Willie has had a long and distinguished career but the period covered by this compilation was particularly successful. He had plenty of success during the rest of the eighties with such classics as Always on my mind, City of New Orleans, To all the girls I've loved before and Seven Spanish angels, but you must look elsewhere for them. Even without them, this is a very strong compilation.
Despite recording some excellent music in the sixties and early seventies, Willie only became a major star after he signed to Columbia in 1975. He immediately hit big with his first album (Red headed stranger) and the single from it, a cover of Blue eyes crying in the rain (an old Roy Acuff song) that became a major country and pop hit in America. Many other hits followed including a lot of duets -so many that you could fill a boxed set with them.
Willie's classic solo country hits (some covers, some originals) are represented by If you've got the money I've got the time, Uncloudy day, Help me make it through the night, My heroes have always been cowboys, On the road again and a few others.
Willie's duets are represented by Good hearted woman and Mamas don't let your babies grow up to be cowboys (both with Waylon Jennings) as well as Faded love (with Ray Price - and Crystal Gayle singing backup harmony) and Heartbreak hotel (with Leon Russell).
Another aspect of Willie's career was the series of albums he recorded featuring songs from the Great American Songbook. The first and most famous of these albums was Stardust. It is the only songbook album from which tracks are taken and is represented here by Georgia on my mind and All of me, the latter being one of three bonus tracks added to this re-mastered edition of the compilation, the other two being Remember me and Midnight rider.
If you only want one collection of music by Willie Nelson, this is a good one to choose if just want a single CD or if you are mainly interested in the songs that established him as a major star. For a broader look at his career, try the double CD Essential or the triple CD Revolutions of time. Even if you buy one of those, you may find that this is a useful second purchase despite some duplication.