1. I Didn't Come Here, I'm Not Leavin' - Willie Nelson
2. Nightlife - Willie & Eric Clapton
3. Blue Eyes Cryin' in the Rain - Willie & Shania Twain
4. Homeward Bound - Willie & Paul Simon
5. Beer For My Horses - Willie & Toby Keith
6. Crazy - Willie, Diana Krall & Elvis Costello
7. To All the Girls I've Loved Before - Willie & Wyclef Jean
8. Wurlitzer Prize - Willie & Norah Jones
9. She Loves My Automobile - Willie & ZZ Top
10. Angel Flyin' to Close to the Ground - Willie & Shelby Lynne
11. A Song For You - Willie, Ray Charles, Leon Russell
12. I Could Not Believe It Was True - Willie & John Mellencamp
13. The Last Thing I Needed - Willie & Kenny Chesney
14. Run That By Me One More Time - Willie & Ray Price
15. One Time Too Many - Willie & Steven Tyler
Amazon.com
The great Willie Nelson tends to either thrill or sorely disappoint, depending on the kinds of projects he takes on--and his decision to be either a musician or a celebrity. This live recording, culled from his 2003 USA Network concert event, unfortunately falls into the latter category, and Nelson sounds as if he arrived just before show time and plunged in without rehearsing. On the album's opener, "I Didn't Come Here (And I Ain't Leavin')," almost everything is wrong--the chorines, the overwhelming bigness of the production, and most troublesome, Nelson's apparent indifference. Thereafter, the program pairs him with such natural duet partners as Toby Keith and Ray Price, and such utterly unfathomable ones as Steven Tyler and Wyclef Jean, who prove, by turns, unlistenable and insufferable. While Diana Krall and Elvis Costello help give "Crazy" an odd and new kind of charm, Nelson's off-beat phrasing is just to quirky to work with Paul Simon's laconic musings ("Homeward Bound"), while the outing with Ray Charles and Leon Russell ("A Song for You") sounds like a cat-drowning ceremony. Weirdly, the best songs are those on which Nelson simply gets out of the way (John Mellencamp's bottleneck romp through "I Couldn't Believe It Was True," Kenny Chesney's soulful treatment of "Last Thing I Needed First Thing This Morning"). Thank God it's only a single disc. --Alanna Nash
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Willie Nelson and Friends: Live and Kickin'
- Audio CD: 0 pages (2003-06-24)
- Publisher: Lost Highway
- Label: Lost Highway
- Format: Live
- Studio: Lost Highway
- Average Customer Review:
 based on 26 reviews
- Sales Rank in Music: #81110
Avg. Customer Review:
0 of 0 people found the following review helpful:
Customer Rating: 
Summary: It's all right, I guess 2008-07-14
Comment: If you like live CDs, you may not be disappointed with this. I'm a big fan of WN and most of the other artists who contributed to this, but there are only 2 or 3 cuts that do it for me.
0 of 0 people found the following review helpful:
Customer Rating:
Summary: A tad disappointed with..... 2008-01-28
Comment: I was a tad disappointed with this C/D by Willie and Company. He's got beeter ones out there but this isn't one of them.
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
Customer Rating:
Summary: Too much "friends," not enough Willie 2006-05-13
Comment: Very few keepers on this one ... even "Crazy" and "Last Thing I Needed the First Thing This Morning" were (almost) disappointments because there was so little of Willie.
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
Customer Rating: 
Summary: The legend singing it with friends 2005-04-29
Comment: Willie Nelson is a legend and this CD proves it again. here are performances of a great artist who's enjoying his music with some of the great talents of today. it's great listening to great friends of Willie interpreting his music in their own ways. I think it's a great album giving us great music we all know in a little different and up to date way. enjoy!!!
8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:
Customer Rating:
Summary: Willie sings with anyone and everyone 2004-06-30
Comment: Let me say upfront that I love Willie Nelson, and I believe him to be a national treasure and one of our greatest living storytellers/poets. The setting for this recording is Willie's 70th birthday. As Toby Keith mentioned on the original USA television version, "Willie may not look 70, but we sure remember when he did." What makes this CD unique is that it features a very eclectic mix of musicians accompanying Willie in versions of popular songs (both his and theirs). The songs with Paul Simon, Eric Clapton and Ray Charles/Leon Russell provide entertaining performances that are also important moments in music history. It would be like having a recording of Lennon and Hendrix singing together. Willie has recorded with everyone from Frank Sinatra to Janis Joplin. So, it is not a surprise that some of his guests on this CD may seem strange (Steven Tyler and Wyclef Jean). While many say his voice doesn't work with more polished singers, I think he provides an interesting contrast to the silky vocals of Norah Jones and Dianne Krall. There seems to be a common theme among the positive and negative reviews on here: the positive reviews contain references to the television broadcast that proceeded the release of this CD and the negative ones do not. This seems to suggest the experience of listening to the music is heightened by viewing the live performances, and I agree.
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Willie Nelson and Friends: Live and Kickin'
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