Willie Nelson has built up the sort of good faith Bob Dylan and Elvis Costello have. A core base of listeners who enjoy whatever they put out and a wider public who do not seem to care. It is a great joy for us, those who were sat around scratching our legs in anticipation for Last Leaf on the Tree, a Nelson-led covers album. This is not a traditional cover selection. All those classics were hoovered up by a prolific Dylan period a decade ago. Nelson turns his attention to the left-field contemporaries. The late-stage tracks of Tom Waits or the hits of The Flaming Lips. Songs which do not find themselves in Nelson’s wheelhouse due to genre or influence are now adapted, courageously so, by the legendary songwriter. His acoustic tone benefits them all, and us.
Last Leaf on the Tree is an inevitably heartbreaking album. A man who “outlived Eisenhower” and most of his contemporaries pays tribute not to them but to himself, the longevity which carried him. He is this eponymous leaf, yet to be crunched under the boot of fate. Nelson feels his way through some of the underrated contemporary tracks of the day and finds new life in them. They are tonally and lyrically similar to his works from The Border, moments of faith and freedom in a country which leaves him conflicted. Warmth is the key to all these songs, the acoustic flourishes a real victory. Despite the upbeat nature of these songs, there is an acceptance of futility from Nelson, particularly on Lost Cause. He ties the knot of these doubts with Come Ye – a smooth, bluesy number which counters the “so what” with “why not”. Little switches like this keep Nelson at the top of his game.
Where Nelson already has a litany of hits to his name, the simple concept of Last Leaf on the Tree is endearing. One of his best. He makes each of these songs his own, a tremendous feat given that some are cemented in popular culture, like The Flaming Lips’ Do You Realise??. or Are You Ready for the Country from Neil Young. The latter has an old Opry show feel to it, the fiddle and acoustics bleeding into one another nicely. Like many of the Nelson projects of recent years it all blurs together in a charming acoustic variety, a sweet momentum carries it and Last Leaf on the Tree becomes a dependable, joyous piece. Quality covers the whole way through.
What more could we ask of Nelson at this point? His tenacity as an artist is striking. But this is more than an album from a wizened soul of music, singing covers for dedicated fans, there is an honesty and accessibility to Last Leaf on the Tree. As strong an album for newcomers to his sound as those who have stuck around since the earliest releases. Broken Arrow has some wonderful additional vocals to it and the instrumental charms here are a defining moment for this covers collection. Each is selected with an emphasis on the out-there reaches of a voice still flying the flag not for the country but as a warning, the desecration of the American dream and its impact on its people still proudly centred by Nelson. Despite the longevity, Nelson still hints at “new beginnings” on Colour of Sound, a startling conclusion paired with a touching final song, The Ghost. Truthfully, the tragedy of Last Leaf on the Tree is knowing there is depth to these possible musical leads, and knowing Nelson does not have time to chase them all.
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