weeks on the country charts.
"Blue Eyes Crying in the Rain" is a song written by songwriter Fred Rose. First recorded by Elton Britt in 1946, then made more popular by Roy Acuff in 1947, the song has been covered by many artists, including Hank Williams Sr., Johnny Russell, Charley Pride, and Elvis Presley. Most notably, the song was recorded by Willie Nelson as part of his 1975 album Red Headed Stranger. Both the song and album revived Nelson's success as a singer and recording artist.
The Troublemaker is the 20th studio album by country singer and songwriter Willie Nelson. When Nelson refused to sign an early extension of his contract with RCA in 1972, the label decided not to release any further recordings. Nelson hired Neil Reshen as his manager, and while Reshen negotiated with RCA, Nelson moved to Austin, Texas, where the ongoing hippie music scene at the Armadillo World Headquarters renewed his musical style. In Nashville, Nelson met producer Jerry Wexler, vice president of Atlantic Records, who was interested in his music. Reshen solved the problems with RCA and signed Nelson with Atlantic Records as their first country music artist.
Yesterday's Wine is the 13th studio album and a concept album by country singer Willie Nelson. Nelson had been recording for RCA Victor since the early 1960s, and had released no significant hit records. By 1970, his recordings had reached mid-chart positions. Nelson lost the money he made from his song-writing royalties by financing concert tours that were generally unsuccessful and unprofitable. In addition to problems with his music career, Nelson had a troubled personal life. He had divorced his wife, Shirley Collie, and his Tennessee ranch had been destroyed by a fire.
Here's Willie Nelson is the second studio album by country singer Willie Nelson.
...And Then I Wrote is the debut studio album by country singer Willie Nelson, recorded during August and September 1962 and released through Liberty Records.
The Family is the lead singer Willie Nelson's touring and recording group. Nelson, who did not manage through the 1960s to succeed as a singer, retired after the failure of his 1971 album Yesterday's Wine. The following year, he returned from retirement rejuvenated by the burgeoning music movement of Austin, Texas.
"Family Bible" is a song written by country music singer-songwriter Willie Nelson. Nelson began writing the song in 1957, while he enjoyed success as a disc jockey in KVAN, in Vancouver, Washington. After being denied a raise by the station, he moved to Houston, Texas. Due to financial issues he sold the song to Paul Buskirk.
"Mr. Record Man" is a song written by country music singer-songwriter Willie Nelson. After writing the song, Nelson moved to Houston, Texas, where due to his financial issues, tried to sell it to Larry Butler. Butler, who rejected to buy the song, employed Nelson instead. After his original songs turned into hits for other artists, Nelson was signed as a recording artist by Liberty Records.
"The Storm Has Just Begun" is a song by country music singer-songwriter Willie Nelson. Nelson wrote the song at the age of twelve. While working for KBOP in Pleasanton, Texas, in 1955, the song was one of the first two ever recorded by Nelson.
"Touch Me" is a song written and recorded by American country music singer Willie Nelson. Leveraged by the success of his songs, Nelson moved to Nashville in 1960. Through songwriter Harlan Howard, Nelson was signed to write for Pamper Music, and to a recording contract with Liberty Records.
"Wake Me When It's Over" is a song written and recorded by American country music singer Willie Nelson. After being signed as a recording artist to Liberty Records in 1961, the song was recorded during his second session with the label in September 1961 at Radio Recorders. Selected as the A-side of one of the promotional singles, the song failed to chart.
Red Headed Stranger is a song written by Edith Lindeman and Carl Stutz, published in 1953. Originally written for Perry Como, the song was not recorded by him due to publishing issues. In 1954, Arthur "Guitar Boogie" Smith released a version of the song on MGM Records that received good radio play.
"Bob Wills Is Still the King" is a song written and performed by American country music artist Waylon Jennings, as a tribute of sorts to the Western swing icon Bob Wills.
Billboard staff (June 14, 1975). "Billboard's Top Album Picks". Billboard. Vol.87, no.24. Prometheus Global Media. ISSN0006-2510. Retrieved April 25, 2011– via Google Books.
Dicaire, David (2007). The first generation of country music stars: biographies of 50 artists born before 1940. McFarland. ISBN978-0-7864-3021-5.
Edminston, John (1975). "Maggie's Farm". The Paris News. Vol.105, no.329. Retrieved April 21, 2021– via Newspapers.com.
Fillingim, David (2003). Redneck liberation: country music as theology. Mercer University Press. ISBN978-0-86554-896-1.
Unterberger, Richie; Hicks, Samb; Dempsey, Jennifer (1999). Music USA: the rough guide. Rough Guides. p.117. ISBN978-1-85828-421-7. Retrieved March 19, 2011. red headed stranger willie nelson columbia.
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