BY MIKE METTLER – FEBRUARY 28, 2018
Legacy Recordings will release Last Man Standing, Willie Nelson’s new studio album (and 11th for the label), on April 27, 2018. Arriving just in time for Willie’s 85th birthday on April 29, Last Man Standing will be available on CD, 12-inch vinyl, and digital formats. The album can be pre-ordered here.
The SoundBard has been quite enjoying Willie’s run of new material in recent years — especially on vinyl, including 2014’s Band of Brothers, 2016’s Summertime: Willie Nelson Sings Gershwin, and 2017’s God’s Problem Child — and I look forward to hearing this latest work as well.
The first single from this project is the title track, “Last Man Standing,” and Willie has just shared a music video capturing the making of it. In fact, you can view the “Last Man Standing” video right here:
Last Man Standing, comprised entirely of songs newly penned by Willie Nelson and longtime collaborator and producer Buddy Cannon, is the worthy successor to God’s Problem Child, which showcased seven Nelson-Cannon compositions and debuted at #1 on the Country charts in 2017. It’s also interesting to note that Willie and Buddy have been working together since 2008, with Cannon producing more than a dozen of Willie’s albums to date.
With Last Man Standing, Nelson has added 11 essential new songs to his classic catalog. One of Willie’s most personal and introspective albums to date, Last Man Standing reveals the emotional range of Willie’s concerns, from the deeply reflective (“Something You Get Through”) to the rollicking and playful (“Me and You,” “Ready to Roar”).
The Nelson-Cannon songwriting duo deploys a unique strategy of shared composition, beginning with back-and-forth text messaging of lyrics with the melodies. On Last Man Standing, Nelson and Cannon’s unorthodox approach generated the aforementioned 11 original songs. “Willie’s a jazz singer and jazz player,” observes Cannon. “He’s an improvisational musician. It’s different every time. Get a good take, and go with it.”
An album that acknowledges the transience of time while marveling at the joy, beauty, and surprise the world has to offer, Last Man Standing finds Willie Nelson rolling at a creative peak, writing and singing and playing with the seasoned wit and wisdom that comes from a life spent on the road.
WILLIE NELSON: LAST MAN STANDINGTRACK LISTING
1. Last Man Standing
2. Don’t Tell Noah
3. Bad Breath
4. Me And You
5. Something You Get Through
6. Ready To Roar
7. Heaven Is Closed
8. I Ain’t Got Nothin’
9. She Made My Day
10. I’ll Try To Do Better Next Time
11. Very Far To Crawl
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