The Waylon Jennings Estate Is About to Get a Big Boost
For years now, some Waylon Jennings fans have been a little frustrated about how the legacy of this critical country music Outlaw just seems to be a little stalled compared to his contemporaries. Of course to true country music fans, the memory of Waylon Jennings will never be forgotten. But unlike some other country legends such as Johnny Cash or George Jones for example, we never got a Waylon Jennings museum, or a big biopic film, or other things that could help solidify or renew Waylon’s memory in culture.
Dying relatively young in 2002 at the age of 64, Waylon Jennings also never really got to enjoy a Golden Era of his career like we see older artists such as Willie Nelson and Dolly Parton enjoying today, with adulation and annual tributes making sure that the next generation of country fans never forget these iconic artists and their contributions.
All of that might be about to change though. Announced on Monday, October 26th, The Waylon Jennings estate has partnered with talent agency WME to manage Waylon’s posthumous career moving forward as part of the company’s Legacy Division. The company will manage Waylon’s name, image, likeness and intellectual property rights and assets, with the blessing and the help of his widow Jessi Colter, and his son Shooter Jennings.
“WME Legends is proud to be working with Jessi Colter, Shooter Jennings and the Waylon Jennings estate,” said head of WME Legends Phil Sandhaus in a statement. “Waylon is considered the most important force in country’s Outlaw movement—not only creatively but also for the business standard he set for other artists to strive for in their musical freedom.”
WME’s Legends also manages the posthumous estates of Notorious B.I.G., Peter Tosh, Andy Kaufman, and others.
“The WME Legends team looks forward to working with the family to holistically manage Waylon’s name, image, likeness, life and IP rights and assets worldwide to grow his legacy with a new generation,” Phil Sandhaus continued.
Though no specific plans have been announced at the moment, it’s certainly a positive sign that perhaps we will be seeing and hearing a lot more about the Hoss in the coming years, since WME Legends will have plenty of rea$on$ to make sure Waylon’s legacy doesn’t go forgotten.
Stay tuned.
October 27, 2021 @ 11:23 am
Well, I am happy this happened, but Waylon will never be forgotten in my eyes. Glad Jessi and Shooter are helping this happen.
October 30, 2021 @ 8:04 am
He will ALWAYS be remembered. Still makes me feel sad when I think about it!
October 31, 2021 @ 1:50 pm
Jellyroll
December 18, 2021 @ 2:45 pm
True.. Jessi did reply about this as she sold things off . She said it’s a natural progression that is hard for everyone but the money goes to help other song writers. Singers & foundations. I think they are all good with it.
Yes true, Shooter & Jessi have careers going strong, not every country singer etc wants the same things. Don’t be hate’n just repeating because I was upset about some auction. They was the reply????????♀️✌????
October 27, 2021 @ 11:38 am
Whatever happened to the movie that was supposed to be made about Waylon? I remember about 5 or 6 years ago Shooter said they were in the works on it but all of a sudden he stopped talking about it. Did did it get put on hold?
October 27, 2021 @ 12:44 pm
To me, a Waylon bio could be on par, quality-wise to the Ray Charles movie. Think about all the stories that would go into it, from giving his seat on the plane to the Big Bopper, to how he was almost broke but worked show after show to get out of it, doing his music his own way, the way he kicked the drug habit…
Lots of interesting stories that would seemingly be very easy to depict on film.
October 28, 2021 @ 6:22 am
So thankful that he is getting the recognition he deserves. Also for Jessi she stood by him and help him get his life
She kept her marriage vows. Thanks to Shooter for helping this happen
October 27, 2021 @ 2:11 pm
That’s the thing. For years it’s felt like the Waylon estate has just sort of been stuck in molasses. That’s not necessarily a knock on Shooter or Jessi. They’ve got their own careers to manage. What you need is folks dedicating themselves to making sure an estate is being represented, and projects are moving forward with the heirs checking off or vetoing things. Hopefully WME signing on will help things like the Waylon film come to fruition.
