I have heard of people using all kinds of materials to write songs on. This is true especially if it's a makeshift thing out of the blue - napkins, paper scraps, a matchbox. But Willie Nelson, the most lovable "outlaw" of country music there ever was, takes the cake for this. He reportedly used an airplane vomit bag to write "On The Road Again." Now if Nelson, now 91, got inspired while looking out a plane window and grabbed the first thing he could to jot down the tune, I could understand. But a vomit bag? I guess so. Whatever works for you, Willie!
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What Prompted Willie Nelson To Use A Vomit Bag To Write On Anyway?
Here Is The Story Of The Creation Of 'On The Road Again'
Per Songfacts, "This was written on the spur of the moment on an airsickness bag when Nelson was on a plane with Jerry Schatzberg, the director of the movie Honeysuckle Rose and its executive producer Sydney Pollack. Nelson explained to Uncut magazine via Songfacts, "They were looking for songs for the movie and they asked me if I had any idea. I said, 'What do you want the song to say?' and Sydney said, 'Can it be something about being on the road?' It just started to click. I said 'You mean like, On the road again, I can't wait to get on the road again?'"
The 1980 film stared Nelson, Dyan Cannon, Slim Pickens, and Amy Irving. "On The Road Again" earned a Grammy for Best Country Song. The tune was also nominated for an Academy Award in the category of Best Original Song. It lost out to "Fame" by Irene Cara. The film did not fare so well either. Songfacts said, "The movie was not a big success."
Nelson Did Not Hurry To Come Up With The Melody For The Song
He Took His Time
Per the outlet, "Nelson put off writing the melody for months until the day before he went to the studio to cut the song." He noted in his autobiography via Songfacts, "I saw no reason to put a melody to something I wasn't ready to record, I knew I wouldn't have any problem pulling the melody out of the air."
