Song Review – Willie Nelson & Merle Haggard “It’s All Going to Pot”
If 2013 was the “Year of the Song” and 2014 was the “Year of Sturgill Simpson,” 2015 may just go down as the “Year of the Collaboration.” Country music has a long history of duet songs and albums, and Willie Nelson has been a partner in many of them. But many times these twosomes take on the feel of 2nd class side projects meant as secondary listening to the solo albums of the participating artists.
What separates 2015 is we’re already seeing the results of when collaborations can equal something greater than the sum of their parts; the recently-announced Django & Jimmie album between Willie Nelson and Merle Haggard due out June 2nd included.
The Congress of the United States has yet to recognize 4/20 as an official national holiday, or that the possession or intent to distribute the leafy green is legal in all 50 states, but it made for the perfect excuse for Willie & Merle to release the first single from their upcoming collaboration called, “It’s All Going to Pot.”
Put aside your particular feelings on pot from a personal use or political standpoint and “It’s All Going to Pot” is a fun, finely written gem for Willie and Merle to kick back and forth and convey the warm feeling you get simply by seeing the weathered but happy faces of these two old friends making music together. Never mind the haze that permeates the air of Willie’s Honeysuckle Rose, both these old country veterans have their minds about them in this one, delivering one witty line after another.
Producer Buddy Cannon can be seen walking back and forth in the video if you’re not completely distracted by the gratuitous shots of Willie and Merle puffing away (see below), and the music fits the mood of the tune just fine. However the horn section feels just a little superfluous and outdated as it greets you at the beginning, and then shows up unexpectedly at the end.
Willie Nelson and Merle Haggard have far beyond surpassed the amount of skins on the wall one needs to be afforded the latitude to do whatever they want in music, but it’s only fair to point out that pot songs don’t much differ from songs that obsess over beer or whiskey, or whatever adult consumable you desire. “It’s All Going to Pot” conveys a little bit more story than your average modern-day beer anthem, and also redeems itself slightly from moral prejudice by panning the idea of pills. But let’s face it, it feels like if some had their way, Willie would become a one trick pot pony poster boy for the commercialization of marijuana; the golden arches of the green if you will, especially after the announcement of his own marijuana brand.
If we’re going to give Buddy Cannon’s other major studio buddy Kenny Chesney hell for releasing one beach song after another, Willie Nelson’s pot fetish sure has to be called into question too. As a percentage of his song output it’s still very low, but “Superman,” “Roll Me Up and Smoke Me,” and now “It’s All Going to Pot,” make for a pretty consistent pattern of singles.
Hats off to Willie for breaking down barriers by being so open about his admiration for marijuana, but let’s just remember Willie has written many songs, and done many things in his life and for country music beyond delivering one pot punchline after another.
“It’s All Going to Pot” is a fun listen that’s well written, and gets you buzzed for what the full Willie /Merle project may have stashed away.
1 1/2 of 2 Guns Up.
MH
April 21, 2015 @ 8:22 am
The song is cleverly written.
I understand the whole marketing aspect of releasing a song like this on 4/20 to coincide with the announcement of Willie’s own brand of bud, I just hate that a prolific artist like Willie is becoming (has become?) known more for his stance on marijuana than his remarkable body of music work.
Phil
April 23, 2015 @ 3:24 am
Or you could say that this issue is exposing his history (which is colorful to put it mildly) and music to a massive amount of people that would have never looked his way otherwise. There aren’t many cases in the music industry where there’s a bad form of attention.
Side note: In my head, I just applied your logic to Snoop Dog (or whatever he calls himself now) and started laughing.
Spoony
April 23, 2015 @ 7:45 pm
Does Snoop Lion (or whatever he calls himself now) have a “remarkable body of music work”?
Shastacatfish
April 21, 2015 @ 8:31 am
It is not just songs, it is his entire public persona, which I think is a shame. I felt like Willie severely wounded both his own legacy and that of the Dukes of Hazzard with pot obsession in that movie. He has more to offer than pot jokes, but that seems to be what he is interested…which makes a good cautionary tale.
Bill #2
April 21, 2015 @ 8:42 am
No. Just no.
Kale
April 21, 2015 @ 8:56 am
I love how country music is going to hell and Willie and Merle are going to pot. Not helping guys!
