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Django and Jimmie

{{Italic title}}

{{Infobox album

| name = Django and Jimmie

| type = studio

| artist = Willie Nelson and Merle Haggard

| cover = Willie Nelson & Merle Haggard - Django and Jimmie.jpg

| alt =

| released = June 2, 2015

| recorded =

| venue =

| studio =

| genre = Country, outlaw country

| length = {{Duration|h=|m=46|s=44}}

| label = Legacy Recordings

| producer = Buddy Cannon

| chronology = Willie Nelson

| prev_title = December Day: Willie's Stash, Vol. 1

| prev_year = 2014

| next_title = Summertime: Willie Nelson Sings Gershwin

| next_year = 2016

| misc = {{Extra chronology

| artist = Merle Haggard

| type = studio

| prev_title = Working in Tennessee

| prev_year = 2011

| title = Django and Jimmie

| year = 2015

| next_title = Timeless

| next_year = 2015

}}

{{Singles

| name = Django and Jimmie

| type = studio

| single1 = It's All Going to Pot

| single1date = April 20, 2015

| single2 = Unfair Weather Friend

| single2date = May 11, 2015

| single3 = Alice in Hulaland

| single3date = June 24, 2015

}}

}}

Django and Jimmie is the sixth and final collaborative studio album by American country music artists Willie Nelson and Merle Haggard. It was released on June 2, 2015, by Legacy Recordings. The album was Haggard's final studio album prior to his death of pneumonia in April 2016, 10 months after its release.

The album was well received by the critics, while it topped Billboard's Top Country Albums and reached number seven on the Billboard 200 upon its release.

Overview

Django and Jimmie marked Willie Nelson and Merle Haggard's sixth album collaboration. Nelson announced its completion during an appearance on Jimmy Kimmel Live! at South by Southwest festival on March 20, 2015. The release of the first single, "It's All Going to Pot" was set for April 20 (420 day).{{cite magazine|url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/news/watch-willie-nelson-and-jimmy-kimmel-duet-on-sxsw-love-song-20150321|title=Watch Willie Nelson and Jimmy Kimmel Duet on SXSW Love Song|magazine=Rolling Stone|date=March 21, 2015|access-date=March 23, 2015}} The album was in development since at least early 2014. {{Cite web |date=2016-06-11 |title=Willie Nelson and Merle Haggard, "Django and Jimmie" {{!}} www.stillisstillmoving.com |url=https://stillisstillmoving.com/willienelson/willie-nelson-and-merle-haggard-django-and-jimmie-6/ |access-date=2023-04-23 |website=stillisstillmoving.com |language=en-US}}

Produced by Buddy Cannon, the album features fourteen tracks by Nelson and Haggard. The song "Django and Jimmie" is a tribute to musicians Django Reinhardt and Jimmie Rodgers. Cannon forwarded the title-track to Haggard and Nelson separately. Both were interested by the song, and had talked in previous years about recording a new collaboration album.{{cite magazine|url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/premieres/watch-willie-nelson-merle-haggard-smoke-and-joke-in-the-studio-20150429|title=Watch Willie Nelson, Merle Haggard Smoke and Joke in the Studio|author=Doyle, Patrick|magazine=Rolling Stone|date=April 29, 2015|access-date=April 29, 2015}} The preproduction of the album took eighteen months. The parties involved discussed the type of material they wanted to include in the album and co-wrote some of the songs by talking on the telephone. The entire album was recorded in three days.{{cite magazine|url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/news/willie-nelson-merle-haggard-team-up-for-new-duets-album-20150415|title=Willie Nelson, Merle Haggard Team Up for Duets Album|date=April 15, 2015|access-date=April 16, 2015|magazine=Rolling Stone}} It features a guest appearance by Bobby Bare on the tribute song "Missing Ol' Johnny Cash". The release of the album was announced for June 2, 2015.{{cite news|url=http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/outlaw-country-legends-willie-nelson--merle-haggard-reunite-for-django-and-jimmie-a-new-album-collaboration-premiering-14-fresh-studio-tracks-300066218.html|title=Outlaw Country Legends Willie Nelson & Merle Haggard Reunite for Django and Jimmie, A New Album Collaboration Premiering 14 Fresh Studio Tracks|work=PR Newswire|date=April 15, 2015|access-date=April 15, 2015}}

Reception

{{Album ratings

| MC = 73/100

|rev1= Rolling Stone

|rev1score={{Rating|3|5}}

|rev2=Uncut

|rev2score=Favorable.

|rev3=American Songwriter

|rev3score={{Rating|3.5|5}}

|rev4=Paste

|rev4score= 8.6/10

|rev5 = Austin Chronicle

|rev5score ={{Rating|4|5}}

|rev6= The Wall Street Journal

|rev6score = Favorable.

|rev7=The New Yorker

|rev7score=Favorable.

