Ten years in the making, Willie Nelson (and 17 other musicians) fuse country and reggae sounds into a powerful concoction. But you’ve got to wonder why the record execs kept a lid on this music for nearly a decade? Maybe they just didn\\\'t see the album sit comfortably in either genre\\\'s niche. With rhythms to dominate the dancehalls and juke joints, Willie jumps right into the popular music style of Jamaica with largely original music he composed or co-wrote with others like Ray Price or Hank Cochran. A couple songs from Jimmy Cliff (The Harder They Come, Sitting in Limbo), and one from Johnny & June Carter Cash (I’m a Worried Man) round out the set. All are presented with reggae’s characteristic chopped guitar or keyboard emphasizing the off beats. I wonder how Bob Marley would like this? I think he’d Be Happy!
   What’s the origin of this musical style? Mento, the island’s raggedy calypso style, originated in the 1950s. In the early 1960s, we started hearing about ska, a shuffling hybrid of mento and R&B. As ska became influenced by American rock in the late 1960s, some called it “rude boy” music for the street anarchists who followed the music. Reggae emerged as a popular influence on world music in the 1970s, largely thanks to its talented superstar Bob Marley who was also a powerful moral authority when the U.S. was at war in Vietnam. The word “reggae” might come from the patois “streggae” (rudeness) or perhaps “regge-regge” (quarrel). Toots (Frederick) Hibbert who wrote “Do the Reggay” once said the term is merely descriptive, meaning simply “regular.” Toots makes a special guest cameo appearance on Willie’s album at track 3, “I’m a Worried Man.” Toots, you may remember, gave us a successful reggae cover of John Denver’s “Country Roads,” and his “True Love” album release even featured an appearance of Nelson.
   Reggae was influenced by Rastafarianism, a cult belief that racial harmony wouldn’t work and that blacks should return to Africa. The Rastas were ascetic, vegetarian and peaceful. The best songs that work for Willie Nelson are those with hard-hitting social messages that speak from the heart of the proletariat, such as “The Harder They Come” and “I’m a Worried Man.” A catchy song like “Sitting in Limbo” has potential to become a reggae classic.
   “Countryfarianism” could be the moniker for Willie’s new, hypnotic, bass-dominated sound. He still focuses on making a statement with his music, and he reinvents some of his classics like “One in a Row,” “You Left Me a Long Time Ago,” and “Darkness on the Face of The Earth.” It makes sense that Willie chooses Jamaica’s shuffling “country” music style to infuse these chestnuts with new ingredients of repose and consciousness. Willie’s relaxed vocal delivery is perfect for the spiritual essence of this new blend that will send lightning bolts striking through the followers of both genres.  - Joe Ross, Roseburg, OR.

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