Willie Nelson's piano-playing Family Band mate and sister Bobbie Nelson helps the Red Headed Stranger tell their interconnected tale with new book Me and Sister Bobbie, out Sept. 15 (Random House).
The Nelson siblings and co-author David Ritz, whose prior books covered the likes of Ray Charles and Aretha Franklin, combined forces for what a press release described as an "inspiring, lyrical statement of how family always finds the way."
Bobbie Nelson joined brother Willie's band during his years with Atlantic Records: a span that brought us the albums The Troublemaker, Shotgun Willie and Phases and Stages. She remains an integral part of her Country Music Hall of Fame sibling's studio releases and live shows.
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The book goes back way before the early '70's to both Abbott, Texas natives' troubled upbringings.
"Abandoned by their parents as toddlers, Willie and Bobbie Nelson found their love of music almost immediately through their grandparents, who raised them in a small Texas town," reads a press release. "Their close relationship—which persists today—is the longest-lasting bond in both their lives.
"In alternating chapters, this heartfelt dual memoir weaves together both their stories as they experienced them side by side and apart," the press release continues. "The Nelsons share powerful, emotional moments from growing up, playing music in public for the first time, and facing trials in adulthood, as Willie pursued songwriting and Bobbie faced a series of challenging relationships and a musical career that took off only when attitudes about women began to change in Texas. The memoir is Bobbie's first book, and in it she candidly shares her life story in full for the first time. Her deeply affecting chapters delve into her personal relationships and life as a mother and as a musician with technical skills that even Willie admits surpass his own. In his poignant stories, Willie shares the depth of his bond with his sister, and how that bond carried him through his most troubled moments. Willie and Bobbie have supported each other through unthinkable personal heartbreak, and they've always shared in each other's victories. Through dizzying highs and traumatic lows, spanning almost nine decades of life, Willie and Bobbie have always had each other's back."
The book follows the July 3 release of Willie Nelson's 70th career solo album, First Rose of Spring.
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