NELSON,WILLIE
PHASES AND STAGES: DELUXE (RSD24) - LP

UPC: 603497827176
Label: ATLANTIC
Format: LP
Release Date: April 20, 2024
In stock items ship within 48 hours

This product is a Record Store Day 2024 product. It will be available in store on April 20th, 2024 at 8 a.m. ET when our store opens.

Any remaining stock will be made available online on April 21st, 2024 at 8AM EST for LOCAL PICKUP orders. Orders for shipping will be available at 7PM Sunday April 21st

For more info please visit the RSD page here.

Willie Nelson’s 1974 classic, celebrating its 50th Anniversary in 2024.

If Shotgun Willie played a bit like a concept album, Phases and Stages was full-blown, tracing the dissolution of a marriage and devoting one side to the wife's perspective, the second to the husband's…. Phases and Stages is easily the equal of its remarkable predecessor, a wonderful set of music that resonates deeply, as deeply as the words.
Make no mistake -- the deceptively relaxed arrangements, including the occasional strings, not only highlight Nelson's clever eclecticism, they also heighten the emotional impact of the album. And this is a hell of an emotional record, where even each side's celebratory honky tonk numbers (the medley "Sister's Coming Home/Down at the Corner Beer Joint" and "Pick Up the Tempo," respectively) are muted by sadness. Then, there are the centerpieces: "Walkin'," where the woman decides it's time to move on; "Pretend I Never Happened," perhaps the coldest ending to a relationship ever written; "Bloody Mary Morning," a bleary-eyed morning-after tale that became a standard; "It's Not Supposed to Be That Way," a nearly unbearably melancholy account of a love gone wrong; and "Heaven and Hell," a waltz summary of the relationship. Any two of these would have formed a strong core for an album, but placed together in a narrative context, their impact is even more considerable. As a result, this is not just one of Willie Nelson's best records, but one of the great concept albums overall.

TRACKLIST

Side One
Phases And Stages (Theme) [0:20]
Washing The Dishes [1:22]
Phases And Stages (Theme) [0:24]
Walkin’ [3:41]
Pretend I Never Happened [2:59]
Sister’s Coming Home [1:48]
Down At The Corner Beer Joint [1:57]
(How Will I Know) I’m Falling In Love Again [3:25]

Side Two
Bloody Mary Morning [2:48]
Phases And Stages (Theme) [0:32]
No Love Around [1:51]
I Still Can’t Believe You’re Gone [4:15]
It’s Not Supposed To Be That Way [3:27]
Heaven And Hell [1:52]
Phases And Stages (Theme) [0:24]
Pick Up The Tempo [2:41]
Phases And Stages (Theme) [0:21]

Side Three
Phases And Stages (Theme) (Alternate Version) [2:41]
Washing The Dishes (Alternate Version)
Sister’s Coming Home (Alternate Version) [3:58]
Down At The Corner Beer Joint (Alternate Version)
Phases And Stages (Theme) (Alternate Version) [4:00]
(How Will I Know) I’m Falling In Love Again (Alternate Version)
Bloody Mary Morning (Alternate Version) [3:40]
No Love Around (Alternate Version) [1:54]

Side Four
I Still Can’t Believe You’re Gone (Alternate Version) [4:15]
It’s Not Supposed To Be That Way (Alternate Version) [3:16]
Heaven And Hell (Alternate Version/Duet Vocal) [2:59]
Phases And Stages (Theme) [3:10]
Pick Up The Tempo
Phases And Stages (Theme) (Alternate Version) [0:40]