Album Review: Willie Nelson – Ride Me Back Home (Legacy)

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Four wives, seven children, 69 studio albums and 86 years on this earth. The numbers don’t lie, Willie Nelson is an institution. And his new album proves that he just gets better with time.

As with anyone who is in their ninth decade, time is on Willie’s mind. In fact, the second track on Ride Me Back Home is called Come On Time. In it, Nelson seems to both embrace and challenge time:

“Time is my friend, my friend. The more I reject it, the more that it kicks in.”

And then:

“I say come on time, I’ve beat you before, come on time, what have you got for me this time?”

At age 86 he’s still got that outlaw spirit. And he can still write a mighty fine song.

Ride Me Back Home is a beautifully crafted, mellow record that Nelson has made with producer Buddy Cannon, who also co-wrote four of the record’s 11 songs with him.

Loyal compadre Mickey Raphael is on hand to blow his evocative harmonica, while Willie himself picks out some gorgeous solos on trusty Trigger, his Martin N-20 nylon string acoustic guitar that has been a part of his sound since 1969.

Not surprisingly, Willie is in a reflective mood throughout most of the record, which begins with the title track, a song written by veteran Nashville songwriter Sonny Throckmorton and personalized by Willie. It’s a beautiful allegory in which Nelson sings about a discarded horse…”Ride me back home to a much better place, blue skies and sunshine and plenty of space.”

You can almost hear Nelson’s distinctive voice singing the lyrics as you read them on the page.

In addition to the original tunes, Willie and Buddy have chosen a few covers. Two are by Guy Clark and they are near-perfect.

The version of My Favourite Picture Of You rivals Clark’s own version for pure emotional power and the version of Immigrant Eyes is also excellent.

Nelson throws a little humour into the mix with a reading of Mac Davis’ It’s Hard To Be Humble which includes a little help from Willie’s son Lukas Nelson and his band Promise Of The Real . And the album’s only misstep is the decision to cover Billy Joel’s Just The Way You Are. Its still a corny song, even when Willie sings it.

But that’s the only track you’d want to skip. Otherwise this is a wonderful, late career highlight from a man who has been making music since the 1950s, and shows no sign of giving up, or giving in, just yet.

Marty Duda

 

 

Marty Duda
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