Willie Nelson – Stardust (Legacy Edition) (CD)

I, for one, had no clue that Willie Nelson was 75. Sure, I knew that ey was getting up there is years, but had no clue that ey was born in 1933. What Nelson originally did with “Stardust” was reinterpret what ey called the “Great American Songbook”, putting eir unique tone on a number of American classic. This means that “Georgia On My Mind”, “Unchained Melody”, “Don’t Get Around Much Anymore” and Someone To Watch Over Me” are all present. This 30-year commemorative version of “Stardust” includes a second disc of covers that are similarly impressive in the depth and breadth of the songs that are ultimately covered. “What A Wonderful World” starts off the disc, while a number of important yet less known (at least to the current mind) tracks follow, with Nelson going through songs such “I’m Gonna Sit Right Down and Write Myself A Letter”, “That Lucky Old Sun”, and “You’ll Never Know”.

The Legacy Edition far outstrips any other version of this CD to come out, and the inclusions that are present on the bonus CD provide further insight into why exactly the album charted for such a long time on the country lists. Re-releasing “Stardust” in this Legacy Edition allows for an entirely new subset of fans to pick up and appreciate this album, and with good sales, the chances will be good that Sony Legacy will go forth and start working on “Red Headed Stranger”, “Troublemaker”, or the like. The packaging of the Legacy Edition really completes the entire album experience, where the color booklet goes into further detail about why exactly the tracks (on both albums) were chosen, along with some photos that viewers are likely to not have seen in the past.

In the period where most classic albums are given a budget/value set of packaging and notes, it is always refreshing to see a company like Sony Legacy go out and really give classic albums the packaging that they deserve, giving other individuals the chance to pick up on what is truly an amazing album each time. The preservation of media should be the goal of any company currently releasing media, whether it be movies, music, or the like. By putting forth the second disc of tracks on this Legacy Edition of “Stardust”, what Sony Legacy has done is ensure that these tracks will not be forgotten for the ages. Kudos to them, and hopefully this will be enough of an example to ensure that other companies do just that.

Top Tracks: On The Sunny Side of The Street, Cry

Rating: 8.0/10

Willie Nelson – Stardust (Legacy Edition) / 2008 Sony BMG / 26 Tracks / http://www.legacyrecordings.com /