A new twist on an old classic.
Willie Nelson is gearing up to release his 99th career studio album Bluegrass (his 74th solo studio album to go along with his 26 collaborative studio albums) this Friday, September 15th, after just turning 90 years young in April.
The project will feature Willie performing new versions of 12 of his self-written favorites with a bluegrass ensemble on the production, including classic hits like “On the Road Again,” “Yesterday’s Wine,” “Still is Still Moving to Me,” and more.
Bluegrass was produced by his longtime collaborator and friend Buddy Cannon, and he previously released the lead single “You Left Me a Long, Long Time Ago” in June, in addition to “Still is Still Moving to Me.”
This will actually be Willie’s first time officially dabbling in the bluegrass genre with a record, in a salute to the Appalachian old-time string band music and Bill Monroe and the Blue Grass Boys, which greatly inspired Willie’s legendary songwriting style.
And this past Friday, he reimagined one of his all-time classic in his duet with Waylon Jennings, “Good Hearted Woman,” which is a fun, twangy, and certainly different version of the iconic original.
The country duo actually penned the song in 1969 in a motel room in Fort Worth, Texas, during a poker game. Waylon was reading an ad in a paper about Ike and Tina Turner, which mentioned that a lot of her songs were about good-hearted women loving two-timing men.
It hit him right then that the concept would make for a fantastic country song, and he asked his friend and expert songwriter, Willie Nelson, to help him write it.
And the rest, as they say, is history.
Willie’s then-wife, Connie Koepke, was writing down the lyrics while they finished their poker game, simultaneously trying to finish the song… ironically, Willie and Waylon both ended up losing the game, but they did write a hell of a song.
In addition to Connie, Waylon’s wife, Jessi Colter, was also a big inspiration behind the track, as they detailed just how much their wives had to put up with by being married to two pioneers of the country outlaw movement. I mean, Lord only knows what those women went through (beyond what is well-documented), and the song is as authentic and honest as a country song can be.
Waylon first recorded “Good Hearted Woman” as the title track for his 1972 album, where it peaked at #3 on the U.S. Billboard Hot Country Singles chart.
In 1975, he remixed the song and added vocals from Willie, as well as fake crowd noise, to give it a live feel for their iconic Wanted: The Outlaws! album. That version went #1 on the U.S. Billboard Hot Country Singles chart in 1976.
Willie Nelson actually only wrote two lines of the song, but received half of all the royalties that they originally agreed upon, which is cool because it goes to show just how good of a man Waylon really was at heart… even with the bad boy, outlaw image he maintained throughout his career.
Check it out:
“Good Hearted Woman”
Willie is also currently touring for his 2023 Outlaw Music Festival tour, and you can check out all the remaining dates below.
Tuesday, September 12, 2023
Simpsonville, SC – CCNB Amphitheatre at Heritage Park
Willie Nelson & Family
Bobby Weir & Wolf Bros. featuring The Wolfpack
Particle Kid
Friday, September 15, 2023
Saratoga Springs, NY – Saratoga Performing Arts Center
Willie Nelson & Family
Bobby Weir & Wolf Bros. featuring The Wolfpack
The String Cheese Incident
Los Lobos
Particle Kid
Saturday, September 16, 2023
Mansfield, MA – Xfinity Center
Willie Nelson & Family
Bobby Weir & Wolf Bros. featuring The Wolfpack
The String Cheese Incident
Los Lobos
Particle Kid
Sunday, September 17, 2023
Forest Hills, NY – Forest Hills Stadium
Willie Nelson & Family
Bobby Weir & Wolf Bros. featuring The Wolfpack
The String Cheese Incident
Los Lobos
Particle Kid
Wednesday, September 20, 2023
Bridgeport, CT – Hartford HealthCare Amphitheater
Willie Nelson & Family
Bobby Weir & Wolf Bros. featuring The Wolfpack
Particle Kid
Friday, September 22, 2023
Clarkston, MI – Pine Knob Music Theatre
Willie Nelson & Family
Bobby Weir & Wolf Bros. featuring The Wolfpack
The String Cheese Incident
Particle Kid
Friday, October 6, 2023
West Palm Beach, FL – iTHINK Financial Amphitheatre
Willie Nelson & Family
The Avett Brothers
Gov’t Mule
Elizabeth Cook
Particle Kid
Saturday, October 7, 2023
Tampa, FL – MIDFLORIDA Credit Union Amphitheatre
Willie Nelson & Family
The Avett Brothers
Gov’t Mule
Elizabeth Cook
Particle Kid
Sunday, October 8, 2023
Orange Beach, AL – The Wharf Amphitheater
Willie Nelson & Family
The Avett Brothers
Gov’t Mule
Elizabeth Cook
Particle Kid
Wednesday, October 11, 2023
Huntsville, AL – The Orion Amphitheater
Willie Nelson & Family
The Avett Brothers
Mike Campbell & The Dirty Knobs
Particle Kid
Friday, October 13, 2023
Brandon, MS – The Brandon Amphitheater
Willie Nelson & Family
The Avett Brothers
Mike Campbell & The Dirty Knobs
Elizabeth Cook
Particle Kid
Saturday, October 14, 2023
Southaven, MS – BankPlus Amphitheater at Snowden Grove
Willie Nelson & Family
The Avett Brothers
Mike Campbell & The Dirty Knobs
Elizabeth Cook
Particle Kid
Sunday, October 15, 2023
Pelham, AL – Oak Mountain Amphitheatre
Willie Nelson & Family
The Avett Brothers
Mike Campbell & The Dirty Knobs
Elizabeth Cook
Particle Kid
