[Dixielandjazz] Willie Nelson on Tour with a little . . . Dixieland?

[Stephen G Barbone]

Here, courtesy of list mate Nancie Beaven, is the newark Star Ledger  
review of Willie Nelson tour with Asleep At The Wheel.

Note the references to "Dixieland" and the fact that the unsinkable  
Willie will be on the David Letterman Show this coming Monday, Feb 16.

Nice to see a guy our age, popularizing  Western Swing and Dixieland.

Cheers,
Steve Barbone
www.myspace.com/barbonestreetjazzband


Even a bum sound mix can't sink Willie
by Jay Lustig/The Star-Ledger
Friday February 13, 2009, 1:06 PM

Willie Nelson will try just about anything, and his choices are not  
getting more conservative with age.

Over the past five years, the 75-year-old outlaw-country icon has  
collaborated with everyone from Kid Rock to Wynton Marsalis, and  
recorded a reggae album, "Countryman."

Nelson is on more familiar ground on his most recent project. He and  
the band Asleep At the Wheel on Feb. 3 released a collection of  
Western swing music, "Willie and the Wheel." On Wednesday, they kicked  
off a short tour at the Count Basie Theatre in Red Bank. No other area  
dates are planned. They are to appear on "Late Show With David  
Letterman" on Monday.

Over its nearly 40-year history, Asleep At the Wheel has been on a  
mission to preserve and popularize Western swing, the jazz-influenced,  
danceable form of country music that was most popular in the 1930s and  
1940s. Nelson is an ideal ally in that battle. His roots are there,  
too, and his laid-back, conversational vocals and fluid acoustic  
guitar solos sound great over Asleep At the Wheel's driving sound.

"This is our first night on the tour. I know you can't tell," Nelson  
said, with a devilish grin, on Wednesday.

If his intent was to apologize, it really wasn't necessary. Even  
though he had absolutely no down time since his last project (gigs  
with Marsalis and Norah Jones at Jazz at Lincoln Center in New York on  
Monday and Tuesday), he and the band sounded reasonably well rehearsed.

Still, the sound mix wasn't quite right. With as many as 13 musicians  
on stage -- including trumpet and clarinet players who pushed the band  
toward Dixieland territory -- Nelson's vocals tended to get buried,  
and at times this was quite frustrating.

The heart of the show was a romp through much of the "Willie and the  
Wheel" material, including standards like "Hesitation Blues" and  
"Corrine Corrina," and playful duets with singer-fiddler Jason Roberts  
(on "Oh! You Pretty Woman") and singer-guitarist Elizabeth McQueen (on  
"I'm Sittin' On Top Of the World").

Asleep At the Wheel was on stage the whole night and opened the two- 
hour show with a set of its own material. These guys are honky-tonk  
virtuosos, though there was an air of casino-lounge slickness to their  
renditions of songs like "Route 66," "Miles and Miles of Texas" and  
"I'm an Old Cowhand (From the Rio Grande)."

After 35 minutes, Nelson casually walked on stage. Joined by harmonica  
player Mickey Raphael, the only member of his regular touring ensemble  
at this show, he opened with a burst of classics (some in shortened  
form): "Whiskey River," "Funny How Time Slips Away," "Crazy," "Night  
Life." Next came the "Willie and the Wheel" material, and then it was  
back to Nelson's usual far-ranging repertoire. The heartbreaking  
ballad "Back To Earth." A ragged "Pancho and Lefty." The philosophical  
"Still Is Still Moving To Me." "Georgia On My Mind." "Mamas, Don't Let  
Your Babies Grow Up To Be Cowboys."

The crowd sang along warmly on "Always On My Mind," and sang and  
clapped to "On the Road Again." Encores included the wry breakup song,  
"You Don't Think I'm Funny Anymore."

As Asleep At the Wheel vamped, Nelson ended the show by walking slowly  
along the front of the stage, signing CDs, pictures, posters, hats --  
whatever people thrust before him. He seemed to enjoy the task, taking  
a moment to look at each photo and read each poster, and smiling often.

Then he was gone, off to do more one-night stands: The tour hits 13  
cities in 14 days. Then, surely, there will be more tours and  
recording projects. And more surprises.

Jay Lustig may be reached at jlustig at starledger.com or (973) 392-5850.