422. Willie Nelson - Stardust (1978)













Track Listing

1. Stardust
2. Georgia On My Mind
3. Blue Skies
4. All Of Me
5. Unchained Melody
6. September Song
7. On The Sunny Side Of The Street
8. Moonlight In Vermont
9. Don't Get Around Much Anymore
10. Someone To Watch Over Me

Review

Willie moves slightly away from Country music to grace us with songs from the great songbooks... I can't say American Songbook because September Song is by Kurt Weil. I say slightly moved away from Country because there is a definite case of Willie's roots showing here and that is not necessarily a bad thing, Willie makes these songs his own.

At times the tracks might be a bit overly tacky or sentimental, and after Ghost who can listen to Unchained Melody without cringing? Still Willie show a definite tender side to himself and he really seems to feel what he is singing. They are definitely convincing performances.

This is one of the first cases and a door opener for many other singers later, and particularly in the last 10 years who have decided to tackle similar material in order to broaden their audience. Sometimes it works (Bryan Ferry) sometimes it is successful commercially but makes your ears bleed (Rod Stewart) and sometimes they take the reverse approach (Paul Anka)... but it seems to be a guaranteed cash-in, and it was for Willie as well. But Willie is good at it, he keeps it in his capabilities and imparts them with sincere feeling... good on him. As my wife says cute and lovely but tacky.

Track Highlights

1. Georgia On My Mind
2. September Song
3. Stardust
4. On The Sunny Side Of The Street

Final Grade

8/10

Trivia

From Wikipedia:

In 2003, the album was ranked number 257 on Rolling Stone magazine's list of the 500 greatest albums of all time.


Georgia On My Mind: