In an age of disposable pop and media-manipulated mannequins who continue to saturate the commercial music market in an never-ending deluge, there remain a few artists - both new and from generations past - that serve as bastions for serious, non-pretentious music against the myriad Britney Spears and *NSYNC clones. Willie Nelson is such an artist - an accomplished singer, songwriter and performer, he is often regarded as a country music idol first and foremost (certainly, there can be little dispute about his bluegrass roots), but his music manages to defy simple classification with its hybrid fusion of blues, jazz, folk, rock, honky-tonk and mainstream pop. Indeed, it can be said that Nelson has carved out his own unique niche, and is a musical genre unto himself.

Encouraged by his grandparents to learn the guitar - and writing songs by the time he was seven years old - Nelson was not a star within his own right until the late 1970s with the release of the crossover album The Red Headed Stranger in 1975 and its signature single “Blue Eyes Crying in the Rain.� Prior to this success, Nelson was recognised mostly as a formidible songwriter, producing hits for country artists Ray Price (“Night Life�), Billy Walker (“Funny How Time Slips Away), and, most famously, Patsy Cline (“Crazy�). During the 1980s, he cemented himself at the top of the country music charts whilst simultaneously enjoying unparalleled commercial success with astute recordings such as WWII (1982) and the inspired duet with Latin pop star Julio Iglesias, “To All the Girls I’ve Loved Before.�

Nelson’s career took a dramatic turn in the mid-’80s, when his excessive lifestyle spiraled out of control, culminating in his infamous battle with the IRS in 1990. Indicted with tax evasion to the sum of $16 million dollars, he lost almost all of his assets - including houses, farms, studios and other properties - and, in an effort to repay his debt, Nelson released the double album The IRS Tapes: Who’ll Buy My Memories. Heavily marketed through commercial television, the profits from the record sales were directed to the IRS; the strategy worked, for, by 1993, his dues were paid in full, and he relaunched his musical career. Although he would not achieve the same lofty heights as he did in the 1970s, Nelson remains an important and influential artist, affecting not only the evolution of country music, but also the mainstream market.

Recorded live at the Paradiso Theatre in Amsterdam on June 7, 2000, Willie Nelson: Live in Amsterdam features this unique and talented performer with an exceptionally tight, cohesive band in an intimate concert that showcases the astonishing flexibility of Nelson’s musical influences and the innumerable hits from his illustrious career. By no means is this a lavish and impersonal large-scale concert presentation with a matrix of eye-gouging laser displays and blinding pyrotechnics - and it is all the richer for it. Stripped-bared and devoid of any superficial extravagance, Nelson’s relaxed performance exhibits a richness and sincerity - indeed, a magical sensitivity - that seems to be sorely lacking with most of today’s media-hyped musical “artists.�

Track Listing:

1. Whiskey River/Stay All Night
2. Good Hearted Woman
3. Funny How Time Slips Away/Crazy/Night Life
4. Help Me Make It Through The Night
5. Fast Train To Georgia
6. Blue Eyes Crying In The Rain
7. Blue Skies
8. Georgia On My Mind
9. All Of Me
10. Stardust
11. Me & Paul
12. The Gypsy
13. If You’ve Got The Money I’ve Got The Time
14. My Bucket’s Got A Hole In It/Jambalaya
15. Walkin’ The Floor Over You
16. Vous et moi
17. Seven Spanish Angels
18. City Of New Orleans
19. To All The Girls I’ve Loved Before/Luckenbach, Texas/Whiskey River (Revisited)
20. Still Is Movin’ To Me
21. Milk Cow Blues
22. Pancho & Lefty
23. Till I Gain Control Again
24. Mama Don’t Let Your Babies Grow Up To Be Cowboys
25. Angel Flying Too Close To The Ground
26. On The Road Again
27. Always On My Mind
28. I Never Cared For You
29. Please Don’t Talk About Me When I’m Gone
30. Roll In My Sweet Baby’s Arms

Willie Nelson: Live in Amsterdam is presented in a screen aspect ratio of 1.33:1 and is not anamorphic.

For a concert performance, the video transfer is superb, with the only issue of contention relating to oversaturation - a common problem often afflicting live presentations. Black levels are high and solid; detail is razor sharp, yet film-to-video artefacts seem to have been severely curtailed, with only the most minute traces of aliasing seen to be affecting guitar strings and piano keys. Facial delineation is remarkable - obviously, the best example is Nelson’s face with its weathered features and facial hair where, it seems, that each follicle can be counted. Flesh tones, when the stage lighting permits, are natural and wonderfully rendered. There is noticeable moiré associated with the speaker grill of a guitar amplifier, but it does not warrant concern.

There are several instances of oversaturation: the reddish ITF Audit cap Nelson wears during his laid-back rendition of "Help Me Make It Through The Night" is subjected to it, but perhaps the most prevalent moments occur when the forward stage is frequently bathed with an overhead array of pink-purplish lighting, affecting only the foremost performers - including Nelson himself. Although prominent throughout the concert’s duration, these instances cannot be attributed to the transfer itself, but rather to the lurid intensity of the stage lighting; in addition, there seems to be traces of minute bleeding. Towards the concert’s end - from Chapter 25 onwards - there are overhead camera angles which exhibit substantial grain, but this is not due to a deficiency in the transfer and seems, instead, to be a virtue of filming in poor light.

The layer transition occurs at 57:38 at the end of Chapter 16, during a round of applause after Nelson’s rendition of "Vous et moi." It is logically placed and, although noticeable, cannot be deemed disruptive to the flow of the presentation.

There are three audio selections available on this disc: the English Dolby Digital 5.1, the English Dolby Digital DTS, and the English Dolby Digital 2.0 soundtracks. Suffice to mention that, with the inclusion of the DTS track, the 5.1 and Dolby Stereo mixes sound pale in comparison.

The audio presentation is absolutely flawless, making it impossible to fault. Although the Dolby Digital 5.1 is excellent, the DTS mix is nothing short of sterling; Nelson’s distinctive nasal vocals are exceptionally clear, as is, too, the band’s instrumentation - whether it be guitars, percussion, harmonica, etc., all sound vibrant, warm and organic (much like the music itself), thanks to the combined multi-directional sound field. Without a doubt, this is one soundtrack that deserves the mantel of demonstration material; the DTS mix is considerably more expansive and open than its sister audio selections, and exhibits wonderful dynamic range and fidelity, complemented with a deep, resonant - but not overbearing - bass.

There is no additional material, nee extras, and represents a missed opportunity to provide both casual and dedicated fans with even the most cursory information on Nelson; the disc does not even contain a selected discography.

You know you have enjoyed a concert presentation when you feel disappointed in the knowledge that it has ended and that the songs, or more specifically, their lyrics and melodies, continue to reverberate in your mind as though they were loose pebbles in a shoe. And Willie Nelson: Live in Amsterdam proves not only to be immensely entertaining, but also profoundly moving in regards to its warm intimacy and sensitive, emotive songs - in particular, "Blue Eyes Crying In The Rain," "Still Is Moving To Me" and a beautiful rendition of "Poncho & Lefty." Whilst it can be considered that Nelson - both the artist and his characteristic nasal voice - is something of an acquired taste, this concert will, no doubt, be an essential purchase for his legions of fans.