''Teatro'' is the 45th studio album by

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 September 1998 via

Island Records Island Records is a multinational record label owned by Universal Music Group. It was founded in 1959 by Chris Blackwell, Graeme Goodall, and Leslie Kong in Jamaica, and was eventually sold to PolyGram in 1989. Island and A&M Records, anoth ...

. Filmmaker Wim Wenders produced a documentary feature-length film of the recording sessions and live performances.

Background

The recording sessions for the album were held in an old

movie theater A movie theater (American English), cinema (British English), or cinema hall ( Indian English), also known as a movie house, picture house, the movies, the pictures, picture theater, the silver screen, the big screen, or simply theater is a ...

Oxnard, California Oxnard () is a city in Ventura County, California, United States. On California's South Coast, it is the most populous city in Ventura County and the 22nd-most-populous city in California. Incorporated in 1903, Oxnard lies approximately west ...

and were produced by

Daniel Lanois Daniel Roland Lanois ( , ; born September 19, 1951) is a Canadian record producer, guitarist, vocalist, and songwriter. He has produced albums by artists including Bob Dylan, Neil Young, Peter Gabriel, Robbie Robertson, Emmylou Harris, Willie ...

. The album features backing vocals by

Emmylou Harris Emmylou Harris (born April 2, 1947) is an American singer, songwriter and musician. She has released dozens of albums and singles over the course of her career and has won 14 Grammys, the Polar Music Prize, and numerous other honors, including ...

, as well as backing by regular Nelson harmonicist

Mickey Raphael Michael Siegfried "Mickey" Raphael (born November 7, 1951) is an American harmonica player, music producer and actor best known for his work with Willie Nelson, with whom he has toured as part of The Family since 1973. He has performed or rec ...

and Nelson's sister, Bobbie Nelson, on piano. The majority of the songs are composed by Nelson, and most are re-recordings of songs he wrote and first recorded in the 1960s: "Darkness on the Face of the Earth" (1961), "My Own Peculiar Way" (1964), "Home Motel" (1962), "I Just Can't Let You Say Goodbye" (1968), "I've Just Destroyed the World (1962) and "Three Days" (1962). Lanois contributes one of his songs, "The Maker" (originally released on his album '' Acadie),'' and plays electric guitar and bass, and also took the photograph for the album cover. Mark Howard recorded and mixed the record. ''Teatro'' is noted for its spare, yet drum-heavy and atmospheric sound, credited to Lanois, who'd also produced Harris' breakthrough

alternative country Alternative country, or alternative country rock (sometimes alt-country, insurgent country, Americana, or y'allternative), is a loosely defined subgenre of country music and/or country rock that includes acts that differ significantly in style ...

album, ''

Wrecking Ball A wrecking ball is a heavy steel ball, usually hung from a crane, that is used for demolishing large buildings. It was most commonly in use during the 1950s and 1960s. Several wrecking companies claim to have invented the wrecking ball. An e ...

''. Teatro was reissued in 2017 by Light in the Attic Records with 7 bonus tracks and the dvd of the documentary by Wim Wenders.

Track listing

All songs written by Willie Nelson, except where noted. #"Ou Es-Tu, Mon Amour? (Where Are You, My Love?)" (Emile Stehn, Henri LeMarchand) – 2:43 #"

I Never Cared For You "I Never Cared For You" is a song written by country music singer Willie Nelson. Nelson recorded the song during his stint with Monument Records, and eventually became his only single released by the label. While the release failed to achieve nat ...

" – 2:18 #"Everywhere I Go" – 3:50 #"Darkness on the Face of the Earth" – 2:33 #"My Own Peculiar Way" – 3:37 #"These Lonely Nights" (Chester Odom) – 3:29 #"Home Motel" – 3:15 #"The Maker" (Daniel Lanois) – 5:08 #"I Just Can't Let You Say Goodbye" – 4:38 #"I've Just Destroyed the World (I'm Living In)" (Nelson, Ray Price) – 2:52 #"Somebody Pick Up My Pieces" – 4:39 #" Three Days" – 3:07 #"I've Loved You All Over the World" – 4:18 #"Annie" – 3:51 #(bonus) "It Should Be Easier Now" - 3:15 #(bonus) "One Step Beyond" - 3:38 #(bonus) "Send Me the Pillow That You Dream On" (Hank Locklin) - 3:09 #(bonus) "Have I Told You Lately That I Love You" (Scotty Wiseman) - 3:39 #(bonus) "Till I Gain Control Again" (Rodney Crowell) - 6:17 #(bonus) "Lonely Little Mansion" - 4:03 #(bonus) "Things To Remember" - 2:50

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 ...

acoustic guitar An acoustic guitar is a musical instrument in the string family. When a string is plucked its vibration is transmitted from the bridge, resonating throughout the top of the guitar. It is also transmitted to the side and back of the instrument, ...

electric guitar An electric guitar is a guitar that requires external amplification in order to be heard at typical performance volumes, unlike a standard acoustic guitar (however combinations of the two - a semi-acoustic guitar and an electric acoustic gui ...

