Happy Birthday, Willie!

Kids, this week marks a big anniversary, well, birthday.  It's huge in the country music world and I'm sure it can be to some of you: It's Willie Nelson's 80th birthday!

Now of course, we'll be discussing the different country music stars who have been influenced by Willie  and some of their stories about Willie and memories of him on the show today.  So I thought, why don't we talk about some of ours?

One of my pivotal albums in my younger days was the "Storytellers" CD special for Willie Nelson and Johnny Cash.  They sat together on VH1 and told stories and played their favorite songs they've written and recorded.

Believe it or not, but I was very much the kind of kid who thought that Country music was "UNCOOL" in my younger days.  I was very into the whole '90s rock thing and alternative music, and even some of the older retro stuff that came into play at the time.  So I tended to just dismiss the whole genre without even really listening to it.  But I caught a few moments of this special on the TV, and I was intrigued enough to check out the CD.  That was enough to open my eyes.  I thought, "these are not only catchy songs, but introspective and interesting tunes..."  and it encouraged me to find out more.

And now, years later, here I am hosting my own radio show where we play country music for five hours a day! Who knew, right?  Well, I'll play a few of my favorites, including a couple from that very CD today on the show.  Why not share some of your Willie favorites, or favorite stories, or any thoughts about the guy or his legacy here?

Let's talk Willie Nation!

Behka