|rev8=Allmusic

|rev8score={{Rating|3.5|5}}

}}

=Critical=

The album garnered positive reviews. With 73 points out of 100, the aggregate score website Metacritic classified them as "Generally favorable reviews".{{cite web|url=http://www.metacritic.com/music/django-and-jimmie/willie-nelson|title=Django and Jimmie by Willie Nelson|work=Metacritic|publisher=CBS Interactive, Inc}} Rolling Stone rated the release with three stars out of five. The magazine called it a "grab bag" new and older material that relied on Nelson and Haggard's "mythology".{{cite magazine|author=Hermes, Will|title=Django and Jimmie|url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/albumreviews/willie-nelson-merle-haggard-django-and-jimmie-20150602|magazine=Rolling Stone|date=June 2, 2015|access-date=June 8, 2015}} Uncut delivered a favorable review, declaring: "Nelson sings like a canary and plays like a dream, Haggard growls like a grizzled jailbird and everyone seems to be having a blast".{{cite journal|journal=Uncut|title=Album Reviews|page=72|date=June 3, 2015}} American Songwriter favored the chemistry between Nelson and Haggard, while it praised Cannon and his "rootsy, loose and homey" approach, while it called the backing band "great".{{cite news |author=Horowitz, Hal |title=Willie Nelson & Merle Haggard: Django and Jimmie |url=http://www.americansongwriter.com/2015/06/willie-nelson-merle-haggard-django-jimmie/ |date=June 2, 2015 |access-date=June 8, 2015 |work=American Songwriter |publisher=ForASong Media, LLC}} Paste delivered a positive review, declaring: "Just hearing (Haggard and Nelson) make the music they want is plenty".{{cite news |author=Gleason, Holly |url=http://www.pastemagazine.com/articles/2015/06/willie-nelson-merle-haggard-django-and-jimmie-revi.html |title=Willie Nelson & Merle Haggard: Django and Jimmie Review |date=June 2, 2015 |access-date=June 8, 2015 |work=Paste |publisher=Paste Media Group}}

Austin Chronicle rated the album with four stars out of five. The review remarked the merger of the styles of both artists: Haggard's signature use of the Telecaster and steel guitar; with Nelson's guitar and Mickey Raphael's harmonica. It called the rasp on their voices "well seasoned", while it concluded that both "deliver a master class on how country music is supposed to be done".{{cite news|author=Stegall, Tim|title=Willie Nelson & Merle Haggard: Django and Jimmie (Legacy Recordings)|url=http://www.austinchronicle.com/music/2015-06-05/willie-nelson-and-merle-haggard-django-and-jimmie/|work=Austin Chronicle|access-date=June 8, 2015}} Los Angeles Times wrote a favorable review, that considered "the spirit in (Haggard and Nelson's) voices" the main feature of the album.{{cite news|author=Lewis, Randy|url=http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/music/la-et-ms-willie-merle-album-20150603-story.html|title=Willie Nelson, Merle Haggard are country kin on 'Django and Jimmie'|work=Los Angeles Times|date=June 3, 2015|access-date=June 8, 2015}} The Wall Street Journal called it "one of the strongest, most engaging country albums of 2015" and remarked "its fresh, revealing songs, striking harmonies and varying rhythms".{{cite news|author=Mazor, Barry|url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/django-and-jimmie-review-1433802483|title='Django and Jimmie' Review: Two country masters reunite for an album about their heroes, memories and friendship|work=The Wall Street Journal|date=June 8, 2015|access-date=June 9, 2015}} On its review, The New Yorker talked about the situation of Country music. The magazine opined that the album was "outlier in a genre that is increasingly fixated on youth", and discussed the disappearance of adult themes and aging in the genre.{{cite news|author=Cantwell, David|url=http://www.newyorker.com/culture/culture-desk/no-more-country-for-old-men?intcid=mod-latest|title=No More Country For Old Men|work=New Yorker|date=June 9, 2015|access-date=June 10, 2015}}

Allmusic gave the album three-and-a-half stars out of five. It praised Cannon's "sharp ear for material, along with a way with a relaxed groove", while it considered Haggard and Nelson "filled with good humor (and) a delicate balance of fun and sweet".{{cite web|url=http://www.allmusic.com/album/django-and-jimmie-mw0002843207|title=Django and Jimmie - Merle Haggard and Willie Nelson|work=Allmusic|publisher=Rovi Corporation|author=Erlewine, Stephen Thomas|access-date=June 10, 2015}}

=Commercial=

Upon its release, Django and Jimmie sold 31,000 units.{{cite magazine|author=Caulfield, Kate|url=http://www.billboard.com/articles/columns/chart-beat/6598001/country-legends-willie-nelson-and-merle-haggard-team-for-no-1 |title=Country Legends Willie Nelson and Merle Haggard Team for No. 1 Debut on Top Country Albums Chart|date= June 12, 2015|access-date=June 9, 2015|magazine=Billboard}} It topped Billboard's Top Country Albums; and reached number seven on the Billboard 200, becoming Nelson's fourth top ten album on the chart and Haggard's first.{{cite news|url=http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/outlaw-country-legends-willie-nelson--merle-haggard-rockin-americas-charts-with-1st-weeks-sales-of-django-and-jimmie-their-new-release-on-legacy-recordings-300097177.html|title=Outlaw Country Legends Willie Nelson & Merle Haggard Rockin' America's Charts with 1st Week's Sales of Django and Jimmie, their New Release on Legacy Recordings|date=June 10, 2015|access-date=June 10, 2015|work=PR Newswire}} The album has sold 148,000 copies in the US as of May 2016.{{cite news |url=http://roughstock.com/news/2016/05/40226-country-album-charts-week-of-may-2-2016 |title=Country Album Charts: Week Of May 2, 2016 |first= Matt|last= Bjorke |date= May 1, 2016 |work=Roughstock }}

