Somewhere Over the Rainbow (Willie Nelson album)

1981 studio album by Willie Nelson

Somewhere Over the Rainbow is a studio album by country music singer Willie Nelson, released in 1981. It features 1940s pop standards arranged by Nelson. The album's acoustic jazz instrumentation was also meant to play tribute to one of his heroes, Belgian gipsy jazz guitar virtuoso Django Reinhardt, who influenced Nelson's playing.

Track listing

Side one

1. "Mona Lisa" (Jay Livingston, Ray Evans) (2:28)
2. "Exactly Like You" (Dorothy Fields, Jimmy McHugh) (2:22)
3. "Who's Sorry Now?" (Bert Kalmar, Harry Ruby, Ted Snyder) (2:58)
4. "I'm Confessin' (That I Love You)" (Al Neiburg, Doc Daugherty, Ellis Reynolds) (3:30)
5. "Won't You Ride in My Little Red Wagon" (Rex Griffin) (2:28)

Side two

1. "Over the Rainbow" (E. Y. Harburg, Harold Arlen) (3:33)
2. "In My Mother's Eyes" (Willie Nelson) (3:06)
3. "I'm Gonna Sit Right Down and Write Myself a Letter" (Fred E. Ahlert, Joe Young) (2:58)
4. "It Wouldn't Be the Same (Without You)" (Fred Rose, Jimmy Wakely) (2:54)
5. "Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star" (Traditional; arranged by Willie Nelson) (2:10)

Personnel

• Willie Nelson – guitar, vocals
• Freddy Powers – guitar, vocals
• Paul Buskirk – tenor guitar, mandolin
• Johnny Gimble – fiddle
• Bob Moore – bass guitar
• Dean Reynolds – upright bass

Technical

• Bert Frilot – engineer
• Norman Seeff – photography

Charts

References

1. "Somewhere Over the Rainbow Review by James Chrispell". AllMusic. Retrieved 12 September 2023.
2. The Rolling Stone Album Guide. Random House. 1992. pp. 499, 501.
3. "Willie Nelson Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved June 4, 2021.
4. "Willie Nelson Chart History (Top Country Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved June 4, 2021.
5. "Top Country Albums – Year-End 1981". Billboard. Retrieved June 4, 2021.