Claim: Willie Nelson served in the Air Force.

Willie Hugh Nelson -LRB- born April 29 , 1933 -RRB- is an American musician , singer , songwriter , author , poet , actor , and activist . The critical success of the album Shotgun Willie -LRB- 1973 -RRB- , combined with the critical and commercial success of Red Headed Stranger -LRB- 1975 -RRB- and Stardust -LRB- 1978 -RRB- , made Nelson one of the most recognized artists in country music . He was one of the main figures of outlaw country , a subgenre of country music that developed in the late 1960s as a reaction to the conservative restrictions of the Nashville sound . Nelson has acted in over 30 films , co-authored several books , and has been involved in activism for the use of biofuels and the legalization of marijuana .   Born during the Great Depression , and raised by his grandparents , Nelson wrote his first song at age seven and joined his first band at ten . During high school , he toured locally with the Bohemian Polka as their lead singer and guitar player . After graduating from high school in 1950 , he joined the Air Force but was later discharged due to back problems . After his return , Nelson attended Baylor University for two years but dropped out because he was succeeding in music . During this time , he worked as a disc jockey in Texas radio stations and a singer in honky-tonks . Nelson moved to Vancouver , Washington , where he wrote `` Family Bible '' and recorded the song `` Lumberjack '' in 1956 . In 1958 , he moved to Houston , Texas , after signing a contract with D Records . He sang at the Esquire Ballroom weekly and he worked as a disk jockey . During that time , he wrote songs that would become country standards , including `` Funny How Time Slips Away '' , `` Hello Walls '' , `` Pretty Paper '' , and `` Crazy '' . In 1960 he moved to Nashville , Tennessee , and later signed a publishing contract with Pamper Music which allowed him to join Ray Price 's band as a bassist . In 1962 , he recorded his first album , ... And Then I Wrote . Due to this success , Nelson signed in 1964 with RCA Victor and joined the Grand Ole Opry the following year . After mid-chart hits in the late 1960s and the early 1970s , Nelson retired in 1972 and moved to Austin , Texas . The ongoing music scene of Austin motivated Nelson to return from retirement , performing frequently at the Armadillo World Headquarters .   In 1973 , after signing with Atlantic Records , Nelson turned to outlaw country , including albums such as Shotgun Willie and Phases and Stages . In 1975 , he switched to Columbia Records , where he recorded the critically acclaimed album Red Headed Stranger . The same year , he recorded another outlaw country album , Wanted ! The Outlaws , along with Waylon Jennings , Jessi Colter , and Tompall Glaser . During the mid-1980s , while creating hit albums like Honeysuckle Rose and recording hit songs like `` On the Road Again '' , `` To All the Girls I 've Loved Before '' , and `` Pancho and Lefty '' , he joined the country supergroup The Highwaymen , along with fellow singers Johnny Cash , Waylon Jennings , and Kris Kristofferson .   In 1990 , Nelson 's assets were seized by the Internal Revenue Service , which claimed that he owed . The difficulty of paying his outstanding debt was aggravated by weak investments he had made during the 1980s . In 1992 , Nelson released The IRS Tapes : Who 'll Buy My Memories ? ; the profits of the double album -- destined to the IRS -- and the auction of Nelson 's assets cleared his debt . During the 1990s and 2000s , Nelson continued touring extensively , and released albums every year . Reviews ranged from positive to mixed . He explored genres such as reggae , blues , jazz , and folk . Nelson made his first movie appearance in the 1979 film The Electric Horseman , followed by other appearances in movies and on television . Nelson is a major liberal activist and the co-chair of the advisory board of the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws -LRB- NORML -RRB- , which is in favor of marijuana legalization . On the environmental front , Nelson owns the bio-diesel brand Willie Nelson Biodiesel , which is made from vegetable oil . Nelson is also the honorary chairman of the Advisory Board of the Texas Music Project , the official music charity of the state of Texas .