October 28, 2021 @ 7:23 pm
As long as Maria Elena Holly is alive, a Waylon movie might never be made. Waylon’s off the cuff remark of 2/3/59 will have to be addressed, and she will never go for that.
October 28, 2021 @ 7:32 pm
Huh?
October 29, 2021 @ 7:45 pm
Quote:” Well, I hope your ol” plane crashes.” End quote.
December 18, 2021 @ 2:39 pm
Not to be rude but they all made comments & that’s just that. So ?
October 27, 2021 @ 12:05 pm
Some of my earliest memories were as a young kid, riding around in my granddad’s truck listening to Waylon on 8-tracks… been a fan my entire life. To me, Waylon IS country music, plain and simple.
October 27, 2021 @ 2:38 pm
Likewise I’m a huge fan of Waylon, and this is great news, however WME had better get a wriggle on as I’m now 75 years young.
October 27, 2021 @ 5:01 pm
James Stewart: I’m am and always will be a true die hard fan, of the Man the Artist the Composer the True Human Being, and most of all the Legend,”WAYLON JENNINGS” ! The first time that I heard the song “We were the wild one’s”I went bought 4 albums of the “OUTLAWS”, for me and my 3 brothers,it seems like every song was written about Us, and a few more members of the now more tamed”WILDBUNCH” MC. Ty.Texas!!!
November 2, 2021 @ 10:10 am
As far as I’m concerned, MR WAYLON JENNINGS should posthumously be crowned the KING of OUTLAW COUNTRY MUSIC forever Period. He will forever be missed by me, and the whole world of Die hard Country fans such as myself, But more importantly He will never ever be Forgotten. EVER. Thank you Jessi and Shooter for you’re dedication and you’re hard work helping to keep Waylons Legacy Alive and moving forward for future generations to come, so that they too can know and understand and come to Love the man behind the greatest singer that ever stood behind a microphone, in my opinion. Thanks again, and thanks for letting me post my opinion on this subject. Ya’ll have a blessed day. AND GOD BLESS US EVERYONE.
October 27, 2021 @ 3:00 pm
Waylon is my all-time favorite, so anxious to see what comes of this!
October 27, 2021 @ 4:56 pm
My brother and I used to have friendly arguments about who was better, Merle or Waylon. I always argued for Waylon and he for Merle. They were both a damn sight better than anything that has come since….
October 27, 2021 @ 5:31 pm
Funny you say that as Merle is my 1.5, I cannot even demote him to number 2 as he was dang good too!
October 28, 2021 @ 6:11 am
You are so correct. Country music isn’t really very country anymore. I guess if you match a hi hop beat with a fiddle, that’s considered new country these days. Sad.
October 27, 2021 @ 4:46 pm
They keep trying. Every few years, Shooter and Jessi seem to get behind some new, multi-artist Waylon tribute project, but it always drops like a lead balloon.
I don’t know what the problem is. I know that Waylon became somewhat bitter in his last years, possibly due to his poor health among other things. He declined to attend his own H-o-F induction in 2001.
It was sad because Waylon had always had a great sense of humor and enthusiasm In the Highwaymen group, Waylon was the de facto leader on stage–either by design or because he just grabbed the mantle and engaged with the audience while Wille was reticent and stood mostly off to the side.
Also, Waylon put out a string of quality individual albums in the ’90s, where he even wrote or co-wrote the bulk of the songs. “Too Dumb for New York City, Too Ugly for L.A.,”Waymore’s Blues (Part II),” “Right for the Time,” and “Closing In on the Fire.” Waylon and Haggard were the only artists of their era who were still writing at that point. Jones, of course, but also the other Highwyamen–Willie, Cash, and even Kristofferson were mostly relying on other writers and artists for new material by then. But Waylon’s albums didn’t get anything near the attention that the resurrected Cash was getting with his American Recordings series.
