After lots of response to my Willie Nelson post last Wednesday, I thought I’d share a few thoughts on the man every Wednesday (as Willie generally does on his XM Radio channel, Willie Wednesday). Might as well start with a bit of the intro to our book The Tao of Willie. So here is a little of what I’ve learned about – and from – Willie.
Willie Nelson is an American icon. His voice as comforting as the American landscape, his songs as familiar as the color of the sky, his face as worn as the Rocky Mountains. Perhaps that’s why we ought to add his face to the cliffs of Mt. Rushmore and be done with it.
He’s called an outlaw, though from Farm Aid to the aftermath of September 11, from the resurrection of a burned-out courthouse in his own hometown to fanning the flame of the Olympics, it is Willie Nelson who brings us together.
“If America could sing with one voice,” said Emmylou Harris, “it would be Willie’s.”
Willie Nelson is a Highwayman. He may have traded his horse for a tour bus, but he still rides into your town, kidnaps your girl’s heart, and pockets just enough of your cash to keep his life in order. And you can hardly wait for him to come back and do it again next year.
It helps if people love you.
Willie Nelson is a joker. After years on the road, he knows thousands of jokes, and can at any given time remember three. All three will make you laugh. Come back next week and you’ll get three more. Here’s the last he tossed out at me.
“A skeleton walks into a bar and says, ‘Give me a beer and a mop.’ ”If you don’t get it, read it again. It must be funny; I’m still telling it.
Laugh, and don’t give a damn whether the world laughs with you.
Willie Nelson has music in his heart. On the radio or in concert, Willie can reach out and touch you. He can set a life back on track with the sound of his voice or the proceeds of his fame, can soothe the madness in your brain with a plaintive gypsy chord progression, or spark love like a wildfire from a single burning ember. He’s cut 250 albums, written 2,500 songs, and sold 40 million records.
As we say in Texas, “That ain’t mice nuts.”
Willie Nelson is a gambler. Willie will sit opposite you on a chess board with a smile on his face and cut you to ribbons with surprise openings, sneak attacks, and subtle psychology that goads you into a sense of over-confidence that will be over all-too-soon. The hallmark of a game of chess with Willie is that — whether in the opening, middle, or end-game — you’ll think you’re doing just fine right up to the point that you realize you’re screwed. And don’t even think about beating him at dominoes.
Watch out for the Red–headed stranger.
Sum it up and you’ve got a wise guy musical poet who is both yin and yang, heads and tales, Indian and cowboy, a hero to city slickers and country bumpkins, a prophet, a preacher, a poet, and despite the lyrics to Kris Kristofferson’s song, NOT a problem when he’s stoned.
The subtle yet simple lessons of the Tao Te Cheng are a good match for the philosophy that keeps Willie on course in his life, a philosophy that can help all of us find happiness through simply being.
Who knows, you may be a Taoist yourself and not even know it. If you put on your boots before you put on your pants because you like it that way, then you’re at one with the Tao (or you have small feet and a great big butt).
There is no one definition to the Tao, but I like to think of it as finding a balance between resistance and surrender. If you try to walk against the current in a flowing steam, your journey will be a constant struggle. If you lose your footing and are carried away by the current, no matter how you struggle, you may drown.
But if you float with the current, you’ll become a part of the river and will be carried on an incredible ride. In the same way, if you let yourself join the river of life, you will be carried on an amazing journey.
The river starts here. And Willie Nelson is our guide. Shall we wade into the water?
From The Tao of Willie, by Willie Nelson and Turk Pipkin. If you’d like a signed copy, go to www.nobelity.org and click on “Make a Donation”