–

background vocals A backing vocalist is a singer who provides vocal harmony with the lead vocalist or other backing vocalists. A backing vocalist may also sing alone as a lead-in to the main vocalist's entry or to sing a counter-melody. Backing vocalists are us ...

on all tracks except 1, 6, 7 & 14 *

– producer, gibson les paul,

bass guitar The bass guitar, electric bass or simply bass (), is the lowest-pitched member of the string family. It is a plucked string instrument similar in appearance and construction to an electric or an acoustic guitar, but with a longer neck and ...

*Tony Mangurian –

drums A drum kit (also called a drum set, trap set, or simply drums) is a collection of drums, cymbals, and other Percussion instrument, auxiliary percussion instruments set up to be played by one person. The player (drummer) typically holds a pair o ...

percussion A percussion instrument is a musical instrument that is sounded by being struck or scraped by a beater including attached or enclosed beaters or rattles struck, scraped or rubbed by hand or struck against another similar instrument. Exc ...

Victor Indrizzo Victor Indrizzo (born September 23, 1967) is an American session musician, primarily known for playing the drums, as well as a songwriter and producer. Indrizzo was born in Freeport, Long Island, New York. He has toured, recorded and worked wit ...

– drums, percussion *

Bobbie Nelson Bobbie Lee Nelson (January 1, 1931 – March 10, 2022) was an American pianist and singer, the elder sister of Willie Nelson, and a member of his band, Willie Nelson and Family. When she was five, her grandmother taught her to play keyboards w ...

–

wurlitzer electric piano The Wurlitzer electronic piano is an electric piano manufactured and marketed by Wurlitzer from the mid-1950s to mid-1980s. Sound is generated by striking a metal reed with a hammer, which induces an electric current in a pickup. It is concept ...

, organ *Brian Griffiths –

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 ...

slide guitar Slide guitar is a technique for playing the guitar that is often used in blues music. It involves playing a guitar while holding a hard object (a slide) against the strings, creating the opportunity for glissando effects and deep vibratos tha ...

mandolin A mandolin ( it, mandolino ; literally "small mandola") is a stringed musical instrument in the lute family and is generally plucked with a pick. It most commonly has four courses of doubled strings tuned in unison, thus giving a total of 8 ...

–

harmonica The harmonica, also known as a French harp or mouth organ, is a free reed wind instrument used worldwide in many musical genres, notably in blues, American folk music, classical music, jazz, country, and rock. The many types of harmonica inclu ...

, bass harmonica *

Brad Mehldau Bradford Alexander Mehldau (; born August 23, 1970) is an American jazz pianist, composer, and arranger. Mehldau studied music at The New School, and toured and recorded while still a student. He was a member of saxophonist Joshua Redman's Qua ...

–

vibraphone The vibraphone is a percussion instrument in the metallophone family. It consists of tuned metal bars and is typically played by using mallets to strike the bars. A person who plays the vibraphone is called a ''vibraphonist,'' ''vibraharpist,' ...

piano The piano is a stringed keyboard instrument in which the strings are struck by wooden hammers that are coated with a softer material (modern hammers are covered with dense wool felt; some early pianos used leather). It is played using a keyboa ...

Malcolm Burn Malcolm Burn (born October 4, 1960) is a Canadian-born music producer, recording engineer and musician. Emmylou Harris's ''Red Dirt Girl'', produced by Burn, won Best Contemporary Folk Album at the 2001 Grammys. Biography Born in Cornwall, Ont ...

– organ *Jeffrey Green – drums,

omnichord The Omnichord is an electronic musical instrument introduced in 1981 by the Suzuki Musical Instrument Corporation. It typically features a touch plate known as "Sonic Strings", preset rhythms, auto-bass line functionality, and buttons for ma ...

keyboard Keyboard may refer to: Text input * Keyboard, part of a typewriter * Computer keyboard ** Keyboard layout, the software control of computer keyboards and their mapping ** Keyboard technology, computer keyboard hardware and firmware Music * Musi ...

Cyril Neville Cyril Garrett Neville (born October 10, 1948) is an American percussionist and vocalist who first came to prominence as a member of his brother Art Neville's funky New Orleans-based band, The Meters. He joined Art in the Neville Brothers band u ...

–

conga The conga, also known as tumbadora, is a tall, narrow, single-headed drum from Cuba. Congas are staved like barrels and classified into three types: quinto (lead drum, highest), tres dos or tres golpes (middle), and tumba or salidor (lowest). ...

Chart performance

References

{{Authority control 1998 albums Willie Nelson albums Albums produced by Daniel Lanois Island Records albums

Background

Track listing

Personnel

Chart performance

See also

References