Waylon was also a good electric guitar player as this video of him performing “Are You Sure Hank Done It This Way” with the Highwaymen at Nassau Coliseum highlights.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2xkqpj5D1fg
October 27, 2021 @ 5:52 pm
You know, I remember the rollout of “The Music Inside” from a few years back. It was supposed to be three volumes in a year, but after the first one came out, the whole thing was in limbo until Volume 2 came out with a much different track listing. Volume 3 never saw the light of day. There’s also been a few “last sessions” released. A couple of good things that’ve been done are the “Nashville Rebel” box set and the expanded “Never Say Die” concert. I would love to see a complete album box set, like Johnny Cash or Bob Dylan had, but with different record companies, that will probably never happen.
October 28, 2021 @ 5:53 am
Waylon was much more talented than Cash. But Cash’s legacy, especially with the movie, has made him bigger than he was since the 50s/60s. Waylon should be a giant like a John Wayne, I hope they move forward soon. The younger generations are not familiar with his work, it is very sad.
October 28, 2021 @ 2:31 pm
There will never be anyone else like Waylon Jennings. I hope this project gets done. No one deserves the recognition like he does. I wish my son was here to see it. Waylon was his all time favorite. He will always be the best.
October 28, 2021 @ 7:11 am
I just finished going through Waylon’s entire catalog this week funny enough (which was quite the project). Those 90’s albums, particularly “Too Dumb for New York City, Too Ugly for L.A.,” were really a pleasant surprise. Great output late in his career.
October 28, 2021 @ 9:35 am
“Too dumb…” is a super underrated hell of an album! I keep coming back to it.
January 6, 2022 @ 9:07 pm
Luckyoldsun, you keep bringing up Waylon missed his Hall of fame introduction.
Waylon was put out with the Nashville movement . He said it plainly about the Country music awards . Its a pissing contest !! That was Waylon. His own music, his own song , and most importantly, his own way .
October 27, 2021 @ 6:04 pm
The first time I ever heard ole Waylon sing, the Beatles and Elvis didn’t mean a damn thing to me. Waylon will always be one of the greatest
October 27, 2021 @ 6:07 pm
My son (Nick) and I were in Page Arizona at Big John’s Barbecue. After Nick sang a few songs with the house band, one of the musicians mentioned that Waylon sang at The Museum Club in Flagstaff. The next day we made our way to Flagstaff and went to an open mic night there. After he impressed a bunch of folks in the bar as well as a few musicians, one of the musicians told Nick Waylon was buried in Mesa. The next day we made our way south to Mesa where we found Waylon’s grave site. After we cleaned Waylon’s grave stone, Nick sang a few of his songs for him, left a guitar pick for him and then we left. We are both big Waylon fans and Nick does an amazing job covering his songs. His website is nickbosse.com and he would be the perfect guy to play the role of his hero Waylon Jennings.
October 27, 2021 @ 6:35 pm
We need a good movie about Waylon
October 27, 2021 @ 7:11 pm
Waylon was and is still one of the best artists to ever play. He has never had the recognition he deserved. Hopefully moving forward with this group will allow a new generation to hear and learn what he stood for. Every country artist today owes Waylon their gratitude for if not for him breaking the mold and doing it his way they would not be able to. Can’t wait to see a movie about his life. He
October 27, 2021 @ 8:11 pm
Waylon has been my hero since the 60’s……Named my Son after him…..had Waylon plates on my cars…….There’ll never be another!!!
October 28, 2021 @ 4:39 am
Good news, Always loved Waylon, be sure next time you are in West Texas a little west of Lubbock in Littlefield (Waylon’s hometown) to vist Waymore’s Liquor store/Waylon Jennings museum. It is run by Waylon’s last surviving brother James who is one of the nicest guy you can meet and will tell lots in neat stories of him and Waylon and his career.
It’s basically an old gas station, but if you are a fan, it’s a must.
The Web show “Texas Bucket List has a segment on the place if you search, well worth finding!
