Fifty years ago, Willie Nelson walked into Autumn Sound Studio in Garland.
Five days later, he emerged with Red Headed Stranger, an outlaw country concept album which his label initially balked at — execs thought he’d turned in demo recordings — but which would make the singer-songwriter a superstar.
The album is spare and thoughtfully considered, often featuring little more than Nelson’s quicksilver tenor; the sound of Trigger, his guitar; his sister Bobbie on piano and Paul English on drums. Stranger yielded Nelson’s first-ever number one hit single, “Blue Eyes Crying in the Rain,” a 1986 feature film of the same name, went double platinum and was added to the National Recording Registry in 2009.
This year marks the record’s 50th anniversary. The city of Garland, where it all began, will note the occasion with two days of celebration, May 16 and 17, billed as “Songs and Stories: Celebrating the 50th Anniversary of Willie Nelson’s Red Headed Stranger.”
“The city of Garland is proud to celebrate the milestone anniversary of Red Headed Stranger, one of the most influential albums ever created,” said Amy Rosenthal, the city of Garland’s Cultural Arts Director.
“We are thrilled to honor Willie Nelson and his record created right here in Garland, Texas. This celebration is not only a chance to look back at music history, but it’s a time to spotlight artists making music today and to showcase Garland’s commitment to live music.”
On May 16, a theatrical screening of Stranger is scheduled for Garland’s Plaza Theatre, and prior to the film, author and journalist Michael Granberry will host a conversation with Nelson biographer Joe Nick Patoski and Dallas-based singer-songwriter Joshua Ray Walker about Nelson, his music and Stranger’s enduring legacy.
“Red Headed Stranger changed the relationship between songwriters and labels forever,” Walker said. “We will always have a successful example to point to when the powers that be explain that our artistic vision for a record is not financially exploitable. … Willie Nelson inspired generations of songwriters and storytellers to be the artist on the front of the record. He … helped give us the power to create our own path in the music business.”
On May 17, the action shifts from the screen to the stage, as a high-powered collection of Texas-bred and -based artists — Walker, Ray Benson, Rhett Miller, Max and Heather Stalling and John Pedigo — recreate Red Headed Stranger live for a one-night-only tribute concert, taking turns performing tracks from the album and sharing their perspectives on the man and his music.
Tickets for both events are available here and further details are available at garlandarts.com.
“The vision became clear pretty quickly that I wanted a cross-sectional representation of legendary and contemporary artists like Ray Benson and Rhett Miller that are from a couple of different genres because that would be symbolic of Willie himself,” said Jeff Ryan, the event’s creative director. “He’s never been afraid to just do whatever he wants, especially when it came to recording Red Headed Stranger and we wanted that spirit to be represented in every way we could with this performance.”
As with most of the artists enlisted to perform in tribute to Stranger, the connection is deeply personal for Miller, long-time front man for the Old 97’s.
“His brilliant songs, wry sense of humor, generous approach to creativity, work ethic and longevity are but a few of the reasons I and so many of my musician friends consider Willie our leader,” Miller said. “When I was a teenager, I recorded my debut album, Mythologies, at Sound Logic, which, when it was called Autumn Sound, was the room where Willie had cut his breakthrough LP. I remember staring at the framed photos on the wall of the studio and seeing the possibilities of a life in music. Willie gave me that gift and has inspired me and so many others for longer than anyone else who’s ever done it.”
In addition to the screening and live performance, a special exhibition of Nelson memorabilia from the Texas Music Collection of the Wittliff Collections will be on hand, as will Nelson’s original tour bus — “Honeysuckle Rose” — available for photo opportunities.
And the music won’t be confined to honoring Stranger — the free “Fringe Concert Series” kicks off the afternoon of May 17 throughout downtown Garland, featuring performances from North Texas talents such as Nathan “Mongol” Wells, Frankie Leonie, David Forsyth, Jackson and Levi Scribner and Remy Reilly.
If all that wasn’t enough, Garland will also be designated as a “Music Friendly City” by the Texas Music Office on May 17, joining other North Texas cities like Fort Worth, Denton, Dallas and Arlington.
The breadth of what’s planned only reinforces the continued impact of Nelson’s landmark album — echoes of an artistic iconoclast’s fearless vision, as profound now as they were when the world first heard Red Headed Stranger half a century ago.
Red Headed Stranger film screening at Plaza Theatre, Garland. 7 p.m. May 16. Admission is $15.
Red Headed Stranger “Fringe Concert Series” at Intrinsic Brewery, Fortunate Son and Dead Wax Records, Garland. 3 p.m. May 17. Free.
Red Headed Stranger 50th Anniversary Tribute Concert at Granville Arts Center, Garland. 8 p.m. May 17. $75-$105.
Preston Jones is a North Texas freelance writer and regular contributor to KXT. Email him at preston@kxt.org or find him on Bluesky (@prestonjones.bsky.social).Our work is made possible by our generous, music-loving members. If you like how we lift up local music, consider becoming a KXT sustaining member right here.
TICKET GIVEAWAY 
