Listen to Willie Nelson Transform The Iconic Beatles Song “One After 909”

Willie Nelson and The Beatles are two of the biggest music stars in the 20th and 21st centuries. That being so, one would think that the two might have crossed paths more times than they have. However, they haven’t, and even though we could guess as to why that is—the times in which their careers did crossover resulted in crazed fans and genre-bending covers. Indeed, it is a shame that The Beatles and its members and Willie Nelson didn’t frequent each other more often. Though, it can’t be Christmas every day. So the few interactions between the musical forces left insurmountable gifts.

One of the less notable gifts the two left the world is Willie Nelson’s cover of The Beatle’s hit, “One After 909.” Released in 1970 on the famed album, Let It Be, the song had been originally recorded in 1963. Following the 1963 recording, The Beatles weren’t satisfied with the final cut. So, they shelved it for six years and came back to it in 1970. Another person to come back to it was the Red-Headed Stranger, as Nelson performed and recorded the song at an undisclosed time and place.

Willie Nelson’s Cover

Not knowing where the cover hails from makes it all the more magnificent. As the story surrounding Nelson’s cover merely resides in the imagination of fans. Regardless, when one listens to this cover they might believe that Nelson is the song’s rightful owner. Not only does Nelson add his own musical spin with bluesy harmonica riffs and country guitar licks, but the story the song tells is seemingly right out of Nelson’s songbook.

Telling a story about a man traveling by train, the lyrics seamlessly fit into the road stories Nelson often sings about. That said, it seems between the musical and lyrical material, this was written for, if not by Nelson. Now, this of course not true, though, Nelson’s near perfection of the song would say otherwise. The tune isn’t making any musically groundbreaking moves, as the progressions and fills are all fairly prototypical. Nonetheless, it’s just fun, sounds good, and is a culmination of some of music’s greatest minds.

Even though Nelson didn’t have a strong relationship with any of The Beatles other than George Harrison. Nelson still was incredibly fond of their music, as his other Beatles covers include “With a Little Help From My Friends” and “Yesterday” alongside Merle Haggard.

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