The lights turned low, Willie stepped up to the microphone, and started singing “Whiskey River” to open the show. A Texas flag unfolded as a back drop from the first strum of the guitar. Five musicians followed Willie’s lead and every chord or note that he played for the entire music presentation. The Genesee Theater in Waukegan, Illinois had one great song after another played and it was a time to remember.

Willie Nelson strummed, picked, and sang, entertaining a packed auditorium. This aging country music star lived up to his reputation packing a hell of a wallop into the ears of the audience. This guitbox player only used one guitar for the entire show and it was quite apparent he had used this one a lot before. There was a hole in the guitar from where he had picked and strummed so many times it had worn through the top of the body on his acoustic. The battle scares to his instrument is something he should be proud of.

The song “Still Is Still Moving To Me” was early on in the set and pure pleasure to hear. As the words and music were projected from the stage you knew you were seeing a country music legend. The fast paced ditty had everyone in the place dancing in their seats.

Plenty of songs were squeezed into the evening, but when in the presence of Willie Nelson, a hundred songs is never enough. Pieces like “Crazy” and “Me and Paul” were amongst the songs played for the true fans delight. “Angel Flying To Close To The Ground” was yet another one that impressed many within the theater.

“Georgia,” “All Of Me,” and “On The Road Again” all were done and over so fast leaving everyone wanting more. “Hey Good Looking” was a piece that just stole everyone’s musical soul and messaged it creating a perfect aura for the evening. Such a timeless classic written by Hank Williams and perfectly performed by Willie.

“Always On My Mind” has been recorded by so many musicians over the years including Elvis Presley, but no one has done it as well as Willie. Since the release in 1982 of this single most true fans can’t listen to anyone else sing it anymore. The opinions at the Genesee Theater were all the same for this show. Everyone was singing along with him and seemed to be in perfect harmony.

The wonderful Steve Goodman classic “City of New Orleans” was music perfection. Nothing seemed to bring in the cheers as much as the song “To All The Girls I’ve Loved Before.” Julio Iglesias was no where to be found, but there were plenty of singers in the room. Willie performed the hit song just as well without his original singing partner and nobody seemed to miss him. 

It didn’t really seem to matter what this country music icon was singing as long as he kept on doing it. He threw bandanas into the crowd and just before he left the stage he was slapping concert goers hands in the front of the theater and then signed as many autographs as he could before departing as his backing band played some traveling music for him. What a class act.

Willie had chosen a great group of musicians to back him up. He had a piano player, bass player, snare drum player, harmonica player, and a percussionist. The group of entertainers seemed to play within a synchronization and it is clear they had become one. Every accent provided by each player was such a pleasure to hear and he couldn’t have done it without them.

There have been some great musical acts in the last fifty years, but this man has his own unique playing style. The country music outlaw had no fancy stage show, lights, or any smoke and mirrors to make his show appear better. Just being able to see him play was show enough and he didn’t need anything flashy. Thank you Willie Nelson for becoming a musician. You will always be considered one of the best.