Big Country
April 21, 2015 @ 8:57 am
Did I hear Jamey Johnson’s voice toward the end?
Boatwrong
April 21, 2015 @ 12:40 pm
I thought the same exact thing. Jamey sneaking in the back door 🙂
BwareDWare94
April 21, 2015 @ 1:37 pm
Jamey is one of the writers of the song
Sonas
April 22, 2015 @ 4:46 pm
Oh, please don’t let that be so!
hoptowntiger
April 21, 2015 @ 9:03 am
I don’t smoke pot, nor judge those who do. It just never did anything for me – like vodka (I prefer bourbon and coke). But I love the song. “It’s all going to pot” conveys a secondary message that the country is all going to hell (because Mary Jane isn’t legal?).
I think Willie’s work for the farmers in this country and the use of green energy resources are as equally (but less sexy to sings about) as important as his stance on pot. Those are Willie’s political stances I really rally around. I try to go to Farm Aid every year.
Weed is just a part of what makes up Willie the Man.
Trigger
April 21, 2015 @ 11:33 am
Yes, I tried to not ignore the double (or triple?) entendre of this song and solely focus on the “pot” references. But when you make it so obvious (especially in the video), I won’t argue if some straight-laced listeners get rubbed the wrong way. The video left little up for the imagination.
gtrman86
April 21, 2015 @ 10:36 am
This is a great, fun little tune. And no matter your personal take on the electric lettuce, this song hands down beats the shit out of everything on Country Radio. Merle and Willie having a little fun, and the result is a great song. Curious if Mike Johnson took a chuff or two before laying down the steel parts……… ha ha.
86TELE
April 21, 2015 @ 10:41 am
I think this song was well written, clever and just over all enjoyable. I see what people are getting at, but it’s Willie. Was everyone this upset with “Roll Me Up And Smoke Me When I Die” too?
MH
April 21, 2015 @ 10:57 am
“Was everyone this upset with “Roll Me Up And Smoke Me When I Die” too?
I was.
It’s getting to the point where when Willie is on a talk show, the interviewer just jumps right into the pot questions. “How much do you smoke every day?” “Do you think smoking marijuana is harmful?” “What’s it like hanging out with Woody Harrelson? Do you smoke with him?” “You HAVE to get some top-shelf bud since you’re Willie Nelson, right?!”
Trigger
April 21, 2015 @ 11:37 am
I gave a little gruff to “Roll Me Up & Smoke Me When I Die” too for the same reasons, but just like this song, I can still appreciate for what it is.
https://www.savingcountrymusic.com/lets-remember-willie-nelson-for-more-than-marijuana
Sonas
April 22, 2015 @ 4:48 pm
Oh please Trigger, anybody else sing this stupid song, you would have brutalized them.
Tom Smith
April 21, 2015 @ 11:30 am
I love both WIllie and Haggard. Was hoping for something more than a forgettable novelty song.
Albert
April 21, 2015 @ 12:08 pm
As a well-crafted , clever , double -entendre , singable, fresh ( for radio ) and overall entertaining lyric from two legends ….this scores 100% in my book . Every aspect I just mentioned is superior to most of what radio offers us in a song in these times. It’s inoffensive , it’s self-deprecating , it’s NOT promoting the use of weed , it’s not preaching anything , although they do send a message . It’s just a fun outing for two guys who have delivered the goods on all fronts ( lyrically , musically , charitably , influentially ) for so many years that I believe they’ve earned the right to poke a bit of fun at themselves and at us .
Willie exploiting his ” pothead’ personna says more about the small minds who only want to focus on THAT aspect of the man than it does about the man himself. Real country fans familiar with traditions and track records will know that he and Merle have written /recorded so many great , timeless , topical , clever , heartfelt REAL songs that they have nothing to prove .
Truthiness
April 22, 2015 @ 1:20 pm
It’s funny how some country music fans get uptight about ganja when alcohol and cheating are common themes in country music yet they have no problem with it.
Noah Eaton
April 21, 2015 @ 12:10 pm
As frustrated as I’ve been with Willie Nelson banking so much of his recent legacy on marijuana (and I’m a proponent of its legalization, mind you, primarily for economic reasons) that I cringe thinking his excellent discography is going to be overshadowed and eclipsed by his love of pot………….I nonetheless agree that this particular song simply clicks because of the vibe you get that Haggard and Nelson are just simply on cloud nine standing shoulder to shoulder again in the same recording booth in how enthusiastic they sound together.
