Willie Nelson, 93, Rerecords 'Pretty Paper' With Red Clay Strays' Brandon Coleman

Willie Nelson, at 93, has released a new version of his Christmas song "Pretty Paper" featuring Brandon Coleman, lead singer of The Red Clay Strays. The recording is out now through Sony's Legacy Recordings.

Nelson wrote the song more than six decades ago. It was inspired by a disabled street vendor selling wrapping paper and pencils in Fort Worth, Texas — a figure the holiday shopping rush might walk past, which is precisely the point of the song. Roy Orbison famously recorded it before Nelson made it a signature entry in his own Christmas catalogue.

"Pretty Paper" has always been a different kind of Christmas classic: less jingling bells, more heartbreak, weathered voice and a story that stays after the decorations come down.

Who is Brandon Coleman?

Coleman fronts The Red Clay Strays, a band that has introduced a blend of country, Southern rock, soul and gospel (a vocal tradition rooted in Black American church music) to a new generation of listeners. The pairing puts two generations of country music on one track.

The connection has been building for a while. The Red Clay Strays performed at Nelson's Luck Reunion on his Texas ranch and later joined his Outlaw Music Festival touring bill. Nelson's independent spirit, it's worth remembering, helped redefine country music itself.

Now that friendship has produced something listeners can take home for Christmas.

What else is Nelson doing?

Plenty. His new book, "The Last Leaf: Reflections on Late-Life Creativity—and My Longest Love Affair," arrives November 10. It offers a personal look at his artistic productivity and his enduring relationship with his wife, Annie.

The numbers alone would send most musicians to bed. Over the past 12 years, Nelson has recorded:

• 21 studio albums
• More than 50 songs written
• Seven books published
• More than 800 concerts headlined

That output, for an artist entering his mid-90s, is the statistical equivalent of a small label's entire catalogue.

In "The Last Leaf," Nelson explores how he keeps finding inspiration, revisiting pivotal experiences and reflecting on the partnership that has shaped his later years. His philosophy is compact: "Looking to the future as I look to the past," he writes, "I stay in the present."

Why it works

That attitude suits the new "Pretty Paper" rather well. Nelson can return to a song from his earliest songwriting years, invite a younger artist into the story and find another reason to keep singing it.

Christmas offers its share of spectacular productions, enormous choirs and songs engineered for shopping-mall singalongs. Nelson brings a guitar, a timeless story and Brandon Coleman beside him.

That's a pretty wonderful holiday present.