Born during the Great Depression and raised by his grandparents, Nelson wrote his first song at age seven and joined his first band at ten. During high school, he toured locally with the Bohemian Polka as their lead singer and guitar player. After graduating from high school in 1950, he joined the U.S. Air Force but was later discharged due to back problems. After his return, Nelson attended Baylor University for two years but dropped out because he was succeeding in music. During this time, he worked as a disc jockey in Texas radio stations and a singer in honky-tonks. Nelson moved to Vancouver, Washington, where he wrote "Family Bible" and recorded the song "Lumberjack" in 1956. He also worked as a disc jockey at various radio stations in Vancouver and nearby Portland, Oregon. In 1958, he moved to Houston, Texas, after signing a contract with D Records. He sang at the Esquire Ballroom weekly and he worked as a disk jockey. During that time, he wrote songs that would become country standards, including "Funny How Time Slips Away", "Hello Walls", "Pretty Paper", and "Crazy". In 1960 he moved to Nashville, Tennessee, and later signed a publishing contract with Pamper Music which allowed him to join Ray Price's band as a bassist. In 1962, he recorded his first album, ...And Then I Wrote. Due to this success, Nelson signed in 1964 with RCA Victor and joined the Grand Ole Opry the following year. After mid-chart hits in the late 1960s and the early 1970s, Nelson retired in 1972 and moved to Austin, Texas. The ongoing music scene of Austin motivated Nelson to return from retirement, performing frequently at the Armadillo World Headquarters.
In 1973, after signing with Atlantic Records, Nelson turned to outlaw country, including albums such as Shotgun Willie and Phases and Stages. In 1975, he switched to Columbia Records, where he recorded the critically acclaimed album Red Headed Stranger. The same year, he recorded another outlaw country album, Wanted! The Outlaws, along with Waylon Jennings, Jessi Colter, and Tompall Glaser. During the mid-1980s, while creating hit albums like Honeysuckle Rose and recording hit songs like "On the Road Again", "To All the Girls I've Loved Before", and "Pancho and Lefty", he joined the country supergroup The Highwaymen, along with fellow singers Johnny Cash, Waylon Jennings, and Kris Kristofferson.
In 1990, Nelson's assets were seized by the Internal Revenue Service, which claimed that he owed $32 million. The difficulty of paying his outstanding debt was aggravated by weak investments he had made during the 1980s. In 1992, Nelson released The IRS Tapes: Who'll Buy My Memories?; the profits of the double album—destined to the IRS—and the auction of Nelson's assets cleared his debt. During the 1990s and 2000s, Nelson continued touring extensively, and released albums every year. Reviews ranged from positive to mixed. He explored genres such as reggae, blues, jazz, and folk.
Nelson made his first movie appearance in the 1979 film The Electric Horseman, followed by other appearances in movies and on television. Nelson is a major liberal activist and the co-chair of the advisory board of the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws (NORML), which is in favor of marijuana legalization. On the environmental front, Nelson owns the bio-diesel brand Willie Nelson Biodiesel, which is made from vegetable oil. Nelson is also the honorary chairman of the advisory board of the Texas Music Project, the official music charity of the state of Texas.
Nelson uses a variety of music styles to create his own distinctive blend of country music, a hybrid of jazz, pop, blues, rock and folk. His "unique sound", which uses a "relaxed, behind-the-beat singing style and gut-string guitar" and his "nasal voice and jazzy, off-center phrasing", has been responsible for his wide appeal, and has made him a "vital icon in country music", influencing the "new country, new traditionalist, and alternative country movements of the 1980s and 1990s".
In 1969, the Baldwin company gave Nelson an amplifier and guitar with their "Prismatone" pickup. During a show in Helotes, Texas, Nelson left the guitar on the floor of the stage, and it was later stepped on by a drunk man. He sent it to be repaired in Nashville by Shot Jackson, who told Nelson that the damage was too great. Jackson offered him a Martin N-20 Classical guitar, and, at Nelson's request, moved the pickup to the Martin. Nelson purchased the guitar unseen for $750 and named it after Roy Rogers' horse "Trigger". The next year Nelson rescued the guitar from his burning ranch.