And the tiresome trope aside, it can’t be denied both the technical and lyrical songwriting here is solid and cohesive. It sets out and accomplishes what a song of this variety is supposed to do.
It’s a shame the bulk of Nelson’s excellent recent discography is going to overall be criminally overlooked all because of the pot marketability among younger listeners overall, but this certainly sticks the landing as a collaboration.
Wayfast
April 21, 2015 @ 12:30 pm
Don’t think Willie has ever been one to care what other people think. He likes smoking, and Haggard does too…… don’t get your panties in a bunch over it. He has recorded more gospel songs than pot smoking songs. He is an icon for his music and his activism, both are important.
Applejack
April 21, 2015 @ 2:49 pm
Maybe this music video will end the debate about whether Haggard is truly against pot smoking and whatnot. I mean, the video is pretty unambiguous. And I know Haggard has admitted that used to be a pothead, but a lot of people probably don’t know that.
Wait a minute, didn’t Merle survive lung cancer? Oh man.
Wayfast
April 21, 2015 @ 2:53 pm
Haggard did an intreview with Rolling Stone a few years back. Smoked during It.
hoptowntiger
April 21, 2015 @ 3:25 pm
I don’t know why in country music it’s either black or white. Case on point, the Sandy Hook Promise gun controversy. Merle’s always been in the grey about issues he sings about, which I love about him.
CountryKnight
April 21, 2015 @ 6:12 pm
Every issue is made black and white.
Liza
April 21, 2015 @ 1:25 pm
Love those well-worn faces.
Applejack
April 21, 2015 @ 2:39 pm
I’ve made my feelings on Willie’s pot obsession pretty clear in previous comments, so at this point I’ll simply say that I consider Willie’s unique musical and songwriting contributions to be his true legacy, and leave it at that.
Having said that, this song was actually a lot of fun. Ha ha.
I expected this to be a mediocre novelty number about toking up, but it was actually a
clever novelty number, with an underlying social message – namely, that the world is going to hell in a hand basket. I know humorous songs have always been important in country music, and it’s just so satisfying to hear one done properly, because there have been so many bad ones over the last decade or so. (Yes, I’m lookin’ at you, Brad “Crushin’ It” Paisley.) I also felt Willie and Merle both used their voices well here, which is a good sign for the full album. For example, I just love the rhythmic way Haggard sings the “All the whiskey in Lynchburg, Tennessee” line. The music was good too, although the horns were superfluous.
Overall, I will give the song 1 and a 1/2 doobies up, or whatever.
Albert
April 21, 2015 @ 6:25 pm
“I also felt Willie and Merle both used their voices well here, which is a good sign for the full album. For example, I just love the rhythmic way Haggard sings the “All the whiskey in Lynchburg, Tennessee” line. The music was good too, although the horns were superfluous.”
Yes …terrific vocals …strong and clear .
Horns: Merle has always used horns .That’s his ‘earmark” on this tune , I believe …as is Willie’s gut string solo . In fact I liked the horns. Then again , my band does Stevie Wonder’s SUPERSTITION with fiddle and steel guitar- but only because we couldn’t find an accordionist .
cecil
April 21, 2015 @ 3:57 pm
I think Willie is just in an f it part of his career and with the amazing body of work he’s put out he deserves to be able to write fun songs about his favorite vice (same for Merle I suppose). So I won’t knock willie for it but like others have expressed it’s sad that now most of the not real country fan base only know him as the old pot head with pony tails and the weed songs.
CountryKnight
April 21, 2015 @ 6:14 pm
A pot song is no different than a beer song or a truck song. The trope has been ridden before, the only question is: Can the singers/songwriters provide a fresh spin?
CountrySunshine
April 21, 2015 @ 11:56 pm
WTF Merle! YOU were my #1 argument to all my (“hippy”) friends who smoke & I say I’m square for staying faithful to the bottle…….”We DON’T smoke marijuana in Muskogee”!
tpool
April 22, 2015 @ 12:56 am
That song was a tribute to his dad, and his generation/way of life more than anything else. he’s with a very clear over the years.
