A Beautiful Time

by Willie Nelson

Overview

Mortality hangs heavily on A Beautiful Time, as perhaps it should. The album came out on April 29, 2022, a day that's otherwise known as Willie Nelson's 89th birthday, and it arrived roughly two months after the death of his sister Bobbie, who played alongside him for the better part of 40 years. A Beautiful Time was recorded long before Bobbie's passing, with Buddy Cannon -- the producer who has been Willie's regular collaborator since 2012, when he returned to Sony/Legacy with Heroes -- supervising sessions that feature musicians who've been regulars on Nelson's albums over the last decade. All of this means A Beautiful Time is very much of a piece with the records that immediately proceed it, albums that also feature Nelson pondering mortality, yet there's a sense of earned wisdom and wry humor that elevates it above such elegantly mellow records as First Rose of Spring. Some of this sensibility derives from how Nelson doesn't shy away from the inevitable, singing about death directly: the opener, co-written by Chris Stapleton and Rodney Crowell, is called "I'll Love You 'Til the Day I Die" and he later sings "I Don't Go to Funerals," delivering the punchline "and I won't go to mine" with a shrug. "I Don't Go to Funerals" is one of several fine originals by Nelson and Cannon, a batch that includes the remarkable "Energy Follows Thought," a meditative and cautionary tale of acting upon rash impulse. These weightier numbers are balanced by such lighter moments as the warm nostalgia of "My Heart Was a Dancer" and "We're Not Happy (Til You're Not Happy)," a wickedly funny portrait of playing poker with Willie. Appropriately for an album fixated on mortality, Nelson embraces his diminished vocal range, letting his breathiness convey bittersweet sentiment along with dry wit. His dusty singing is countered by his robust guitar, his fleet, melodic solos lending a sense of earthy grace to the barroom shuffles and waltzes. Nelson's guitar and voice have intertwined and complemented each other throughout his career yet it's still a marvel to hear him find sustenance and surprises within his music, and that's what makes A Beautiful Time so rewarding: it's no small achievement that Willie Nelson is still deepening his artistry at the age of 89. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine

Product Details

Release Date:	04/29/2022
Label:	Barnes & Noble
UPC:	0194399535813
Rank:	8504

Album Credits

Performance Credits

Willie Nelson   Primary Artist,Vocals,Guitar (Nylon String)
Kevin Grantt   Bass (Upright)
Bobby Terry   Bass,Piano,Guitar (Steel),Guitar (Acoustic),Guitar (Electric)
Mickey Raphael   Harmonica
Jim "Moose" Brown   Organ,Piano,Wurlitzer,Synthesizer
Catherine Marx   Piano,Wurlitzer
Barry Bales   Bass (Upright)
Chad Cromwell   Drums
Melonie Cannon   Vocals (Background)
Lonnie Wilson   Drums,Percussion
Buddy Cannon   Vocals (Background)
Fred Eltringham   Drums,Percussion
James Mitchell   Guitar (Electric)
Mike Johnson   Guitar (Steel)

Technical Credits

Shawn Camp   Composer
Paul McCartney   Composer
Steve Chadie   Engineer
Leonard Cohen   Composer
Bobby Terry   Composer,Engineer
Jim "Moose" Brown   Composer
Don Sampson   Composer
John Lennon   Composer
Rodney Crowell   Composer
Scotty Emerick   Composer
Buddy Cannon   Composer,Producer
Willie Nelson   Composer
Andrew Mendelson   Mastering
Tony Castle   Mixing,Engineer
Douglas Graham   Composer
Frank Harkins   Design,Art Direction
Ken Lambert   Composer
Charles Humphrey III   Composer
Chris Stapleton   Composer
Matt Rossi   Composer
Shannon Finnegan   Production Coordination
Chris Chen   Assistant
Steve Mazur   Assistant Engineer
Jack Wesley Routh   Composer
Sean R. Badum   Assistant Engineer
Joe Trentacosti   Assistant Engineer
Kevin Boettger   Assistant Engineer
Matt Leigh   Assistant Engineer
Taylor Chadwick   Assistant
Michelle Freetly   Assistant Engineer
Luke Armentrout   Assistant
Jacob Friga   Assistant
Nick Molino   Assistant Engineer