Country music legend Willie Nelson was “On the Road Again,” performing on March 1 to a packed house at Key West’s Coffee Butler Amphitheater.
Country music — and marijuana — wouldn’t be the same without the vocal influence of singer/songwriter Nelson.
The outlaw country star’s music has spanned more than six decades and earned him nearly every award in the country music industry.
Even those who don’t consider themselves fans of Willie Nelson – or of country music – appreciate and recognize classics that have spanned generations, including several covers and duets. Nearly every American older than 40 can sing along to “Blue Eyes Cryin’ in the Rain,” “To All the Girls I’ve Loved Before” (a duet with Julio Iglesias), “Pancho and Lefty,” “On the Road Again,” “Seven Spanish Angels” and “Mammas Don’t Let Your Babies Grow Up to Be Cowboys.”
Nelson has earned 15 Grammy Awards, along with dozens of Country Music Association and American Music Association awards. He ranks among Rolling Stone’s Top 100 musicians of all time. He was part of the 1980s country band, the Highwaymen, with Johnny Cash, Waylon Jennings and Kris Kristofferson. He helped organize the annual Farm Aid concerts that started in 1985 and has served on the advisory board of the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws.