Willie (49 page)

We'd go in the studio about dark and stay until three or four in the morning. The first night we laid all the tracks. The second night we overdubbed and fixed the parts where I blew a line. The third day we mixed it. And not long afterward we had a gorilla of a hit and we became famous and lived happily ever after.

In one way we were very lucky with the
Red Headed Stranger
album, because usually the record company big shots will look at the budget before they listen to the music. If they see you only spent $20,000 on your album, you probably get dumped. They'll put out your record, but they won't promote it. The big shots are worried about how to sell the $2,000,000 albums and save their jobs. No telling how many really fine albums went into the garbage just because they were made too cheaply. There's no way a lot of record company people can make money off a $20,000 album. But if they've got a couple million, they can spend half of it on studio time and the rest on musicians and a well-placed number of dollar bills in different guys' pockets, and everybody gets fat off somebody's album.

That doesn't mean the album has ten good songs on it.

I can say the same thing about the movie business.

When I'm out on the hill in Austin, I keep office hours that you might call irregular.

Sometimes I sprawl on the grass under a tree near the practice
area beside the seventh tee and have meetings with people who show up from everywhere with propositions they don't see how I can pass up.

If it's cold or raining, or if I need a telephone handy, I go to my office in the clubhouse. It's down a walk beside the golf shop. Jody Fischer, my assistant, has an office upstairs where she and Lana put out the
Pedernales Poo-Poo
newspaper, among their many activities, some of which I don't even want to know about. Jody keeps me checked out on messages and news, as much as she can, but it ain't that easy a job.

Across the road and up the hill to the south, my Western town has come back to life again and is full of people. My town is playing the part of Fort Smith in the nine-hour CBS movie of
Lonesome Dove
, from Larry McMurtry's wonderful book.

Today the wind was blowing forty miles an hour from the north, so we only played about thirty holes of golf, all wrapped up in parkas and gloves like a bunch of dogsled racers.

Then I came in here to my office and settled into my wooden armchair behind my mogul-sized desk and put my hands behind my head and leaned back, shifting a little to ease that pain above my right hip, and stared for a long time out the plate-glass window, looking across the pool and the trees and a long blue piece of Lake Travis in the distance. I could see all the way north to where the hills were turning a chilly green-purple color as the norther blew in and smoke started coming out of chimneys of houses on the hills.

I am drawing a picture in my mind of something that is coming. I can hear Mark and Jim and Joel yelling, “Oh, my God—send for more bandages! Willie is dreaming again!”

The fact is, my dreams are still dreaming me.

Abbott High School Panther Yearbook:
4
–
7

AP/Wide World Photos:
40
–
43
,
47
,
53

Robert Hutchinson/Black Star:
57

Katz/Black Star:
58

Les Leverett:
33

NBC:
50

Nelson Family Collection:
1
–
6
,
10
–
15
,
17
–
32
,
34
–
35
,
44
,
55
–
56

Scott Newton:
16
,
49
,
52
,
54
,
65

UPI/Bettmann Archives:
36
,
38
–
39

The index that appeared in the print version of this title was intentionally removed from the eBook. Please use the search function on your eReading device for terms of interest. For your reference, the terms that appear in the print index are listed below

Abbott, Tex.

Abbott Fighting Panthers

Abbott Homecoming Concert

ABC

Acuff, Roy

Adams, Easy

Aerosmith

Age of Aquarius

Air Willie

Alamo

alcohol

Alden, Norm

Ali, Muhammad

Allison, Joe

Allman Brothers

“All of Me”

Allred, Sammy

Alo, Kimo

“Always on My Mind”

“Amazing Grace”

American Express

“Angel Flying Too Close to the Ground”

angels

Animal House

Anka, Paul

Apaches

Apocalypse Now

Applewhite, Charlie

Aquarian Gospel

Aquarius

Aragon Ball Room

Arkansas mountains

Armadillo World Headquarters

Arnold, Bobby

Arnold, Eddy

Arrowhead Stadium

Asleep at the Wheel

Aspundh Expert Tree Company

Atkins, Chet

Atlantic Records

Austin, Tex.

