Willie Nelson’s “God’s Problem Child” Debuts at #1
Notch yet another #1 for Willie. 84 years of age, and Billboard’s new rules that register streaming data in the album tabulations can’t keep Willie Nelson from topping the charts this week with his first record of original material in three years, God’s Problem Child. Willie also notches another Top 10 on the all-genre Billboard 200 where God’s Problem Child came in at #10. This is Willie’s 17th #1 record on the Country Albums chart, and sixth Top 10 on the Billboard 200.
Featuring seven new original songs from Willie and produced by Buddy Cannon, his now seventh release on Sony’s Legacy Recordings is anything but a tired, late career effort. God’s Problem Child is a solid, critically-acclaimed release, with many saying this is one of Willie’s best records in years. As Saving Country Music said in its review,
Though we all well up with nostalgia whenever you hear those unmistakable cadences in Willie’s voice, or the woody, nylon string tone of Trigger, and the lonesome moan of Mickey Raphael’s harmonica, the material itself on these newer Willie Nelson original releases does not solely rely on Willie’s history to be worth hearing. These albums constitute a brilliant, and relevant contribution to the listening public beyond leaning on legacy for importance and attention. And God’s Problem Child is no different.
Along with the originals, the album’s title track was written by Jamey Johnson and Tony Joe White, and features an appearance by Leon Russell who recently passed away. Russell was a close personal friend of Willie’s, and was the first to sign his famous guitar Trigger. There is also a Merle Haggard tribute on the album called “He Won’t Ever Be Gone” written by Gary Nicholson, and a bit of humor in “Still Not Dead” about Willie’s ever-present death hoaxes.
God’s Problem Child sold 36,000 equivalent albums, with 34,000 in pure sales to earn the #1. Though radio long since passed Willie Nelson by, those still listening know that Willie has plenty left to say and some great music left to share.
May 9, 2017 @ 7:41 am
Funny, I thought this sort of thing only appealed to a very small part of the market.
May 9, 2017 @ 7:59 am
Hell yeah, Willie and real country music are “still not dead!”
May 9, 2017 @ 8:52 am
Good to see Willie on top.His last one containing original material Band of Brothers also topped the Country charts and top 10 billboard (#5) I’m 2014 so he knows were still listening !
May 9, 2017 @ 8:54 am
An absolutely great album from the ever-incredible Willie Nelson. This CD has been spinnin’ in my truckasaurus since day one of its release. Love the songs and performances. Glad to know others are enjoying this mighty fine new music from a legend. Long live Willie!
May 9, 2017 @ 8:56 am
It’s funny how people with no radio support sell better than people with radio support. Common sense says that radio ought to stop and consider this as maybe people want to hear more of the “ignored folks”. Instead what I get from radio/music row is that common sense isn’t common
May 9, 2017 @ 9:09 am
Completely off topic but in case anyone missed it…
Chris Stapleton on Howard Stern was sure good
May 9, 2017 @ 9:24 am
Yes!!! The music of this “old fart” are still very alive and well… You show them Willie! 🙂
May 9, 2017 @ 10:02 am
Cool.
May 9, 2017 @ 10:39 am
Willie Nelson is, and has always been my favorite singer,actor.
If he was not married he would be my choice of a REAL MAN
May 9, 2017 @ 10:41 am
Awesome album..
I actually had a friend tell me he heard it on NPR and bought it.
I was surprised because he doesn’t generally listen to the genre, but he heard it and loved it.
May 9, 2017 @ 10:56 am
That title track is cool as hell. A bit busy with all the vocalists but so awesome to hear Willie and Tony Joe together with their incredibly unique styles. Willie taking solos over Tony Joes signature grooves is a real treat.
May 9, 2017 @ 12:06 pm
Like he said “I ain’t dead yet” And he’s not! He’s still hitting the road and the stages entertaining the young and the old! And having record sellouts! And if your thinking “You better go see him because it may be your last chance” maybe you should, but the Good Lord only knows that answer! He’s a Legend and one of a kind. And I’d advise if you haven’t seen him perform, you should.
May 9, 2017 @ 7:51 pm
Actually, he said “I Woke Up Still Not Dead Again Today.”
That’s a lot funnier than the way you wrote it!
May 9, 2017 @ 3:15 pm
Presidential Medal of Freedom
not that it’s necessary, but Willie’s the free spirit and we love him
just do it!
May 9, 2017 @ 4:14 pm
Just do it, indeed. And after the ceremony, give him 5 minutes alone on the White House roof to, ahem, “gather his thoughts.”
May 9, 2017 @ 7:08 pm
Im a sucker for any new Willie album, so it was a no brainer purchase. What appealed to me most was the Hag tribute song, so beautifully done! I feared it may would be a downer of an album with talks of endings and death, but it wasnt that way at all. You walk away more uplifted and alive, and you wouldnt expect any less from Willie either. Highly recommended!
May 11, 2017 @ 8:14 am
This a more -than-solid effort from Willie , IMO ….and if you are already a fan you’ll be a VERY happy fan upon the first listen of this collection . Saying that , Willie has released some overall solid material on his last 3 or 4 outings including the album with Merle shortly before Merle’s death and the Ray Price tribute with Time Jumpers . He sounds terrific , honest , and authentic and there’s some exceptional writing to be found .
Musically …..no surprises . Its country music as Willie has , for many years , heard and recorded country music….not over-arranged or over-produced , and not lacking in those departments . Willie is one of the few guys around ( Stapleton and even George Strait come to mind ) who could record an entire album of music ‘ campfire-style ‘…that is …just his voice and a guitar , and have the material stand up just fine . How many contemporary mainstream folks could say that with their generic voices and lyrically AND melodically weak cliche material relying on groove and guitars on 10 to drive home their alleged ‘point’ ??
This record is the real deal , for me …..REAL good song writing about Real stuff , Real life experience REAL musicians , authentic , honest AND entertaining top to bottom
May 15, 2017 @ 12:32 am
Picked it up earlier, and listening to it now. I can confirm that this post is dead on. Willie’s in good form, in writing and performance here.
May 12, 2017 @ 7:06 pm
It’s good to see Jamey writing a song here and there but damn I’m getting tired of him delaying his songs and albums. I’ve almost gave completely up on this guy. What the hell is his deal? I use to be one of his biggest fans too. Such a disappointing waste of years. I get on his FB page for 20 mins to see if anything is new and all I see are his diehards feeding him shit like he’s the second coming of Hank Sr. and “When are they putting you in the Hall of Fame Jamey” It’s almost comical. Then I see so many of his fans fb comments saying ” to hell with Sturgill and Stapleton, Jamey is the front runner of country” and I’m like haha yeah right. He maybe could be if he would release a fucking album of his own material and not waste 7 years and counting with a couple forgettable singles and some Christmas songs. Okay rant over but I had to get it off my chest. lol
May 16, 2017 @ 10:59 am
People ask why stuff like this does not get played on “country” radio. The saddening truth is this. Radio stations do not exist to play music. They exist as a vehicle for advertisers. Who are the holy grails of marketing? Men age 18-34 and Women aged 9-45. And what is the cross between 18-34 year old males, who just want to party, drink, screw, and drive cool cars/trucks, and suburban soccer moms who want some guy with 3% body fat and a tan to make all their dreams come true? You guessed it. Bro-pop-frat country. And anyone who advertises on radio and pays big bucks to do so don’t want Willie Nelson on the radio because it doesn’t pull in potential customers. Sad, but the truth.