October 28, 2021 @ 7:27 am
It’s been over a decade now so I need to return and do an update. But in 2011 I stopped in Littlefield and did a whole thing.
https://savingcountrymusic.com/waylon-jennings-is-still-alive-in-littlefield-tx/
One unfortunate thing is many of the biggest artifacts from Waylon’s life were auctioned off in 2014 in Arizona. It included the Buddy Holly motorcycle, the ring robe he got from Muhammad Ali, his letter from John Lennon, all kinds of cool stuff. I respect the estate’s wishes to do what they want with that stuff, and the proceeds went to a local children’s hospital. But it would have been cool if that stuff, especially the biggest items, end up in a museum, in Littlefield or somewhere else like we have for Cash, Jones, Willie, Patsy Cline, etc., etc., Instead it’s sort of been scattered to the 4 winds. The motorcycle did end up at the Buddy Holly museum in Lubbock.
October 28, 2021 @ 6:44 am
It would have been better to do it earlier when some of his friends were still alive who could have given precious testimonies. However better late than never
October 28, 2021 @ 7:07 am
i grew up listing him. 25 years ago i went to alaska.. Had waylon greatest hits playing on my head phones while taking a bus ride .. See all that wilderness and his music together .. lack of better words was bliss ..best i could do .. heck waylon willie cash kristofferson… and Hank are really the only country i listen to..
October 28, 2021 @ 7:52 am
WAYLON JENNINGS I mean do you need to say more I mean if the name does not evoke memories and feelings that make you feel good all over spiritualy physically and emotionally then you must not have ever heard his music.
October 28, 2021 @ 9:30 am
Grew up listening to Waylon had so many fun times having a cold or riding horses with my dad before he passed away Will always be my favorite country singer
October 29, 2021 @ 7:40 am
Waylon’s name sounds familiar from Rez in Navajo Nation. He was the best of all time. I love his music..
October 28, 2021 @ 10:54 am
WAYLON HAS ALWAYS BEEN MY FAVORITE. IT’S SAD THERE HASN’T BEEN MORE RECOGNITION OF HIS TALENT.
October 28, 2021 @ 3:58 pm
The best along with George and Randy
October 28, 2021 @ 7:03 pm
Mamas don’t let your babies grow up to be cowboys.
October 28, 2021 @ 11:07 pm
J’ai connu Waylon par le biais de Johnny, Willie etc……
Et je pense qu’il est exceptionnel !!!!
Je sais qu’il n’aimait pas trop l’es reconnaissances en tous genres
C’était un Rebelle !!!!!
J’aime l’idée
J’espère enfin que l’hommage sera de qualité
Love you Waylon and Jessi and your music
October 29, 2021 @ 6:23 am
Waylon helped make country music what it is today,just like Elvis did for rock and roll music .Waylon’s music will always be around.he was one of a kind.
October 30, 2021 @ 9:47 am
Maybe they’ll even put his website back up, with his bio, music, photos, discography on it .. instead of using his name only as a place to sell merch … been a burr under my saddle for a long, long time …
October 31, 2021 @ 2:01 pm
Waylon Jennings the greatest ever enough said
October 31, 2021 @ 6:15 pm
As a society we are so anxious for the next big thing that we fail to reflect the impact the music written played and sung were for us. Ol Waylon touched your heart and made you like it. I claim Willie and the boys honestly enjoyed each other but Waylon was Willies go to. God blessed us with Waylon maybe he can give us one more helping!!
November 7, 2021 @ 2:24 pm
I’ve followed Waylon since 1966 when I saw him in Nashville Rebel been doing his music ever since I ask him I said I hope you don’t mind me doing your songs he said I’m honored mad me feel like a million dollars and still do sing n play his music and Jesi is the sweetest woman I’ve meet I am there no. 1 fan I have about everything Waylon did and most of Jesi
December 31, 2021 @ 12:22 pm
I read the different comments, but was concerned that no one brought up anything about members of his band. I’ve been keeping up with Waymore’s Outlaws that included Richie Albright, who passed away 2/9/21), Jerry Bridges “Jigger”, Tommy Townsend, Fred Newell, Carter Robertson, and Barny Robertson. They played a major role in helping to maintain Waylon’s illustrious career. I’m hoping that the ones still with us will be remembered as Jessi and Shooter progress with Waylon’s life.