Austin Ballet

Austin Opera House

Autry, Gene

Autumn Sound

Axton, Hoyt

Axton, Mae

Bad Day at Black Rock

Bakker, Jim

Baldwin guitar

Baptist Church in Abbott, Tex.

Baptist Church, Metropolitan

Baptist Church, River Bend

Barbarosa

Batman

Bay of Pigs

Beach Boys

Beast (traveling chef)

Beatles

Beethoven, Ludwig van

Benson, Ray

Berlin Wall

“Bet My Heart I Love You”

Bible

“Billie Jean”

Billy the Kid

Binion, Bennie

Blackburn, Rich

“Black Rose”

Black Tuesday

“Bloody Mary Morning”

“Blue Eyes Crying in the Rain”

Bluegrass Boys

“Blue Skies”

“Blue Suede Shoes”

Bob Wills and the Texas Playboys

“Boll Weevil”

Booger Red (Willie Nelson)

Booger Red's Shine n' Sing

Boone, Pat

Boyd, Bill

Bradley, Jerry

Bramlett, Bonnie

Brammer, Billie Lee

Bray, Terry

Brelin, Walt

Bromberg, David

Brooks, Elston

Brother Johnathan

Brown, Bundini

Brown, Milton

Bruce, Jimmy

Bryant, Bear

“Bubbles in My Beer”

Bud Fletcher and the Texans

buses, tour

Busey, Gary

Bush, Johnny

Buskirk, Paul

Butler, Larry

Butler, Patsy

Byrd, Richard E.

Caan, James

Cable News Network (CNN)

Cactus Ken

Caesar's Palace

Campbell, George

Cancer

Capricorn

Carl's Corner, Picnic site at

Carmichael, Hoagy

Carson, Fiddling John

Carson, Johnny

Carter, Jimmy

Carter, Rosalynn

Carter Family

Cash, Johnny

Cassidy, Butch

Castle Creek

Catholics

Cayce, Edgar

CBS

CBS Records

Chambers, George

Charles, Ray

Checker, Chubby

Cherokee Cowboys

Cherokees
see also
Indians

Cherry, Don

Chicago Worlds Fair (1933)

chili

chowchow

Christopher, Johnny

Chuck Wagon Gang

Church of Christ

cigarettes

Cincinnati, University of

Civil War

Clayton, Lee

Clements, Frank

Cline, Patsy

Cochran, Hank

Collie, Bif

Collie, Shirley,
see
Nelson, Shirley

Colter, Jessi

“Columbus Stockade Blues”

Comanches

Coming Out of the Ice

Commander Cody and His Lost Planet Airmen

Congress, U.S.

Conqueroo

Cooley, Spade

Cooper, Billy

Cooper, George W.

Cornelius, Carl

Cosell, Howard

Country America Saturday Night

Country Music Association Awards

Cowboy Ramblers

“Crazy”

“Crazy Arms”

creative imagination

Crosby, Bing

Cut 'N' Shoot, Tex.

Dailey, Pappy

Dalhart, Vernon (Marion Slaughter)

“Darkness on the Face of the Earth”

Darrell, Johnny

Day, Doris

Day, Jimmy

death

“Deep Purple”

Derek, John

Devil

“Devil in a Sleeping Bag”

Disney, Walt

divine law

“Don't Get Around Much Anymore”

Dorsey, Ben

Dorsey, Tommy

Douglas, Kirk

D Records

Dripping Springs, ranch in

Dripping Springs Picnics

Dripping Springs Reunion

drugs.
see also
marijuana

Duff, Arleigh

Duncan, Tommy

Dunn's Trailer Court

Dylan, Bob

Eagles

Earl (carpenter)

Earp, Wyatt

Earth

Edwards, Chief

Eichenbaum, Diane

Einstein, Albert

Elaine's saloon

Electric Horseman

Elijah

Ellington, Duke

Ely, Joe

Emmons, Buddy

Emory, Ralph

“Emotion in Motion”

Encino Press

Encyclopedia Americana

energy

English, Billy

English, Carlene

English, Darrell Wayne

English, Paul

Eskimos

Esquire Club

Evans, Dale

Evergreen, Colo.

