The Other Live

Album review

In 1996, Waylon Jennings and the major labels in Nashville weren't having much to say to one another (not an uncommon situation for a veteran country act at that time), so he signed with the Texas-based indie label Justice Records, who were also working with his buddy Willie Nelson, and he was given free rein to do as he pleased. Waylon's first album for Justice, Right for the Time, was an overlooked pleasure, laid-back and relaxed but heartfelt, with Jennings and a compact studio band covering the usual topics -- falling in love, falling out of love, drowning one's sorrows, and trying to make sense of life as it drifts on by -- with his usual blend of cockiness, dignity, and hard-won insight. Some artists create great music out of strong labor, but Waylon's best music has often sounded like his most spontaneous, and that was clearly the formula for Right for the Time -- gather up some good tunes, round up the band, and roll tape. And if the result wasn't a great Waylon Jennings album, it's a damn good one. Maybe the cover of Paul Simon's "The Boxer" wasn't a great idea, but it works better than you might expect, and there are some real winners here, including the swaggering kiss-off "Kissing You Goodbye," the rollicking "Hittin' the Bottle Again," the introspective "WBPT" and "Cactus, Texas," and the bittersweet title track. And the closer, "Living Legends, Pt. 2," is a witty overview of the state of country music circa 1996, and if the names have changed, the basic scenario seems remarkably similar almost 20 years on. By 1998, Waylon would be back in the major-label game, but if Right for the Time wasn't seen as a revelatory comeback for Jennings (like Johnny Cash's albums for American), that's probably not what he wanted, given his personality. Jennings likely wanted to make a good album on his own terms, and he certainly succeeded with Right for the Time.
© Mark Deming /TiVo