Constant strumming with a guitar pick over the decades has worn a large sweeping hole into the guitar's body near the sound hole—the N-20 has no pick-guard since classical guitars are meant to be played fingerstyle instead of with picks. Its soundboard has been signed by over a hundred of Nelson's friends and associates, ranging from fellow musicians to lawyers and football coaches. The first signature on the guitar was Leon Russell's, who asked Nelson initially to sign his guitar. When Nelson was about to sign it with a marker, Russell requested him to scratch it instead, explaining that the guitar would be more valuable in the future. Interested in the concept, Nelson requested Russell to also sign his guitar. In 1991, during his process with the IRS, Nelson was worried that Trigger could be auctioned off, stating: "When Trigger goes, I'll quit". He asked his daughter, Lana, to take the guitar from the studio before any IRS agent arrived there, and then deliver it to him in Maui. Nelson then concealed the guitar in his manager's house until his debt was paid off in 1993.
Nelson is widely recognized as an American icon. He was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame in 1993, and he received the Kennedy Center Honors in 1998. In 2011, Nelson was inducted to the National Agricultural Hall of Fame, for his labor in Farm Aid and other fund raisers to benefit farmers. In 2015 Nelson won the Gershwin Prize, the lifetime award of the Library of Congress. In 2018 The Texas Institute of Letters inducted him among its members for his songwriting. He was included by Rolling Stone on its 100 Greatest Singers and 100 Greatest Guitarists lists.
Everybody's Talkin'
Willie Nelson Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
But I don't hear a word they're sayin'
Only the echoes in my mind
Everybody stops to starin'
But I don't even see their faces
Only the shadows of their eyes
I'm goin' where the sun keeps shinin'
Through a pourin' rain
Bankin' off the northeast wind
And sailin' on summer breeze
Skippin' over the ocean like a stone
Everybody's talkin' 'bout me
But I don't hear a word they're sayin'
Only the echoes of my mind
Everybody stops to starin'
But I don't even see their faces
Only the shadows of their eyes
But I won't let you leave my love behind
I won't let you leave my love behind
I won't let you leave my love behind
The song "Everybody's Talkin'" by Willie Nelson talks about a person who doesn't let the words of people around him affect him. The singer is focused on his own thoughts, and even though people are talking about him, he doesn't pay attention to what they are saying. The echoes in his mind suggest that he is preoccupied with his own problems and not bothered about external factors.
The second paragraph of the song has the singer describing his mindset of going where the weather suits his clothes. His desire to escape the current situation is evident by the reference to the northeast wind, which symbolizes hardship. However, he is determined to keep moving forward, and the reference to the "summer breeze" highlights his optimism for better times. The last two lines of the paragraph suggest that he is going through life effortlessly, quickly, and without any emotional attachment.
In the final verse, he speaks of his love and how he doesn't want to leave it behind. The words "I won't let you leave my love behind" could refer to a past relationship, memories, or any emotion that he cherishes and doesn't want to abandon.
Overall, the song is about resilience and not letting the negativity of others bring one down, focusing on positive change and keeping the memories of the things that matter most in life.
Line by Line Meaning
Everybody's talkin' 'bout me
People are talking about me
But I don't hear a word they're sayin'
I am not listening to what they are saying
Only the echoes in my mind
I am only considering the thoughts inside my head
Everybody stops to starin'
People halt what they are doing to look at me
But I don't even see their faces
I am not seeing people's physical appearance
Only the shadows of their eyes
I am only observing the darkened areas around their eyes
I'm goin' where the sun keeps shinin'
I am headed towards a place where the sun is always shining
Through a pourin' rain
Despite the heavy rainfall
Going where the weather suits my clothes
I am traveling to where the climate matches my attire
Bankin' off the northeast wind
I am making use of the northeast wind's direction
And sailin' on summer breeze
I am sailing through a warm breeze
Skippin' over the ocean like a stone
I am effortlessly passing over the sea
But I won't let you leave my love behind
I will not let my love disappear
I won't let you leave my love behind
I will not allow my affection to be abandoned
I won't let you leave my love behind
I will not permit my love to go away
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management
Written by: Fred Neil
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Juan Masday
Willie is one of the best composer and the best interpreter.
Mystery Vinyl
Yep - he's truly a force of nature.
Daniel Gallegos
He's the best there is, was, and ever will be!
Martin Finn
Interesting that the original has slightly different lyrics. I think the Nillson ones work better. Willie is amazing though. :)
tiemyshoes92
Please look up the Tedeschi Trucks Band version of this song. Goddamn amazing cover.
Hallands
It's not talking "about", Willie. It makes a huge difference in meaning.
Mr Human
@Hallands i'm well aware of that
Hallands
Mr Human I seem to have that privilege with or without your permission 😌😉
Mr Human
@Hallands he very obviously chose to change the tune but ok be stupid about it
Hallands
Adam Pierani Nope! He can't remember the tune either...