June 29, 2023 @ 1:10 pm
you forgot ralph mooney i was a country radio dj in las vegas 1968 and 72-74. met waylon several times. call 810-3421 anytime ralph loved waylon and vice versa nobody performing today can touch either of them.dan mcphail burton mi
May 27, 2022 @ 11:12 pm
I missed this news when it first emerged, being in the midst of a major relocation, etc. Glad to have noticed the coverage here, even if I did so several months later.
Without question, I think that the idea of securing the services of a separate professional entity to manage Waylon’s ongoing image and legacy is wise. Hopefully, this current company is up to the challenge. A few of the reasons for such a move are obvious: Jessi Colter just celebrated her 79th birthday and, even though she is apparently in exceptional health for her age and even still recording (a Margo Price-produced country/rock album by Jessi is supposedly being shopped around), she’s an elderly lady just the same. Shooter is digging-in to cement his career as an in-demand, Grammy-winning producer for other artists. He has mouths to feed.
Thus, the two primary shareholders of the tangible Jennings “legacy” (wife and son) are understandably not “up” to the full-time job required to not only preserve a legacy as moumental-yet-complicated as Waylon’s, but to grow it further.
The next “elephant in the room” question is tougher to answer: Why hasn’t the formidable back-catalog and undeniable legend of Jennings adhered more firmly to the ongoing public and cultural consciousness to begin with, at least when compared with peers like Cash, Nelson, Kristofferson, etc.? Jennings was certainly as monumental an influence in the industry, overall, if not more so. Certainly as talented as any of them, if not more so. (And believe me—I am in the “he was more so” camp on those matters.)
I think that some answers can be found within the context of career timing, and the various ways that a major musical/artistic career can be either carried vibrantly along with the general, shifting cultural current (depending upon ideal conditions) or inexplicably snagged.
It bears mentioning that Waylon’s musical career, while strong and solid for several years beforehand, did not really hit the absolute stratosphere until the release of ‘The Outlaws’ compilation/sampler album by RCA in early 1976–an event that still stands as one of the most genius marketing coups in the history of the music industry. While Waylon had already been maintaining a much bigger and more consistent career than either of them during the early 1970s, it was, rather ironically, the sudden burst of crossover successes by Willie Nelson and Jessi Colter in 1975 that spurred RCA to up the ante regarding Waylon, who was actually the more well-anchored artist.
In a number of 1990s interviews, RCA’s big A&R exec, Jerry Bradley, who was the chief marketing “suit” behind the whole ‘Outlaws’ album concept, minced no words when it came to describing the label’s plan for Waylon at the end of 1975:
“Up to that point, Waylon had been selling 250,000 to maybe 300,000 copies per album, on average, which was very good. But Willie was over at Columbia and suddenly he broke wide and sold a million albums [Red Headed Stranger] and Jessi was over at Capitol and her ‘I’m Not Lisa’ sold a million and then her album [I’m Jessi Colter] came out and sold near a million and lit a fire under our asses. And we owned back catalogue material on both Willie and Jessi in the vaults. The plan was to use that material, whether Willie’s and Jessi’s labels were happy about it or not, and feature Waylon just a bit more prominently on the cover. We wanted him to sell a million albums, too.”
Obviously, the plan worked—even though, as mentioned, Waylon had already been, by far, the more firmly established recording artist of them all. Still, the timing that Bradley and other execs at RCA employed due to Willie’s and Jessi’s recent pop crossover singles/albums hits was a key factor in getting the label to repackage Waylon the way he *needed* to be packaged for the marketplace, i.e. as the chief musical “outlaw” who had already been blazing the trail more powerfully than anyone, but who had not yet experienced the flashier, crossover exposure that Willie and Jessi had just encountered fairly unexpectedly on competing labels in 1975.
To their credit, RCA execs let Waylon himself take charge of which catalogue songs to select for the landmark ‘Outlaws’ album, and he spent feverish days in the vaults putting the thing together. (Though he had not yet achieved great fame, Tompall Glaser was a last-minute, but deserving, inclusion on the project, because his quirky Nashville studio had been already ground zero for some of Waylon’s and Jessi’s recording efforts, and also a general gathering place/drinking spot/hangout for all kinds of non-traditional Nashville-based artists.)
