I’ve been on a real Lukas Nelson kick here lately.
I’ve always been a fan of his, but lately, I haven’t been able to listen to much else other than his records on a repetitive loop. I need to do a more in-depth post on the awesome stuff he has with his band, Promise of the Real, because you really need to have them on your radar if you don’t already.
But if the last name wasn’t a dead giveaway, Lukas is the son of the great Willie Nelson, but truly is an absolutely incredible artist in his own right.
Lukas was an integral part of the 2018 movie starring Lady Gaga and Bradley Cooper, A Star is Born, writing much of the awesome tunes you hear on that soundtrack and helping produce all the music. He and his band were also the backing band for Bradley in the actual movie, as Lukas had inspired a large part of Bradley’s character, Jackson Maine, after Bradley saw him playing guitar at a Neil Young concert.
Lukas has quite a few covers of his dads songs, and while you can definitely tell he has that certain Nelson tone to his voice, he also has a style that is all his own. As the child of such an iconic figure, it’s refreshing to see Lukas honor his dad and his legacy without being annoyed or over shadowed by the fact that people are always introducing him as “Willie Nelson’s son”.
And back in 2018, Lukas did a cover of “Funny (How Time Slips Away)” in RCA Studio B, which is where Willie had originally recorded the song decades ago. It was a solo write from Willie’s 1962 debut studio album, …And Then I Wrote, and was first recorded by Billy Walker in 1961. Elvis Presley also released a version of it in 1971 for his Elvis Country album.
When you think of classic country heartbreakers and some of Willie Nelson’s all-time classics (and there’s a lot of ’em), along with “Always On My Mind” and “Blue Eyes Crying In The Rain”, this song comes to mind and is near the top of my list.
Lukas is an incredible guitar player, too, and you can feel every bit of emotion in this song as much as the original. It’s safe to say he did his dad proud with this one:
“This was a song that was recorded by my dad, I guess in this room, so I think I should do it in here.”
Willie singing it on Austin City Limits back in 1979: