Track Listing

1. Ou Es-Tu, Mon Amour? (Where Are You, My Love?)
2. I Never Cared for You
3. Everywhere I Go
4. Darkness on the Face of the Earth
5. My Own Peculiar Way
6. These Lonely Nights
7. Home Motel
8. Maker
9. I Just Can't Let You Say Goodbye
10. I've Just Destroyed the World (I'm Living In)
11. Somebody Pick Up My Pieces
12. Three Days
13. I've Loved You All Over the World
14. Annie

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #19559 in Music
• Brand: Nelson
• Released on: 1998-09-01
• Number of discs: 1
• Dimensions: .21 pounds

Amazon.com
The first words from Willie Nelson's lips, "The sun is filled with ice and gives no warmth at all / the sky was never blue," warn the listener something is happening here. In a converted Mexican movie theater, producer Daniel Lanois surrounds the 65-year-old Nelson with the most startling and assured musical vision of his career: lush, rippling guitars, and swelling, splashing drum tracks, doubled and tripled over, sometimes in a Latin mood. Lanois allows Nelson freedom to solo in and around his sonic dreamwork, and with the presence of longtime fellow travelers Mickey Raphael, Emmylou Harris, and sister Bobbie, the record clearly smacks of Nelson's style and lyrical vision. The original material is decades old, but little known, and generally as haunting as Lanois's arrangements. (Only one song should have remained in the vaults: the emotionally-curdled "I Just Can't Let You Say Good-Bye.") So much could have gone wrong on this pairing. It's a thrill to hear how much truly goes right. --Roy Francis Kasten

Entertainment Weekly
[Nelson's] Texas-rooted sound has always had a south-of-the-border tinge, which [producer Daniel] Lanois accentuates with Teatro's bubbling percussion.

USA Today
Emmylou Harris and jazz pianist Brad Mehldau ... give Nelson's idiosyncratic guitar room to roam free and add a fascinating dimension to his sound.

Customer Reviews

Now I am by no means a Willie fan.....
I first heard some 'Teatro' tracks when Willie played Farm Aid in 98. I knew then that I had to get this album. Like I said, I am not a fan of Nelson, nor am I of country music, but the music on this album is superb. It is perfect for those 'lazy' days, or when you just need a stress reliever. My favorite track has to be the version of Lanois' 'The Maker'. Daniel Lanois, who produces 'Teatro', for those who don't know, is a musician who seems to have better success as a producer. He has produced such greats as U2, Peter Gabriel, and Bob Dylan ('Time Out of Mind' was heralded as Dylan's best work in years, largely due to Lanois). I highly recommend this album to anyone who is at all hesitant in picking it up. You will not be disappointed.

Willie's Tex-Mex Flava!
I will admit to hating (and that's being kind) the majority of country mucky muck that pollutes the airwaves of this great nation, but, this is a really great record. From the opening minutes of Teatro, we are entered into a spookier, dustier affair, full of sorrow and regret, a record that is as real as a record can get. This, of course, comes from Willie. One gets the sense of personal struggle and heartbreak, but without all the cheesy, twangy hang-ups that plague CMT. Another reason for the record's success is the hauntingly beautiful production from Daniel Lanois. Listeners may know his work with Scott Weiland, Bob Dylan or U2's masterful Joshua Tree. Lanois adds this chilling quality to this very Texan/Mexican guitar album, you can almost feel the sun dried hands that these songs where created with. I esp. loved the cover of Daniel Lanois' very own tune, "The Maker". It's a song that sounds like it's an out-take from The Joshua Tree, U2 fans will absolutely love this one. Another highlight is the regretful, "I Never Cared For You". Strangly upbeat, it best represents what the disc has to offer, a lot of feeling and Spanish stylings - it just plain beautiful! I expected this to be a interesting, smart record at the very least, it well surpassed that and a whole lot more. Thanks Willie for giving country a respectable name once again.

Better than you can imagine
This CD was recommended by the concession cashiers at a Willie Nelson concert. There were five CDs on sale. There were four cashiers and they were unanimous about Teatro. They were right. Brilliant shuffles with rock solid rhythms alternate with contemplative ballads featuring Willie's perfect emotional pitch. The first time you play it, it becomes a familiar old friend; you can't believe you haven't owned it for years. Ou Es-Tu, Mon Amour, an instrumental tribute to Django Reinhart, feeds directly into I Never Cared For You, where a man struggles to convince a distrustful woman that he truly loves her, using her mistrust as the tool that will make her believe. Both music and voice are dead on. Darkness On The Face Of The Earth is the type of straight ahead rocker that you keep singing along with even after you've parked your car. These Lonely Nights similarly captures Willie in his best Whiskey River mode. And anytime you're in a lull, just punch in track 12 (Three Days). Despite a middle section of slow tunes, Teatro is the pefect road companion. The best tracks on this CD don't just make your body move, they make your car sail down the highway. I haven't played another CD in the car in six months. Just teriffic.