Roll Me Up and Smoke Me When I Die: Musings from the Road
In Roll Me Up and Smoke Me When I Die, Willie Nelson muses about his greatest influences and the things that are most important to him, and celebrates the family, friends, and colleagues who have blessed his remarkable journey. Willie riffs on everything, from music to poker, Texas to Nashville, and more. He shares the outlaw wisdom he has acquired over the course of eight decades, along with favorite jokes and insights from family, bandmates, and close friends. Rare family pictures, beautiful artwork created by his son, Micah Nelson, and lyrics to classic songs punctuate these charming and poignant memories.
A road journal written in Willie Nelson's inimitable, homespun voice and a fitting tribute to America’s greatest traveling bard, Roll Me Up and Smoke Me When I Die—introduced by another favorite son of Texas, Kinky Friedman—is a deeply personal look into the heart and soul of a unique man and one of the greatest artists of our time, a songwriter and performer whose legacy will endure for generations to come.
BUY THE BOOK
Community Reviews
Based on the title and author alone, I was expecting a whole lot of this:
It's true. Willie Nelson does love his weed. This is pretty much universal knowledge at this point. The sky is blue, the grass is green, and Willie Nelson loves smoking grass. The end. And he does talk about his love for it and his reasons why it should be legalized (and doesn't sound like a stoned maniac with his arguments), but it in no way dominates the book. Was he high while he wrote/dictated this book? PROBABLY.
I was shocked/delighted that I couldn't put this book down. It has a lot of heart. Willie speaks so highly of his family and friends. He speaks of his children's accomplishments with so much pride no matter which road was taken. There are blurbs where his family and friends write about him as well, and there is a mutual fondness. Nothing is perfect and maybe there are things you or I wouldn't necessarily agree with (gone a lot, multiple women, etc. etc.), but that is not any of my damn business. I took what he said about others without a grain of salt and just enjoyed the beauty.
She took care of us and we tried to take care of her. We had a fabulous, blessed childhood with her. She gave us all of her: her life, her time, her knowledge of the world, her spirituality, and her devoted love.
I was already a fan of his music prior to reading the book, but I found myself going on YouTube and trying to find every name he dropped. He is of a different time, a great time, and there is much to discover by going back.
Willie bounces between dirty jokes and great advice. And there is no rhyme or reason as to where they will be in the book. If you need great flow and structure, you may find yourself irritated. I like to throw structure to the wind, so this didn't bother me a bit. Bring it on.
THINK IT. BE IT. YOU ARE THE SUM TOTAL OF ALL YOUR THOUGHTS. Remember you are who you wanted to be. If you're happy, thank God and move on. If you want to change, you can. Intentions are important, but remember you can kill yourself with good intentions. If everything fails, start over. Failure is not fatal. It's inevitable that you learn from your mistakes. If you fail, you start over. If you fail again, you start over again. If you fall seven times, get up eight.
And later...
If at first you don't succeed...fuck it!
There were so many lines I noted. There are so many parts I talked about to friends. There is no part of me that regrets picking this up.
4 Stars
See why thousands of readers are using Bookclubs to stay connected.