Track listing

{{Track listing

| title1 = Django and Jimmie

| writer1 = Jimmy Melton, Jeff Prince

| length1 = 2:53

| title2 = It's All Going to Pot

| length2 = 2:56

| writer2 = Buddy Cannon, Jamey Johnson, Larry Shell

| note2 = featuring Jamey Johnson

| title3 = Unfair Weather Friend

| length3 = 4:14

| writer3 = Marla Cannon-Goodman, Ward Davis

| title4 = Missing Ol' Johnny Cash

| length4 = 3:26

| writer4 = Merle Haggard

| note4 = featuring Bobby Bare

| title5 = Live This Long

| length5 = 3:35

| writer5 = Shawn Camp, Marv Green

| title6 = Alice in Hulaland

| length6 = 3:01

| writer6 = Cannon, Willie Nelson

| title7 = Don't Think Twice, It's All Right

| length7 = 4:10

| writer7 = Bob Dylan

| title8 = Family Bible

| length8 = 3:36

| writer8 = Nelson

| title9 = It's Only Money

| length9 = 3:56

| writer9 = Nelson, Cannon

| title10 = Swinging Doors

| length10 = 2:51

| writer10 = Haggard

| title11 = Where Dreams Come to Die

| length11 = 3:18

| writer11 = Nelson, Cannon

| title12 = Somewhere Between

| length12 = 3:24

| writer12 = Haggard

| title13 = Driving the Herd

| length13 = 2:49

| writer13 = Nelson, Cannon

| title14 = The Only Man Wilder Than Me

| length14 = 2:35

| writer14 = Haggard

}}

Personnel

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{{div col end}}

Charts

{{col-start}}

{{col-2}}

=Weekly charts=

class="wikitable sortable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center"
scope="col"| Chart (2015)

! scope="col"| Peak
position

{{album chart|Australia|31|artist=Willie Nelson / Merle Haggard|album=Django and Jimmie|access-date=June 13, 2015|rowheader=true}}
{{album chart|Austria|50|artist=Willie Nelson / Merle Haggard|album=Django and Jimmie|access-date=June 10, 2015|rowheader=true}}
{{album chart|Flanders|172|artist=Willie Nelson / Merle Haggard|album=Django and Jimmie|access-date=June 8, 2015|rowheader=true}}
{{album chart|BillboardCanada|16|artist=Merle Haggard|album=Django and Jimmie|access-date=June 11, 2015|rowheader=true}}
{{album chart|Netherlands|50|artist=Willie Nelson / Merle Haggard|album=Django and Jimmie|access-date=June 8, 2015|rowheader=true}}
{{album chart|Ireland|70|year=2015|week=23|access-date=June 8, 2015|rowheader=true}}
{{album chart|Switzerland|78|artist=Willie Nelson / Merle Haggard|album=Django and Jimmie|access-date=June 10, 2015|rowheader=true}}
scope="row"| UK Albums (OCC){{cite web|url=http://www.officialcharts.com/artist/47744/willie-nelson-merle-haggard/|title=WILLIE NELSON/MERLE HAGGARD|publisher=Official Charts Company|access-date=June 8, 2015}}

| 66

{{album chart|Billboard200|7|artist=Merle Haggard|album=Django and Jimmie|access-date=June 10, 2015|rowheader=true}}
{{album chart|BillboardCountry|1|artist=Merle Haggard|album=Django and Jimmie|access-date=June 10, 2015|rowheader=true}}

{{col-2}}

=Year-end charts=

class="wikitable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center"
scope="col"| Chart (2015)

! scope="col"| Position

scope="row"| US Top Country Albums (Billboard){{cite magazine|url=https://www.billboard.com/charts/year-end/2015/top-country-albums|title=Top Country Albums – Year-End 2015|magazine=Billboard|access-date=July 25, 2020}}

| 35

scope="col"| Chart (2016)

! scope="col"| Position

scope="row"| US Top Country Albums (Billboard){{cite magazine|url=https://www.billboard.com/charts/year-end/2016/top-country-albums|title=Top Country Albums – Year-End 2016|magazine=Billboard|access-date=July 25, 2020}}

| 60

{{col-end}}

References

{{reflist|2}}

{{Willie Nelson}}

{{Merle Haggard}}

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Django and Jimmie}}

Category:2015 collaborative albums

Category:Willie Nelson albums

Category:Merle Haggard albums

Category:Legacy Recordings albums

Category:Albums produced by Buddy Cannon