Kev
April 22, 2015 @ 12:46 am
Yeah, I take on board all the stuff about Willie’s history and the fact he seems to be best known these days for being America’s most famous pot smoker but I like the song for itself – whether you choose to note the double entendre or not. Looking forward to the album!
Tony TC Coleman
April 22, 2015 @ 6:49 am
Two great American and World Icons. They can do whatever they want to do. All you folks bitchin about anything these good men are doing is just sad.
Dusty45s
April 22, 2015 @ 6:18 pm
3 out of 1000+ songs constitutes a pattern??
Willie is well known for his sense of humour & this is a lighthearted song that deals with a serious message (the deterioration of the US), just like Cowboys Are Frequently…
Satire is often lost on people who only take things at face value. Not at all a fan of pot, but it sure is nice to have a fresh tongue in cheek look at vices. Every secon song on country radio goes on about alcohol (the most destructive drug in North America), but let’s make fun of a couple buddies making a fun song together.
Trigger
April 22, 2015 @ 7:21 pm
From the review:
” As a percentage of his song output it”™s still very low, but “Superman,” “Roll Me Up and Smoke Me,” and now “It”™s All Going to Pot,” make for a pretty consistent pattern of singles.”
So no, 3 out of 1,000 songs (more like 100, but still) does not constitute a pattern.
Dusty45s
April 22, 2015 @ 10:00 pm
I guess if you look at singles only, then yes, the number is obviously smaller. I was thinking discography, since I’m an album guy.
Still, 1 out of the last dozen official singles released dealing with pot doesn’t really make a pattern in my mind. That’s more singles than most modern country artists release in their career. That’s like saying that Johnny Cash should be considered a gospel singer simply because God’s Gonna Cut You Down was one of his last dozen singles.
luckyoldsun
April 22, 2015 @ 10:47 pm
Not sure how familiar you are with Cash’s work, but he did a load of gospel and Christian-themed songs throughout his career, from “Belshazar” to “Going By the Book” to “The Man Comes Around.” “God”™s Gonna Cut You Down” was in no way a one-shot or an outlier for Cash. If I were to describe Cash to someone who didn’t know who he was, I’d say that prison songs, general Americana (in the old sense) story songs and Christian songs were what he was all about.
1 1/2 guns up cuz of who
April 23, 2015 @ 3:11 pm
If some up and comer, or any of the bros put this out you would have tore this song apart.
Trigger
April 23, 2015 @ 3:40 pm
Meanwhile I’m getting ripped apart on Twitter for comparing Willie Nelson to Kenny Chesney. This might be the most selectively-read article I have ever posted.
From above, and I quote:
“Willie Nelson and Merle Haggard have far beyond surpassed the amount of skins on the wall one needs to be afforded the latitude to do whatever they want in music, but it”™s only fair to point out that pot songs don”™t much differ from songs that obsess over beer or whiskey, or whatever adult consumable you desire.”
And
“If we”™re going to give Buddy Cannon”™s other major studio buddy Kenny Chesney hell for releasing one beach song after another, Willie Nelson”™s pot fetish sure has to be called into question too.”
That’s not one, that’s two specific examples where I cited issues with the song, and compared it to newer artists specifically, and even mentioned how we treat older artists with deference but that’s not always fair. It is my job to give my honest opinion and try to swallow any bias, and I think I went very out of my way to do that with this review.
I stand by my grade 100%.
1 1/2 guns up cuz of who
April 23, 2015 @ 4:11 pm
Saw both those points, but you still gave one and half guns, which is fine, I like the song too but…if this same exact thing was by chase rice and Luke bryan or someone like that , I think you’d give it half a gun at best.
Trigger
April 23, 2015 @ 4:19 pm
But you can’t just assume that. As I stated, I think this song has a lot of wit in the writing, which is usually not the case with Chase Rice or Luke Bryan. Trust me when I say, I questioned myself if I was giving this a positive review simply because who was singing it. That was part of the review process, and part of the written review as well. You may still think I’m bias, but that is about all I can do.
1 1/2 guns up cuz of who
April 23, 2015 @ 4:35 pm
Oh, I assume it, but like you said, what can you do.
herb Andler
April 26, 2015 @ 5:22 am
do your thing Willie—anyone don’t like it –it’s their problem