So, that smart element of timing + marketing was crucial for Waylon in that case and worked wonders: it was henceforth Waylon who became, until the end of the 1970s, the biggest name and biggest-selling act of them all. His albums all went platinum, which was as it ought to have been, since he had been primarily responsible for upending the “sequins ‘n’ satin” Nashville industry stranglehold since the late 1960s. And his superior music—once that broader audience had a chance to be exposed to it—sold accordingly.
The ‘Outlaws’ album was a remarkable, legendary catalyst. Waylon’s fellow rebels took different career paths after that. Willie, as we know, kept on and kept on and kept on doing his thing to great success, diversifying himself in almost mind-boggling ways. Jessi Colter continued to score big crossover recording successes, bestselling Billboard albums, until she got into a huge fight with her label (Capitol) in late 1977 over her insistence upon releasing a self-written Gospel piece. The label did not approve of such a drastic change in material, but she insisted, and, according to Waylon himself in a late-1999 interview: “Jessi had sold millions of records for Capitol and then they buried this beautiful album she wrote for her mama. It broke her heart. She was pretty much over the industry after that. Didn’t want much to do with it.”
And she was indeed “pretty much” done afterward: aside from another huge crossover success via a duets album with Waylon in 1981, Jessi let her own recording and writing career lapse. Instead, she focused on keeping the marriage together, raising Shooter, and being a much-loved featured guest, coming out to sing a few of her hits at Waylon’s shows. That’s what she wanted. The two of them toured like mad up until the simply impossible period before Waylon’s sad demise. As for Tompall, he remained a respected and accomplished artist, but ‘Outlaws’ was the one and only major “star” moment for him.
Almost bizarrely, however, the entire “Outlaw” style was shunted-out of country radio, anyhow, by the early 1980s. ‘Urban Cowboy/Countrypolitan’ music swooped-in to replace the grittier, swampier, original songwriting and session sounds that Waylon, Willie, Jessi, et al. had imprinted upon the zeitgeist a few years earlier. By the mid-1980s, Waylon couldn’t get airplay! Unbelievable, in some respects. Fortunately, a newly sober and energized Waylon conferred with his fellow legends who were likewise being sidelined by radio and the second great marketing, collaborative effort of his career was actualized with the Highwaymen and the tremendous success of the records and attendant tours. Who could have imagined that Cash, Jennings, Nelson, and Kristofferson would achieve such a massive second wind?
Yet, to this day, Cash, Nelson, and Kristofferson remain far more broadly remembered by the general public than is Waylon, who was the more directly influential artist and, at least in my opinion, the far more talented singer/performer.
Well, Cash was a very “Hollywoodish”-style figure from almost the beginning. He played the game. He had his own glitzy network variety TV series in the 1970s, he pushed the whole “Man in Black” persona, he acted in films, he guested constantly on major TV talk shows and presented himself as a charismatic, engaging conversationalist. He made movies and Westerns and TV movies fairly regularly, he popped-up on the glitzy evangelical networks with the “born again” angle. He was slick, and he was a natural self-promoter, even if his musical output was perhaps not quite equal to (or at least not always concurrent with) his self-promoting personality and easy efforts of media engagement.
As we all know, Waylon was anything *but* Hollywood. That surely kept him a bit more in the shadows, as far as the ongoing, broad cultural consciousness over the passing years. It’s true that Waylon enjoyed beloved popular success as the Narrator of the wildly successful ‘Dukes of Hazzard’—and he was fantastic in those voiceovers—but you didn’t *see* Waylon. His face and image were not at the forefront. The visual/recognizable aspect of media, that part of the Q-quotient, is crucial, and while the Highwaymen videos were big hits and remain classic, he had to share the spotlight in that case. Most people of a certain age still admit to enjoying the old Dukes of Hazzard (and even its “cinematic reinterpretation”) but there’s also no question that the show has now been marginalized a bit as an “old favorite” by the current atmosphere of hysteria and cancel-culture bullshit.
