Every Friday around 11 a.m. Central, it’s time for Classic Americana on Radio Heartland. We pull a special track from the archives or from deep in the shelves to spotlight a particular artist or song.

Next Tuesday, April 29, is the birthday of Willie Nelson. He’ll turn 92 next week.

Now, Willie Nelson has been in the music business since 1956, and most of us know Willie as a singer-songwriter and a tireless touring artist. But Willie didn’t strike it big on his own until 1975 with the release of his breakthrough solo album, Red-Headed Stranger.

Prior to that, Nelson had released 17 albums under his own name, but his primary musical activity centered on songwriting. As a songwriter, Willie Nelson wrote for a number of other artists — some of his best-known early hits included "Pretty Paper," a big hit for Roy Orbison, and in particular, "Crazy," a massive hit for Patsy Cline in 1961, which is among the biggest jukebox hits of all time.

Most of us are familiar with Patsy’s version of the song, but in September 1962, Willie Nelson released his debut solo album, … And Then I Wrote, which includes his own version of “Crazy.” Willie’s version of the song is our Classic Americana track this week.

External Link

Willie Nelson – official site