Willie Nelson is an American country music singer-songwriter, musician, guitarist, actor, and activist. He was born on April 30, 1933, in Abbott, Texas. His parents, Ira and Myrle, were fans of country music and sang together in the church choir. Willie's grandfather, Nelson Haworth, was a fiddle player.
Willie began writing songs at the age of seven and first performed publicly at the age of nine. He joined his first band, the Bohemian Polka, when he was fifteen. He left home at the age of eighteen to play in bands in Texas honky-tonks.
Nelson's first recording, No Place for Me, was released in 1960. He signed with Liberty Records in 1962 and released his first album, And Then I Wrote, the following year. The album included his first hit song, Crazy, which was written by Nelson and recorded by Patsy Cline.
Nelson's career took off in the 1970s, when he joined forces with Waylon Jennings, Kris Kristofferson, and Johnny Cash to form the country music supergroup, The Highwaymen. The group recorded three albums and had several hit singles, including On the Road Again, which was written by Nelson.
Nelson has continued to record and perform throughout his career, and has released over one hundred albums. He has won numerous awards, including Grammy Awards, Country Music