Waylon Jennings
If I could reach through the computer monitor, I would take your credit card and MAKE you buy Waylon Jennings' music. And you would thank me.
Waylon Jennings is my favorite country musician after Johnny Cash. In Star Wars terms, if Johnny Cash is the Darth Vader of the country music universe, Waylon Jennings is the cocky, confident Han Solo. Both Cash and Willie Nelson tended to dabble in different genres, but Jennings stuck to a pure country sound. His songs have an aggressive, outlaw bravado to them and he's stood tall in the country music scene.
Waylon Jennings has been around since the fifties, when he got his start playing guitar for Buddy Holly's band. He was due to be on the plane that killed Buddy Holly, Richie Valens, and the Big Bopper, but he gave up his seat at the last moment to the Bopper because the man was ill. After Holly passed, Jennings gigged around and worked as a session musician in the country music world until the early 70s. By then, the polished Nashville sound had dominated the country music world, leading to a rise of a group of musicians who eschewed high production values in favor of simple song arrangements and downdrinkin' butt kicking. The dude was a doer. Even his weepy ballads, like "Luckenbach, Texas", is less about crying in your beer and more about fixing the problem.
Don't Mess Around With A Ramblin' Man
Waylon Jennings passed on in 2002 of diabetic complications, but his music is still readily available for purchase at fine internet stores. He's probably most famous for the theme song to the TV show Dukes of Hazzard, where he also acted as the narrator, and for his collaborative albums with Willie Nelson. Famous songs that I own and enjoy include "Ramblin' Man", "Good Hearted Woman", "Only Daddy That Will Walk The Line", "Mamas Don't Let Your Babies Grow Up To Be Cowboys", "Luckenback Texas" (which is currently on my iPod), "Good Ol' Boys" and "The Conversation."
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