At nearly 91, Willie Nelson has performed on stage with just about every notable musician of the past 70 years. He ticked off another milestone last night (March 14), when he teamed with none other than Kermit the Frog for the surprise opening song of his set at Luck Reunion on his ranch outside Austin in Spicewood, Tx.
Having previously covered the green Muppet’s iconic “Rainbow Connection” as the title track of a 2001 album, Nelson welcomed Kermit for a truly heartwarming collaboration. “I think they liked it,” Nelson mused afterwards. “Yeah, that was great!,” Kermit replied. “I think we finally found the connection,” Nelson said. Kermit returned later in the show to lend a hand on the gospel favorites “Will the Circle Be Unbroken” and “I’ll Fly Away,” as well as Nelson’s familiar take on Mac Davis’ “Hard To Be Humble.”
As legend has it, Nelson’s daughter Amy was in kindergarten when she first heard “Rainbow Connection” in 1979’s The Muppet Movie, and then spent the next two decades trying to convince her dad to record it. In a full circle moment, it was eventually put to tape with Amy producing at the studio on the Luck Ranch property, which yesterday hosted its 12th edition of the Reunion.
Beyond Nelson’s 22-song set, the event featured performances by Tyler Childers, a collaborative set from Dawes and Lucius, Claud, Durand Jones, John Oates, Madi Diaz, Old Crow Medicine Show, the Polyphonic Spree and Toadies, among many others.
This week, Nelson also announced a new studio album, The Border, which will arrive May 31 from Legacy Recordings. It features 10 takes on contemporary country songs, led by a cover of Rodney Crowell’s “The Border.”
Nelson will be joined by a host of famous friends this summer on the 2024 edition of the Outlaw Music Festival tour, including Bob Dylan, Robert Plant and Alison Krauss and John Mellencamp. The Blackbird Presents-organized trek, which launched in 2016, kicks off June 23 in Alpharetta, Ga., and wraps Sept. 17 in Corfu, N.Y.