Fabulous Thunderbirds

“Family Bible”

Farm Aid concerts

Farm Aid III

farm bill

Fender Stratocaster guitar

Fender Telecaster guitar

Fiddling John Carson group

Fischer, Jody

Fletcher, Bobbie Lee Nelson,
see
Nelson, Bobbie Lee

Fletcher, Bud (brother-in-law)

Fletcher, Freddy (nephew)

Fletcher, Jack (brother-in-law)

Fletcher, Michael (nephew)

Fletcher, Randy (nephew)

Floore, John T.

Florida Coach Company

Flying Burrito Brothers

Foley, Red

Fort Worth, Tex.

Fort Worth Press

Fort Worth Star-Telegram

Foster, Fred

Fourth of July Picnics

“Four Walls”

Frank Kent Ford Company

Franklin, Jim

Franks, Bo

Franks, Scooter

“Fräulein”

Friedman, Kinky

Frizzell, Lefty

Fromholz, Steve

“Funny How Time Slips Away”

Gal Named Sunday

“Gambler, The”

Garvey, Mike

Gay Place, The
(Brammer)

Geezinslaw Brothers

Gemini

“Georgia on My Mind”

Geronimo

Geronimo III

Gibran, Khalil

Gifford, Frank

Gilley's

Gimble, Johnny

Glaser, Tompall

God

Godfrey, Arthur

“Goin' Home”

Golden Nugget

golfing

Gone with the Wind

“Good Hearted Woman”

Gorham, Larry

Graham, Billy

Grand Ole Opry

Grateful Dead

Gray, Claude

Great Depression

Great Depression chili

Great Ridgetop Shootout

“Great Speckled Bird”

“Green Green Grass of Home”

Greenhaw, Bertha (grandmother)

Greenhaw, Carl (uncle)

Greenhaw, Grandfather

Greenhaw, Myrle M.,
see
Harvey, Myrle M. Nelson

Greenhaw family

Greenhill, Larry

Greenwood, Lee

Greezy Wheels

Gresham, Tom

Grey, Zane

Groom, Dewey

Guinness Book of World Records

guitar pulling

Haggard, Merle

“Half a Man”

Hamilton, George, IV

Hamlet

Happy Valley Dude Ranch

Hard Rock Cafe

Harris, Emmylou

Harvey, Ken (stepfather)

Harvey, Myrle M. Nelson (mother)

Hawaiians

Hawkins, Tom (Tommy the Tuner)

HBO party concert

“Healing Hands of Time, The”

“Heartbreak Hotel”

“Hello Walls”

Hell's Angels

Heston, Charlton

“Hey There”

Hill, Eddie

Hitler, Adolf

Hoffner, Adolph

Holloway, Doug

Holy Ghost

“Homeward Bound”

Honeysuckle Rose
(bus)

Honeysuckle Rose
(movie)

“Honkytonk Heroes”

Hopkins, Lightnin'

Hopper, Dennis

Hornsby, Bruce

horoscope, Willie's

“Hound Dog”

Houston, Tex.

Howard, Harlan

Hudson, Rock

Hughes, Mr.

Hughes, Ruby

“I Can't Help It If I'm Still in Love with You”

“I Can't Stop Loving You”

ICM

Iglesias, Julio

“I Gotta Get Drunk”

Illinois, University of

I Love Lucy

“I Love You Because”

Indians.
see also
Cherokees

Ingram, Curly

intuition

“I Still Can't Believe You're Gone”

“It's Not Supposed to Be That Way”

“It Should Be Easier Now”

Ives, Burl

Jackson, Jesse

Jackson, Michael

Jackson, Shot

Jackson, Stonewall

Jagger, Mick

Jamail, Joe

James, Mark

Jaxon, Jack

Jenkins, Dan

Jenkins, June

Jennings, Waylon

Jesus Christ

“Jimmy Dale”

Joan of Arc