Ray Wylie Hubbard has shared the crazy story of the time Willie Nelson's band kidnapped the singer to take him to a gig.
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Another story to add to the ever-growing list of crazy Willie Nelson moments.
The legendary country singer-songwriter sat down on the Drifting Cowboy podcast, where he shared the story. It's unclear when exactly this happened, but it was during Nelson's prime years, which honestly doesn't narrow it down much either.
Regardless, poor Hubbard was sleeping at around 3 am when his phone started buzzing. He answered the phone to Paul English, Willie's drummer and best friend. With English, was Pootie Locke, Nelson's tour manager, and Michael Gene Schroeder.
English kept trying to get Hubbard to open up and let them in, but he wasn't in the mood for hanging out.
However, he soon caves. "Against my better judgement, I let them in," he begrudgingly recalls.
There, they tell Hubbard what they wanted. "They said, 'Well, we're gonna meet Willie out in Garland on the Time 2,' that was his first bus. 'We're going to Milwaukee to a beer fest. Come on with us,' Hubbard remembered them saying.
He had plans to see the Eagles with a girl he later wanted to bed, but they weren't taking no for an answer.
So, Willie Nelson's Band Kidnaps Him
Apparently, Nelson's team brushed off the whole Eagles idea, "'Oh, man you don't wanna go see The Eagles. They sound just like their records.'"
As he wasn't budging, they kidnapped him. "So anyhow, about 6 that morning, Pootie and Michael Gene picked me up and carried me down the stairs. And Rut Reynolds, my roommate guy, comes up and gives me a toothbrush and a leather jacket."
Being forced down to Garland, he thought he might as well get on the bus to see Nelson. He was still intent on seeing The Eagles, but now he was on the bus, they initiated phase two.
"We get on this bus, next thing I know we take off. And I go, 'Wait a minute, no.'"
But it was too late.
"They came up and put a pillow case over my head, and start blowing pot smoke in it."
He never did take the girl to see The Eagles, but she grabbed the tickets and went anyway. Although Hubbard never explicitly said that he was kidnapped to perform a gig, considering where they were going and who Hubbard is, I'd be surprised that they kidnapped him just to hang out.
