country music concert - Willie Nelson RCA live lp?

Just looking for a bit of information: I enjoy Willie's RCA years and was never aware of this early
concert lp. It looks interesting, but I was hoping to hear from someone who had actually heard it. Is this an lp worth tracking down? If anyone could comment on the performances or sound quality of this lp, I would appreciate it. Also, I noticed that it was issued in both mono and stereo. Is either mix superior? I know that this is a pretty obscure album, but I figured if anyone had it, they would
probably be on this forum. Thanks a lot.

 

If its the one I'm thinking of it was recorded in Fort Worth and sounds like vintage Willie. In other words NOTHING like his RCA records. His version here of I Never Cared For You is a real keeper.

 

This album IS vintage Willie, and is on RCA records, as were most of his 60s records. If you like early/mid 60s Willie then it's definitely worth seeking out. I only have the stereo pressing and it sounds fine

 

And yes it was recorded in Fort Worth at panther city hall

 

This is what I was hoping to hear. I don't know why his RCA years aren't appreciated more. Everything that I have heard is really great (and not all that different than his 70's stuff). I'll look forward to hearing what his live show sounded like in 1966!

 

The problem that fans have is the arrangements that were laid on Willie's stuff. Thats why this album is so good. It's Willie and his band, at home in Fort Worth, far from Chet Atkins and the RCA producers. They did not allow Willie to do an album his way until the end of his contract and he handed them Yesterday's Wine. They STILL didn't get it. That album begins the run that continued on Atlantic and on to Red Headed Stranger.

 

I remember driving by Panther Hall, some 20 years ago, the building was dilapidated...I had heard of it, but didn't know exactly where it was....just happened upon it, and I was surprised to see it in that location...used to be the big concert place for Fort Worth in the 1950's and 60's, I think...is the building still there? converted into something else?

 

BTW, Willie's 4th of July picnic has been announced, the show takes place on the grounds of Billy Bob's Texas, in Fort Worth...he will be joined by Kris Kristofferson, David Allan Coe, Ray Price, and others...but the show is outdoors, and the heat will be brutal

 

Panther Hall was torn down quite a long time ago. The soccer field for Texas Wesleyan University now stands in its place.

Interesting side note: my wife and I were driving down a backroad not far from our house a couple of years ago and saw that someone has the original Panther Hall sign on their property in very decent shape. Would love to have that.

 

cool, thanks for that info....I did know Texas Wesleyan had grown and expanded in recent years, but I didn't know their reach extended to Panther Hall...

that is interesting about the Panther Hall sign...not sure about monetary value, but it's surely worth a lot in sentimental markets

 

Awesome album. "I Just Can't Let You Say Goodbye" is done superbly.

This album was reissued in the 70's with a different cover showing Willie in his modern (at the time) shaggy hippy look.

I've got an original RCA copy that a good friend gave me as a gift. He used to hang with Willie a bit as they had a common friend. Willie played at a place in Dallas called the Longhorn Ballroom and they knocked back a few cold ones together there. He has a picture of he and a slick, pompadored Willie blown up to poster size in his office.

Here's the original:


This is the 70's re-release, they added "I Gotta Get Drunk":

 

I just love those RCA album covers

 

just the other day i was surprised to see for the first time a photo of Willie with a Jazzmaster.now here it is again.does he play any solos on the album ?

 

yes he plays all the solos. it's funny, the way he has the tone dialed in, it sounds almost like a nylon string guitar.

 

We're talking about the 1966 Panther Hall live album? That's a great record. Willie was already fully formed in '66 and you get a lot of the great early songs that haven't always remained in Willie's sets: "Mr. Record Man," "Half a Man," "Touch Me," "Opportunity to Cry." One of the most interesting moment on it is when he covers "Yesterday" -- then just a year old -- and pauses to explain himself to the Ft. Worth country audience saying that as a songwriter he thinks the song is really good. The only way I think it's available today is as an iTunes download, no? I've never had my hands on an original vinyl copy.

 

Yes, essential early Willie Nelson live from his RCA era. And not monkeyed with. P.S. The original "I Never Cared For You" was recorded for Monument and released only by them on a rare 45 originally, I own a Promo 45 single of it. It was released by Monument just before Willie Nelson signed with RCA Records.

 

The Bear Family 8 CD set, "Nashville was the Roughest [1965-1972]" collects his RCA albums. Disk 8 is the complete Panther Hall concert album from 1966. Fantastic collection and great live set as well. (There is also a Bear Family 3 CD set, "It's Been Rough and Rocky Travelin' [1954-1963]")

p.s. I have very fond memories of Panther Hall. As a kid, my parents and aunts and uncles and grandparents were tangentially involved in the country music scene in Dallas/Ft Worth via a couple of my cousins (who both sang at Panther Hall at one time or the other). Willie also used to play in Dallas at "The Sportatorium" (a big metal building mainly used for Saturday night "professional" wrestling matches), where my cousins also sang sometimes. I think I saw my very first live music concert there in the mid 1960s. They had the "Big D Jamboree" on Saturday nights.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dallas_Sportatorium
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Big_D_Jamboree

Later on Panther Hall became a great place to see rock concerts. Saw ZZ Top (as "unknown" basically) about the time of their first album release (1970?). Bob Weir (solo), Grateful Dead, Canned Heat, many others played there. Had a cool late 60s/early 70s "light show". Local underground FM station KFAD used to throw "pillow concerts" there with light show and bands like Shiva's Headband, etc. (from Austin). For a partial list see:

http://www.pantherhall.com/fort_worth_texas/panther_hall_4.html
http://pantherhall.com/fort_worth_texas/Panther_Hall.html

 

Bassist Wade Ray and drummer/legendary songwriter Johnny "Whiskey River" Bush backed Willie on the 1965 Panther Hall "Live Country Music Concert." Originally released in 1966, an amended version of the live album was released in 1976. As JamieC noted, the album was edited. Regardless of the editing, my biggest problem with both releases is the fact that neither version included the complete concert. Thankfully, Bear Family rectified such issues by releasing the performance in its entirety on the Willie Nelson box set.

The man on the right is country legend Johnny Bush, not a presidential candidate. The man on the left is Willie Nelson in disguise.