Nelson Takes Another Smooth Ride Down the River

Whiskey river take my mind, don’t let her memory torture me....

Yes, Willie Nelson is on the road again, and he opened his concert Saturday at the Universal Amphitheatre with “Whiskey River,” the honky-tonk lament he has used to open every concert since, well ... forever.

And, yes, the free-spirited Texan still sings some of his early compositions, including “Crazy,” which was a smash in 1961 for Patsy Cline, and “Funny How Time Slips Away,” one of the most compact and poetic country ballads ever.

And, yes, Nelson still sings hits from the Waylon and Willie outlaw days, including “Mammas Don’t Let Your Babies Grow Up to Be Cowboys” and “Luckenbach, Texas.”

And, yes, it still sounds delightful.

The discovery of exciting new artists and songs is the most stimulating part of the pop music experience, but there’s a lot to be said for rediscovery of the masters--and two of them were on the Universal Amphitheatre stage Saturday: Nelson and Ray Charles.

It was a rare pairing of two great artists who have moved beyond the boundaries of their respective fields (country and soul) to make music that speaks with a deep sense of history and truth.

After a 20-minute instrumental segment by his large band, Charles opened the concert with an hour of tunes--and yes, that meant a reprise of such signature numbers as Percy Mayfield’s “Hit the Road, Jack,” Don Gibson’s “I Can’t Stop Loving You” and Charles’ own “What’d I Say.”

Charles, who accompanies himself on electric piano, can still make you marvel at his phrasing, which draws from gospel music, but he seemed too restricted by the big-band arrangements. Things were more interesting when he stepped away from his routine to interact with Nelson on Hoagy Carmichael and Stuart Gorrell’s “Georgia on My Mind,” a hit for both co-headliners and the evening’s only collaboration between the two.

Charles, 71, also seemed more involved vocally when he relied on just a rhythm section to back him on a bluesy, urgent rendition of Mayfield’s “Stranger in My Own Home Town” and on an earnest treatment of Leon Russell’s ballad “Song for You.”

Despite the familiar material in the first two-thirds of Nelson’s two-hour set, the music seemed more consistently personal and involving. Like Charles, Nelson, 68, is a singer with an unusually distinctive style, and his acoustic guitar work adds even more character to his music.

Nelson, however, is more effective at broadening his music, constantly bringing in inviting new strains. He used the final third of the concert to showcase songs from his last three albums, including the new “The Great Divide.”

Produced by Matt Serletic and featuring such guest writers and singers as Rob Thomas, Bernie Taupin, Sheryl Crow and Kid Rock, the album is an ambitious attempt to reestablish Nelson as a mainstream bestseller, much in the manner of Santana’s “Supernatural.”

Though sometimes striking, the Lost Highway release feels overproduced in places, sabotaging the simplicity and grace that are Nelson trademarks. The singer was more effective Saturday in a bluesy, customized version of Kokomo Arnold’s old “Milk Cow Blues,” the title song of his 2000 album on Island Records. Guest guitarist Kenny Wayne Shepherd added some scorching licks.

In another winning segment, Nelson reached back to the ‘40s and early ‘50s for four tunes written by or associated with country legend Hank Williams, including “Jambalaya” and “My Bucket’s Got a Hole in It.”

How fitting that on a night of rediscovery for many in the audience, Nelson demonstrated that he, too, still knows the value of looking back.