Live In Texas: Waylon – Live for this week and next 1-19-22

As one of the great live albums, Waylon Live is nearly flawless, a snapshot of Waylon Jennings at the height of his powers and, not so coincidentally, at the peak of the outlaw movement. At this time, he was popular and powerful, creating a mythos out of his performances and songs, delivering first-rate material both on record and in concert. This is where it all came together, since a set list limited Waylon to his best songs, whether his own hits or carefully selected covers. This is especially true of 1999’s Buddha reissue that included nine bonus tracks (all put into the middle of the record), restoring Waylon Live to the double-LP running time it was designed to have. With the restoration of this section — containing such perennials as “Lovin’ Her Was Easier (Than Anything I’ll Ever Do Again),” “Lonesome, On’ry and Mean,” “The Taker,” “Look Into My Teardrops,” and “Never Been to Spain” — the record really becomes a definitive statement on outlaw country and how it bent the rules, borrowing from country and rock and twisting them into something thoroughly distinctive. On top of it all, Waylon and his band give a bracing, terrific performance, investing these songs with more passion than they had previously seen on record. It winds up as one of the great country records and one of the great live albums, capturing a movement at its peak and transcending it.