Willie Nelson was an unknown way back when. It's hard to imagine that, given his lofty stature in the music industry today. Like any artist, he had to scamper his way up the ladder of success. And it wasn't easy. But he persisted. Today, Nelson is greatly revered by his peers and the public. His star-studded 90th birthday bash at the Hollywood Bowl proves that. Nelson's singing and songwriting are in a rarefied category all by themselves. What he does is a primer for other young artists to follow. Two important songs, "The Storm Has Just Begun" and "Blue Eyes Crying in the Rain," were both significant milestones in the evolution of the Red Headed Stranger's career, per American Songwriter. Let's examine both tunes.
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Willie Nelson's 'The Storm Has Just Begun' Marked The Start Of His Career
This song plus "When I've Sung My Last Hillbilly Song," was recorded at a radio station, per the outlet. He wrote it at the incredible ago of 12. That radio station, KBOP in Pleasanton, Texas, also gave Nelson a DJ role even though he was pretty green. Nelson gamely sent the demos to a recording label. He got a thumbs-down, unfortunately. Per the outlet, "Nelson went on to work for several radio stations throughout Texas and never gave up on his music career, despite quite a bit of hardship that led to homelessness and train-hopping."
'Blue Eyes Crying In The Rain' Proved To Be A Breakthrough For Nelson
Nelson's career gained some a welcome bit of traction at this point. Some successes finally came his way. He penned Faron Young's 'Hello Walls' and a song that would be a hit of historic proportions for Patsy Cline, 'Crazy." But his big breakthrough was yet to come.
Even though Nelson did not write this song, "Blue Eyes Crying in the Rain" went all the way to number 1 for him. He had made it to the pinnacle. Other vocalists who covered it included Roy Acuff, Elvis Presley, Hank Williams Sr., and Charley Pride. Nelson also earned a Grammy for this song 50 years ago for Best Country Vocal Performance, Male. That proved to be his first Grammy, but but by no means his last one. It also nabbed an American Music Award for Favorite Country Single.
Looks like the people who passed Willie Nelson over so many years ago might have alter regretted it!
