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 Willie Nelson |
 Lukas Nelson |
 Willie Nelson |
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Story and photos by Jennifer Bronenkant Willie Nelson has been celebrating his 80th birthday since the end of April performing on stages where he has been accompanied by various friends and family. The family celebration continued with his Ravinia appearance where Nelson's son Lukas opened the night.Lukas eased into the show by performing mellow acoustic music alone before being joined by his band Promise Of The Real (POTR) to let loose his full energetic blues rock performance. A song writer in his own right, Lukas performed his own compositions showcasing his many sides including defiance "Baby I'm Gone," intense emotion in "If You Were Not My Love" and raw rock energy in "Old Familiar Pain" in which he played his guitar with his teeth and ended with a bare footed flying leap. Lukas joined his father and his family band for the rest of the show. After sixty years in the business, Willie can always be counted on to deliver on his live performances. However this evening had a special feeling to it with a livelier Willie connecting with his fans even more than his usual communion with his audience. Maybe it is the presence of more family than usual or just the specialness of reaching one's eightieth year - what ever the reason was, this night was a unique moment in time. The set included many Nelson hits like "Good Hearted Woman," "Night Life," "On The Road Again" along with an audience sing along of Waylon's "Mamas Don't Let Your Babies Grow Up To Be Cowboys." Nelson performed classic covers of artists as varied as Hank Williams, Carl Perkins, The Beatles and Fred Astaire. He showcased Lukas' blues guitar chops with Stevie Ray Vaughn's "Texas Flood." Of course, Willie continues to display his own chops on his old beat up Martin guitar Trigger. Time has not slowed down his ability to make the Trigger sing and speak in amazing ways. As the night began to wind down with traditional gospel songs, fellow country star and friend Jamey Johnson made a surprise appearance on stage along with his young daughter. Willie introduced his friend saying it was Johnson's 38th birthday and lead the audience in singing "Happy Birthday." He finished the night with his own "Roll Me Up" and Hank Williams' "I Saw The Light." |
| Willie Nelson & Family Setlist: | |
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Whiskey River Still Is Still Moving To Me Beer For My Horses Good Hearted Woman Funny How Time Slips Away Crazy Night Life Down Yonder Me and Paul Texas Flood Mamas Don't Let Your Babies Grow Up To Be Cowboys Jambalaya (On The Bayou) Hey, Good Looking |
Move It On Over Angel Flying To Close To The Ground On The Road Again Always On My Mind Matchbox Bandera South of The Border Let's Face The Music And Dance Shoeshine Man Matador Superman Georgia Let the Circle Be Unbroken I'll Fly Away The Birthday Song for Jamey Johnson Roll Me Up I Saw The Light |
 Willie & Lukas Nelson |
 Willie & Lukas Nelson |
 Lukas Nelson |
 Wille & Lukas Nelson |
 Willie Nelson |