Top 10 Willie Nelson Songs

Photo: Bob Jagendorf from Manalapan, NJ, USA, CC BY 2.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0>, via Wikimedia Commons

Our top 10 Willie Nelson songs list highlights one of the most legendary country and pop artists in popular music history. It was tough to pick 10 Willie Nelson songs because the man has released 130 singles throughout his career. Willie Nelson has also released 95 studio albums and 13 live albums. In simple terms. Willie Nelson released a lot of music. Willie Nelson stands as one of the most loved musical artists of all time. In celebration of his music, we picked ten of our favorite Willie Nelson songs, most of which hit number one on the U.S.Country Billboard music charts.

# 10 – Touch Me

We open up our top 10 Willie Nelson songs list with an early Willie Nelson classic entitled “Touch Me.” The song was released in 1962 on the album …And Then I Wrote. It would become Willie Nelson’s second top 10 hit on the U.S Billboard Country music charts. The song “Touch Me” was written by Willie Nelson. This is a great place to start when looking at Willie Nelson, not just as a singer but as a songwriter.

# 9 – If You Got The Money I’ve Got The Time

At number nine on our top 10 Willie Nelson’s songs list is the great song “If You Got The Money I’ve Got The Time.” The song was released on the Willie Nelson album The Sound In Your Mind. The song hit number one on the U.S. Country Music Chart in 1976. “If You Got The Money I’ve Got The Time” was written by Lefty Frizzell and Jim Beck. Other versions of the song included a great 1971 recording by Mose Allison and Merle Haggard’s 2001 version.

# 8 – My Heroes Have Always Been Cowboys

Number eight on our top 10 Willie Nelson songs list is the great song “My Heroes Have Always Been Cowboys.” The song was released in 1980 on the album The Electric Horseman. The legendary song “My Heroes Have Always Been Cowboys” hit number one on the Billboard U.S. Country Music Charts. The song was written by Sharon Vaughn.

# 7 – To All The Girls I’ve Loved Before

Well, we could not have put together a top 10 Willie Nelson songs list without including his legendary duet with Julio Iglesias entitled “All the Girls I’ve Loved Before.” This classic song was originally written in 1975 by Hal David and Albert Hammond. Julio Iglesias and Willie Nelson recorded the song in 1984, and it became one of the year’s biggest hits. It was almost annoying how big the song was. The song To All the Girls I’ve Loved Before” hit number one on the Billboard U.S. Country Music Charts. It also hit number five on the US Billboard Hot 100 and number three on the US Billboard Hot Adult Contemporary tracks charts. It also hit number one in Canada, Belgium, and number two in South Africa, Spain, and New Zealand. This was a huge song worldwide and stands as a Willie Nelson classic.

# 6 – Mama Don’t Let Your Babies Grow Up To Be Cowboys

Who doesn’t love the song titled “Mama Don’t Let Your Babies Grow Up To Be Cowboys”? Willie Nelson covered this great Ed Bruce and Patsy Bruce song as a duet with Waylon Jennings in 1978 on their album Waylon and Willie. The two legends had a huge hit with the song, which reached number one on the Billboard U.S. Country Music Charts. It just missed the top 40 on the Billboard Hot 100, peaking at number 42.

# 5 – Blue Skies

While there are so many Willie Nelson songs to choose from, there was just something about this great cover version of “Blue Skies” that we just needed to celebrate on our top 10 Willie Nelson songs list. Willie Nelson’s cover version of “Blue Skies” was released on his Stardust album in 1978. The album spawned two number-one singles on the US Hot Country Songs chart: “Georgia on My Mind” and “Blue Skies.” The third single, entitled “All of Me,” Hit number three on the country music charts. This was a great album, in which Willie Nelson took on all the great jazz standards and did them Willie Nelson Style.

# 4 – Pancho And Lefty

“Pancho and Lefty” is a great song written by Townes Van Zandt. The song was originally written in 1972 and released on the album The Late Great Townes Van Zandt. Later in the decade, Emmylou Harris recorded the song. However, it was Willie Nelson’s recording with Merle Haggard that stands as the definitive version of the song. Willie Nelson and Merle Haggard’s version went straight to number one on the US Billboard Country Music Charts in 1983. It stands as one of the all-time great country music duets.

# 3 – Blue Eyes Crying In The Rain

At number three on our top 10 Willie Nelson songs list is the classic track “Blue Eyes Crying in the Rain.” The song was released in 1975 on the Willie Nelson album entitled Red Headed Stranger. The song hit number one on the Billboard U.S. Country Music Charts. It also did well on the US Billboard Hot 100, peaking at number 21. The song was written by Fred Rose. It’s a classic song that Hank Williams recorded in 1951. Many legendary country singers and country artists recorded the tune, including Slim Whitman, Gene Vincent, Bill Anderson, Hank Snow, and good old Conway Twitty. Nonetheless, Willie Nelson tore it up on this one, having a big hit in the 70s with it. That’s Morgan Fairchild in the video below.

# 2 – Always On My Mind

Willie Nelson displays probably the best vibrato we’ve ever heard in a country singer on the track “Always On My Mind.” This was a huge hit single by Willie Nelson. The song was released on Willie Nelson’s Always On My Mind album, which was issued in 1982. The song “Always On My Mind” hit number one on the Billboard U.S. Country Music Charts. It was also a top 10 hit on the Billboard Hot 100, peaking at number five, and reached number two on the US Adult Contemporary chart. This was not a new song. The song was written by Wayne Carson, Johnny Christopher, and Mark James in the early 1970s and was first recorded by B.J. Thomas. Two years later, in 1972, the man himself, Elvis Presley, recorded a big hit version of the song. That same year, Brenda Lee also recorded a version of the song. However, Willie Nelson made the song his own when he released it in 1982.

# 1 – On The Road Again

This one just felt right to be placed in the number one spot. You just can’t forget the sound of Willie Nelson’s voice singing that line, “On The Road Again.” The song was released in 1980 on the soundtrack to the film Honeysuckle Rose. The song was written by Willie Nelson. “On The Road Again” scored Willie Nelson a Grammy Award for Best Country Song. The song “On the Road Again” hit number one on the Billboard U.S. Hot Country Songs charts. It also became a top 20 hit on the Billboard Hot 100, peaking at number 20, and broke the top 10 on the US Adult Contemporary Charts, reaching number seven. Chart success aside, this is that one Willie Nelson song that you just can’t get out of your head.