Willie Nelson & Friends - Outlaws and Angels

Outlaws and Angels is the audio counterpart to the Willie Nelson Special that aired on cable television in the summer of 2004. Here, Nelson is surrounded by friends who also happen to be fans. Among them are Keith Richards, Lucinda Williams, Merle Haggard, Carole King, Al Green, the Holmes Brothers, Toby Keith, Kid Rock, Shelby Lynne, Jerry Lee Lewis, Los Lonely Boys, Toots Hibbert, Joe Walsh, Ben Harper, Rickie Lee Jones, and Lee Ann Womack. Interestingly, Bob Dylan, who was part of the broadcast, is absent here, though he has top billing on the advert for the DVD that comes in the package. That said, this set is for the hardcore only: the first irritating thing is that the announcer for the evening introduces each guest -- sometimes in the middle of a song! While this could have been easily edited, the fact that it was left in for the audio CD is inexcusable. Secondly, the material, while compelling, is rarely executed in such a way. The ease that Haggard and Nelson display with one another is rarely achieved elsewhere. Williams' duet with Nelson on "Overtime" is truly beautiful, and the pair share an affinity for delivering ballads without overstatement. Likewise, Keith Richards' appearance with Nelson on "We Had It All carries with it real authority, and Nelson's own delivery on the tune is stellar and deeply and oddly, Richards' own vocal, despite his limited range, complements Willie's well in a roughshod way. But these are the clear highlights. The rest, with Haggard, Lewis, Kid Rock, and Richards, is just plain embarrassing. This is a mixed bag to be sure, but it's not without some charm. If only the presentation were better. ~ Thom Jurek, All Music Guide

Name Credits Al Green Musician, Guitar (Acoustic), Vocals Bee Spears Bass, Group Member Ben Harper Vocals, Musician, Slide Guitar Bernard Fowler Vocals (Background), Musician, Group Member Biff Watson Guitar, Guitar (Acoustic), Group Member, Musician Bill Churchville Musician, Group Member, Trumpet Billy Gene English Percussion, Group Member Bobbie Nelson Group Member, Piano Carole King Vocals Craig Allen Art Direction, Design David Hewitt Engineer, Audio Engineer David Woodford Group Member, Saxophone Doug Rich Production Assistant Ed Seay Mixing Eric Dout Music Clearance Family Band Musician Garrett Adkins Group Member, Trombone Greg Leisz Group Member, Pedal Steel Hank Williams Mastering Henry Garza Guitar, Musician Ivan Neville Group Member, Piano, Musician James "Hutch" Hutchinson Bass, Group Member, Musician, Bass (Upright) James Caan MC, Guest Appearance James Stroud Producer, Audio Production Jeff Keese Technician Jerry Lee Lewis Vocals, Piano (Grand), Musician, Piano Jim Cox Group Member, Keyboards Jim Keltner Musician, Group Member, Drums Jimmy Ripp Musician, Guitar (Electric), Guitar (Rhythm), Music Direction, Group Member Jody Payne Vocals (Background), Guitar, Group Member Joe Walsh Vocals, Guitar (Electric), Musician JoJo Garza Musician, Bass Julia Tillman Waters Vocals (Background), Musician, Group Member Keith Richards Vocals, Guitar (Electric), Musician, Guitar (Acoustic) Kenny Lovelace Group Member, Guitar Kid Rock Vocals, Guitar (Electric), Musician Kim Buie A&R Lee Ann Womack Vocals Lester Cohen Photography Lester Yano Music Clearance Lonely Boys Vocals (Background) Lucinda Williams Vocals Mark Rothbaum Producer, Audio Production Maxine Willard Waters Vocals (Background), Musician, Group Member Merle Haggard Musician, Guitar (Electric), Vocals, Guitar (Acoustic) Michael Caulfield Photography Mickey Raphael Harmonica, Group Member Nils Lofgren Group Member, Guitar Paul English Group Member, Drums Peter Tidlen Announcer Richard Landers Stage Manager Rickie Lee Jones Vocals Ringo Garza Drums, Musician Scott Peets Production Manager Shelby Lynne Vocals Sherman Holmes Bass, Musician Stacie Michelle Musician, Group Member, Vocals (Background) Tammy Luker Production Assistant The Holmes Brothers Vocals The House Band Musician Toby Keith Musician, Vocals, Guitar (Acoustic) Tony Abner Music Clearance Toots Hibbert Guitar (Acoustic), Musician, Vocals Willie "Popsy" Dixon Musician, Drums Willie Nelson Guitar (Acoustic), Musician, Vocals