''Laying My Burdens Down'' is the 11th studio album by

country A country is a distinct part of the world, such as a state, nation, or other political entity. It may be a sovereign state or make up one part of a larger state. For example, the country of Japan is an independent, sovereign state, while the ...

singer

Willie Nelson Willie Hugh Nelson (born April 29, 1933) is an American country musician. The critical success of the album ''Shotgun Willie'' (1973), combined with the critical and commercial success of ''Red Headed Stranger'' (1975) and '' Stardust'' (197 ...

, released in the autumn of 1970.

Background

''Laying My Burdens Down'' was Nelson’s second

RCA The RCA Corporation was a major American electronics company, which was founded as the Radio Corporation of America in 1919. It was initially a patent trust owned by General Electric (GE), Westinghouse, AT&T Corporation and United Fruit Comp ...

release of 1970 and fourth in two years, but the formula remained unchanged as producers

Chet Atkins Chester Burton Atkins (June 20, 1924 – June 30, 2001), known as "Mr. Guitar" and "The Country Gentleman", was an American musician who, along with Owen Bradley and Bob Ferguson, helped create the Nashville sound, the country music s ...

and

Felton Jarvis Charles Felton Jarvis (November 15, 1934 – January 3, 1981) was an American record producer and singer. Career As an RCA Victor record producer, Jarvis was responsible for most recordings of Elvis Presley in the years 1966–1977. He also rele ...

continued applying the

Nashville Nashville is the capital city of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the seat of Davidson County. With a population of 689,447 at the 2020 U.S. census, Nashville is the most populous city in the state, 21st most-populous city in the U.S., and the ...

formula to Nelson’s recordings, much against the singer’s better judgement. As Patoski states, “His next two albums, ''Laying My Burdens Down'' and ''Willie Nelson and Family'', were familiar stories: a new cast of studio players...good cover songs...interesting concepts...and lousy sales.

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databas ...

's Jim Worbois agrees, contending, “There are some nice things on here, but too many are buried under the

Nashville Sound The Nashville Sound originated during the mid-1950s as a subgenre of American country music, replacing the chart dominance of the rough honky tonk music, which was most popular in the 1940s and 1950s, with "smooth strings and choruses", "sophist ...

and don't seem to be able to stand on their own.” Despite the paltry sales, Nelson remained loyal to RCA head Atkins, later stating, “Even though his vision and mine were different, I couldn’t get mad at a man who believed so deeply in my talent – especially when that man happened to be one of the best guitarists in the world.”

Reception

AllMusic: "This is what can best be described as a pleasant album...Not great, but you could do worse.”

Track listing

All tracks composed by Willie Nelson, except where noted. #"Laying My Burdens Down" - 2:36 #"How Long Have You Been There" - 2:32 (Dee Moeller) #"Senses" - 2:13 (

Glen Campbell Glen Travis Campbell (April 22, 1936 – August 8, 2017) was an American guitarist, singer, songwriter, actor and television host. He was best known for a series of hit songs in the 1960s and 1970s, and for hosting ''The Glen Campbell Goodt ...

Jeannie Seely Marilyn Jeanne Seely (born July 6, 1940) is an American country music singer, songwriter, and record producer. She also has several acting credits and published a book. Seely found success with the Grammy Award-winning hit "Don't Touch Me" (1966) ...

) #"I Don't Feel Anything" - 2:29 #"I've Seen That Look on Me (A Thousand Times)" - 2:28 (

Harlan Howard Harlan Perry Howard (September 8, 1927 – March 3, 2002) was an American songwriter, principally in country music. In a career spanning six decades, Howard wrote many popular and enduring songs, recorded by a variety of different artists. C ...

, Shirl Milete) #"Where Do You Stand?" - 2:16 #"Minstrel Man" - 2:27 (Stan Haas, Edger Ruger) #"Happiness Lives Next Door" - 2:37 #"When We Live Again" - 2:15 #"Following Me Around" - 2:42

Personnel

–

vocals Singing is the act of creating musical sounds with the voice. A person who sings is called a singer, artist or vocalist (in jazz and/or popular music). Singers perform music (arias, recitatives, songs, etc.) that can be sung with or without ...

guitar The guitar is a fretted musical instrument that typically has six strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming or plucking the strings with the dominant hand, while simultaneously pressing selected stri ...

*Al Pachucki – recording engineer *Mike Shockley – recording technician *Roy Shockley – recording technician *Jimmy Moore – photography *New World Photography – photography

References

1970 albums Willie Nelson albums Albums produced by Felton Jarvis RCA Records albums {{1970s-country-album-stub