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 albumβdestined to the IRSβand 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 holeβthe 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.
Jingle Bells
Willie Nelson Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Over the fields we go laughing all the way
Bells on bobtail ring making spirits bright
What fun it is to ride and sing a sleighing song tonight
Jingle bells jingle bells jingle all the way
Oh what fun it is to ride in a one horse open sleigh
Jingle bells jingle bells...
A day or two ago I thought I'd take a ride
And soon Miss Fanny Bright seated by my side
The horse was lean and lank misfortune seemed his lot
We got into a drifted bank and there we got upsot
Jingle bells jingle bells...
Willie Nelson's version of Jingle Bells is a festive and lively rendition of the traditional Christmas song. In the first verse, he paints the picture of a winter wonderland with a sleigh ride through the snow. The sensation is that of pure enjoyment as they laugh and sing, while the bells of the bobtail ring making their spirits high. He then proceeds to the chorus, which is the classic jingle bells refrain, where we can easily picture the festive scene of a sleigh being pulled through the snow. The song's tempo is upbeat and lively, capturing the essence of the holiday season.
The second verse of the song tells a humorous anecdote of a ride taken a day or two ago. Willie mentions that he decided to take a ride with Miss Fanny Bright by his side. However, the horse was skinny and unlucky, leading them to get stuck in a snowbank. The humorous language and light tone speak to the joy and humor of the season. The song ends with the classic jingle bells' refrain, ensuring that the song ends on a high note, with the listener feeling the infectious holiday spirit.
Line by Line Meaning
Dashing through the snow in a one horse open sleigh
Traversing the snowy landscape swiftly in a carriage pulled by a horse with no covering.
Over the fields we go laughing all the way
Merrily journeying across grassy plains and enjoying every moment of it.
Bells on bobtail ring making spirits bright
The sounding bells on the horse's harness lifting the mood of all those present.
What fun it is to ride and sing a sleighing song tonight
Expressing the joy of singing a song while riding in a sleigh in the dark evening.
Jingle bells jingle bells jingle all the way
The sound of bells echoing all the way through the journey.
Oh what fun it is to ride in a one horse open sleigh
The exhilarating experience of riding in a sleigh drawn by a single horse.
A day or two ago I thought I'd take a ride
Narrating a story of a recent incident where the singer decides to take a ride for leisure.
And soon Miss Fanny Bright seated by my side
Describing the presence of another person, Miss Fanny Bright, accompanying the artist in the ride.
The horse was lean and lank misfortune seemed his lot
Depicting the appearance of the horse as thin and unlucky.
We got into a drifted bank and there we got upsot
Recounting an unfortunate event where they got stuck in the drifted snow.
Lyrics Β© Universal Music Publishing Group, Warner/Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: TRADITIONAL, FRANCESCO MOCCHI
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@usefulcrackhead2485
My uncle with down syndrome enjoyed this very much! Thanks Willie!!!
@KatieFlame
Your Uncle knows good singing when he hears it!!! πΉππΉππΉ
@jonathan18.10.
All love <3
@LOVEHAS1JOYRAINS2
Wonderful to find your comment. Mother Father God love country and Christmas songs. Our parents are incarnate in person to guide all to our dream come true π this is the moment to call home. Luna
@jcadkison1543
Ioveitthanjwillieneiien
2:12
@hesousa8488
Alem da voz maravilhosa, Willie Nelson canta tudo que nos encanta. O senhor é uma benção para o mundo. Muito obrigado. Saude. Saude. Saude.
@douglasswinford2598
Merry Christmas π Willie !! Much love and good will to you and your family!
@WillieNelson-es9iy
Hello, I have seen quite a handful of your comments and Likes on my official page. Thanks for your kind words and good wishes. It's great to know I have such a devoted fanβ€οΈ 0:00
@marissadower-morgan3313
What's not to love? Merry Christmas Willie!
@justiceharrison5142
Hello there Marissa nice meeting you here