Much of the same things said about Johnny Cash can likewise be said about Kris Kristofferson and the long, lasting shadow he has managed to cast for decades, even though he is pushing 90 and still performing occasionally. There’s no way that Kristofferson would ever fail to loom large in the ongoing culture if only for his songwriting mystique alone, aside from the fact that he was a bona fide movie star in addition to all of that, appearing in film roles well into the 2000s. Women have swooned over the guy for decades. That helps. Again, the visual element of recognition can’t be overemphasized when it comes to lasting fame. He’s likable, his name elicits immediate recognition because it’s an interesting-sounding name, and his songs are covered by each new generation and will be sung at every karaoke bar on Mars, when they have karaoke on Mars. The guy has always known how to “do” media and play that game. It lasts.
Willie—the great music, the endless touring, the trademark bandana & braids, the pot, the IRS woes, the Farm Aid, and the fact that over the years he has sung duets with everyone from Julio Iglesias to freakin Sinead O’Connor. The guy is a wonder of nature, whether you’re into his music or not. If everyday adult people are shown just a silhouette of the guy—just a shadow—with the braids, grizzled beard, bandana, and guitar, a fair number of them would say: “Please! It’s Willie Nelson.” Willie has always attracted publicity without even trying. Again, mythic.
Waylon was not a mediahound, even in his peak days of fame. You sure as hell knew him, but if you wanted to get a good look at him, your best chance was likely to go see him in concert. He didn’t do a whole lot of television. Except for the amazing Highwaymen success, the entire MTV/VH1 (and even Country Music Television) “video age” passed him by. He made videos of his great 1980s and 1990s songs, but they didn’t get a lot of airplay, just as his songs did not, sadly.
Does he deserve better? Hell yes. Personally, I don’t even think Johnny Cash would have proved quite as broadly mythical well into the new century if it had not been for that ‘Hurt’ cover (genius move) and, obviously, the bio-film. That movie alone is basically a “forever advertisement + Myth-Perpetuator”. Over and over again people can watch it and discover it and get engrossed in it and refer back to the music.
In my opinion, if this new company really wants to juice the Waylon myth, they are going to need to recreate the myth. Tribute albums may help in small ways, but not if they don’t sell.
For starters, they need to amplify a new visual element of Waylon, bold and up front in marketing materials, just like Jerry Bradley of RCA did, back in the day, on the ‘Outlaws’ album. The big blue winged-W, while a beloved longtime logo for Waylon fans, doesn’t cut it as a promotional tool for those who don’t know him. A slogan would be great. “The One Original Outlaw” or something couldn’t hurt. Keep flogging it.
More than anything, though, a movie about his life—and it has to be outstanding—would skyrocket the entire myth and legacy going forward. I was thinking that a big miniseries about his life would be primo, maybe something on HBO, to fit everything in, but a series can get lost in the shuffle. Honestly, I think a strong, 2-hour piece of cinema, superbly cast, would knock things out of the park.
SOMEBODY had better get working on a script, I’d say. And it has to be brilliant. And why shouldn’t it be? Waylon’s life had everything *including* the kitchen sink, with a love story (thank you, Miss Jessi) that is every bit as compelling and even more redemptive, in my opinion, than that of Johnny and June. After all, La Colter had her own major (if truncated) solo recording career on the BIG charts, which would provide an added, interesting subtext to Waylon’s biopic. June Carter certainly never competed with anyone, much less her husband, in the recording marketplace.
Anyhow, forgive the far-flung essay; as mentioned above, I only just tonight read this news about a management team taking over Waylon’s legacy-promotion, and I am one of his fans who has long believed he has been shortchanged in regard to wider appreciation, in terms of his genuine impact and talent.
As I hopefully delineated, I think there are reasons for that, but I also think the pattern can be reversed. Let’s all hope for the best. There’s no way this man’s genius can ever be forgotten.