S4 E9: Waylon Payne on "Both Sides Now"
This week, Americana singer-songwriter Waylon Payne talks about Willie\u2019s 1970 cover of Joni Mitchell\u2019s iconic \u201cBoth Sides Now.\u201d Waylon, an NPR-darling as an artist now, grew up in Willie World; his mom, Sammi Smith\u2014of \u201cHelp Me Make It Through the Night\u201d fame\u2014played package shows with Willie in the \u201870s; and his dad, Jody Payne, was Willie\u2019s lead guitarist for almost forty years. Waylon walks us through all that, describing the way Willie songs were his lullabies as a kid, the incredibly difficult personal trials when he says Willie saved his life, and the time Willie paid his songwriting the highest praise possible. Note: the compliment wasn\u2019t remotely suitable for small ears.