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.
Tomorrow Night
Willie Nelson Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I can still hear what you said.
Like a bad dream I can't fight,
Tomorrow Night.
Am I lying here next to you?
Am I thinking I need to
Really love you? Do it right,
Time goes so slow when you're gone.
Days turn to years, it seems so long.
If you still feel like today,
If tomorrow's the same way,
Then I know it'll be right,
Tomorrrow Night.
Can't you trust me to see it through?
Can't you wait 'till I see you?
When you're working, you're uptight,
Tomorrow Night.
Time goes so slow when you're gone.
Days turn to years, it seems so long.
When I wake up in your bed,
I can still hear what you said.
Like a bad dream I can't fight,
Tomorrow Night.
Am I lying here next to you?
Am I thinking I need to
Really love you? Do it right,
Tomorrow Night.
The song "Tomorrow Night" by Willie Nelson is a tender love ballad about a man who is lying in bed with his partner and reflecting on their relationship. He is unsure if he truly loves her and if he is capable of giving her the love and commitment she deserves. He is haunted by the fear that he might not be good enough for her and that he might disappoint her in the future. He is also grappling with the pain of being apart from her and the slow passage of time that seems to stretch out endlessly when she is not with him. However, he is hopeful that tomorrow night will bring a new opportunity to prove his love and make things right between them.
The lyrics of the song capture the vulnerability and uncertainty of love, while also highlighting its transformative power. They underscore the importance of being open and honest with one's feelings, and the need to embrace the uncertainty and risk that comes with loving someone deeply. At the same time, the song reminds us that love can be a powerful force that can sustain us through tough times and help us overcome our fears and doubts.
Line by Line Meaning
When I wake up in your bed,
Starting a new day in your presence
I can still hear what you said.
A memory of past conversations echoed in my head
Like a bad dream I can't fight,
A distant memory that haunts me in my sleep
Tomorrow Night.
Looking forward to a future night when we'll be together again
Am I lying here next to you?
Questioning whether the present moment is reality
Am I thinking I need to
Considering the necessity of nurturing this relationship
Really love you? Do it right,
Wanting to express true love and commitment in the right way
Tomorrow Night.
Anticipating the opportunity to show love in the future
Time goes so slow when you're gone.
Feeling the weight of time when we're apart
Days turn to years, it seems so long.
The passing of time feels unbearable without you
If you still feel like today,
Questioning whether the relationship is as strong as it was
If tomorrow's the same way,
Wondering if the future will be a continuation of the present
Then I know it'll be right,
Believing that the future will be bright
Tomorrow Night.
Anticipating the coming night with eagerness
Can't you trust me to see it through?
Asking for trust in the ability to handle challenges together
Can't you wait 'till I see you?
Urging patience for the next meeting
When you're working, you're uptight,
Acknowledging the stress caused by work
Tomorrow Night.
A beacon of hope for the upcoming night
When I wake up in your bed,
Starting a new day in your presence
I can still hear what you said.
Remembering the words spoken in the past
Like a bad dream I can't fight,
A painful and persistent memory
Tomorrow Night.
A hopeful future awaits us
Am I lying here next to you?
Questioning the reality of the present moment
Am I thinking I need to
Contemplating the depth of love and commitment
Really love you? Do it right,
Determined to express love properly
Tomorrow Night.
Anticipating a future night of intimacy
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: VINCENT CRANE
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Teddie Stayner
I love you so much Willie
rimakuja
A cute tune sung so lovely by Willie from this rather early album :-) Thank you dear Marianne for your share :-) Hugs from across the big pond :-)
Doris Johansson
Lovey - Thanks Marianne
D-A Hommersom
Hello Marianne, i dont think so haha good one like it, :)
D-A Hommersom
I wish that for you and yours to Marianne
Marianne Menon
Derry-A Hommersom I Wish you and Yours Antonia a Very Happy New Year as well....Thank you for being such a lovely friend and Thank you for all your lovely comments this past year <3 I so enjoyed them :) ...."Gelukkig Nieuw Jaar " Antonia :) :)
~Marianne...
D-A Hommersom
Hi Dear Marianne, hope you have a happy 2015 may it be a year of good heatlth. and peace and harmony.:)
Marianne Menon
Hi Antonia!! :) :) You made me smile!! Neither do I think so :) But I'm glad you like the song :) Thanks so much my sweet friend!! :) :)