Willie Nelson Announces New Book About Longtime Drummer Paul English

Nelson added in press materials: “There’s something about my friendship with Paul that reminds me of Tom Sawyer and Huck Finn. Tom was more civilized and Huck was wilder. Although I was plenty wild at age twenty-two, I’d have to say Paul was wilder. Like Tom and Huck, though, we became a team. Nothing could or would ever separate us. If someone tries to tell my story without putting Paul by my side, don’t bother reading it.”

Me and Paul traces Nelson’s career from his roots in 1950s Fort Worth through the founding of Farm Aid in the 1980s (English served as Farm Aid’s treasurer for many years), and more. Nelson first immortalized English with his 1971 song “Me & Paul.” “I’ve got this song that begs to be a book and a book that begs to read like a song,” Nelson said in a press release. (Nelson also released an album titled Me & Paul in 1985. The album’s back cover features a collage of portraits of the two friends.)

Last year, Nelson issued the LP The Willie Nelson Family with his late sister Bobbie. English recorded on four of its tracks: “Heaven and Hell,” “Kneel at the Feet of Jesus,” ““Laying My Burdens Down,” and “Family Bible.”

Revisit “The Story of Outlaw Country in 33 Songs.”