Project 1001: Red Headed Stranger by Willie Nelson2
In the twilight glow, I see / Blue eyes crying in the rain / When we kissed goodbye and parted / I knew we'd never meet again
There have been lots of concept albums released by a wide variety of artists. Many of them collapse under the weight of their own grandeur. Not this one. Red Headed Stranger upon cursory listening comes across as simple and sparse, absent overcrowded lyrics or relentless production, apropos for a record made for a mere $4,000.1 You don’t need to sit down and block everything else to comprehend and enjoy the told by Willie on this wonderful record. But with a more intentional listen, one finds that this straightforward approach allows the listener to more fully absorb the quietly profound poetry found therein.
The protagonist is a man who kills his wife and her lover. A man on the run from the law and wrestling with the deep hurt of betrayal, searching for anything to replace what was lost. While most people don’t react to their spouse cheating on them with murder, this is the Old West and the themes and emotions here are universal. We find a person not only deeply hurt but also desperately lonely as expressed in “Can I Sleep in Your Arms” (by the great Hank Cochran):
Can I sleep in your arms tonight, lady?
It's so cold lying here all alone
And I have no hold to hold on you
And I assure you, I'll do you no wrong
This album launched Willie Nelson on the path of becoming a national treasure and it is a genuine listening treat. My rating:
Back cover of Red Headed Stranger illustrating the story within.
In writing Rolling Stone’s review, Paul Nelson describes Red Headed Stranger as “a phonographic Western movie which brilliantly evokes the mythopoeic imagery of McCabe and Mrs. Miller, Shane and the works of John Ford.”2
A contrasting view was supplied by Stephen Thomas Erlewine writing in AllMusic that “…there's much to admire in Nelson's intimate gamble, but it's 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.”3
Rebecca Bengal in Pitchfork asserted, “Nelson made an album that defied logic, transcended the industry-defined borders separating country from rock’n’roll, jazz, blues, and folk—and it became an artistic and commercial success.”4
In 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die, Robert Dimery wrote:
By 1975 Willie Nelson had released some very fine albums, and he had penned great country songs for other artists, including Patsy Cline’s “Crazy” and Faron Young’s “Hello Walls.” But it was Red Headed Stranger that made Nelson a country superstar.
…The significance of Outlaw country remains a subject of debate, but it’s certainly the case that with Red Headed Stranger, Nelson released an album that shrugged off the strictures of Nashville. It also defined a career.5
Enjoy and listen without prejudice. Cheers!
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For details about this project, read this: Project 1001 Albums
Charts
• Peak on Billboard 200 album chart: #28 6 (Number 1 on the Country chart7)
• Singles on Billboard Hot 100 chart: “Blue Eyes Crying in the Rain”, #218
• RIAA certification: 2x Platinum | November 21, 1986 9
Released on May 1, 1975. Here’s what else was happening:
Pop Culture
• Number one song: He Don’t Love You (Like I Love You) by Tony Orlando & Dawn 10
• Number one album: Chicago VIII by Chicago 11
• Number one movie: Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore by Martin Scorsese 12
• Most watched TV programs: All in the Family, Sanford & Son, Chico & the Man, The Jeffersons, M*A*S*H, Rhoda, The Waltons, Good Times, Maude, Hawaii 5-O 13
• NYT bestseller, fiction: The Moneychangers by Arthur Hailey 14
• NYT bestseller, non-fiction: The Bermuda Triangle by Charles Berlitz 15
Some other albums released that month
• Gorilla by James Taylor
• Newborn by James Gang
• Today by Elvis Presley
• Moving Violation by Jackson 5
• Soap Opera by The Kinks
• Adventures in Paradise by Minnie Riperton
• Captain Fantastic and the Brown Dirt Cowboy by Elton John
• Initiation by Todd Rundgren
• Venus and Mars by Wings
• Coming Down Your Way by Three Dog Night
• Ernie Sings & Glen Picks by Tennessee Ernie Ford and Glen Campbell
• Four Wheel Drive by Bachman–Turner Overdrive
• Love Will Keep Us Together by Captain & Tennille
• Once Upon a Star by Bay City Rollers
• Spirit of '76 by Spirit
• Steppin' by Pointer Sisters
• Tale Spinnin' by Weather Report
• There's No Place Like America Today by Curtis Mayfield
• Your Mamma Won't Like Me by Suzi Quatro16
Sport
• May 3 101st Kentucky Derby: Jacinto Vasquez on Foolish Pleasure wins 2:02.
• May 4 Houston's Bob Watson scores baseball's one-millionth run of all time.
• May 16 Muhammad Ali TKOs Ron Lyle in 11 for heavyweight boxing title. 17
Notable Births
• May 2 David Beckham, English soccer midfielder (115 caps [58 as captain]; Man Utd, Real Madrid, AC Milan, Paris SG, LA Galaxy) and owner (Inter Miami CF, Salford City), born in London, England.
• May 3 Christina Hendricks, American actress (Mad Men), born in Knoxville, Tennessee.
• May 8 Enrique Iglesias, Spanish singer-songwriter and King of Latin Pop ("Bailamos"; "Hero"), born in Madrid, Spain. 18
Historical Events
• May 06 Devastating Tornado Strikes Omaha, Nebraska: A powerful tornado struck Omaha, Nebraska on May 6, 1975, touching down at 4:29 PM local time and moving north-eastward for nearly 30 minutes. The tornado caused unprecedented destruction, resulting in over $300 million in damages (equivalent to $1.45 billion in 2019), setting a record for the costliest tornado in American history. Despite the massive destruction, early warning systems helped minimize loss of life, with only three fatalities reported.
• May 07 End of the Vietnam Era: US President Gerald Ford officially declared an end to the Vietnam Era, marking a significant milestone in American history and signaling the country's transition from the prolonged and controversial conflict to a post-war period of healing and reconstruction.
• May 08 China Establishes Diplomatic Relations with European Community: In a significant diplomatic breakthrough, the People's Republic of China agreed to establish formal trade and diplomatic relations with the European Community. As part of this agreement, China committed to sending an official representative to the Common Market headquarters in Brussels, marking a crucial step in international diplomatic engagement. 19
Notable Deaths
• May 4 Moe Howard, American actor and comedian (The 3 Stooges), dies at 77.
• May 8 Avery Brundage, American businessman (5th President International Olympic Committee 1952-72), dies at 87.
• May 12 Joe Mooney, American jazz and pop accordionist, organist, and vocalist, dies at 64. 20
1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die, Fifth printing, ed. by Robert Dimmery p. 352.
Ibid.
Ibid.
Ibid.