Song of the Week 2/18/05

Willie Nelson - “Always on My Mind”

“Always on My Mind” is the first song I ever heard from Willie Nelson, and for some reason it connected with the 12 year old Steve in the Spring of 1982. I certainly wasn’t old enough to understand the meaning behind it -- I just liked Nelson’s voice. The song’s meaning has obviously became apparent to me over the years, and since I got the song on CD about six years ago, I break it out at least twice a year. Last Saturday I was at Great Lakes (the bar I have referred to numerous times in Top 20 List writings) having a couple of Rolling Rocks when the jukebox went silent. That’s my cue to dump in some dough. I picked “Always on My Mind” to close out my 12 song set, and after my tunes were done I went down the street to the Loki Lounge to visit some friends that work there. I wasn’t there more than five minutes when “Always on My Mind” came on, but this time it was the 1988 Pet Shop Boys version. These weird musical occurrences usually happen to me in threes, so I wasn’t at all surprised when I got my mail at the office on Monday and found a copy of a new Willie Nelson compilation called Songs. And of course, the first song I played was “Always on My Mind.” I wouldn’t endorse a purchase of Songs, as it’s a subpar Nelson collection (too many duets for my liking). But if you really need “Always on My Mind” and his take on The Muppet Movie’s “Rainbow Connection,” this is the one to get.