Booger Red. Ambassador to Weedsville. Red Headed Stranger. Willie Nelson has accumulated a number of nicknames over the years, but one of them seems pretty out of character: Shotgun Willie. The official website of Willie Nelson and Family has the story behind the unlikely moniker, and it very much involves a real shotgun. Back in the day, Nelson's daughter Lana was married to a violent man called Steve. One day, Nelson "slapped Steve around" for his misdeeds, which led to a short gunfight when Steve followed Nelson home and opened fire at his house. Nelson grabbed a M1 rifle and returned fire, which drove the attacker away.
Steve retaliated by kidnapping his and Lana's son and threatening to "get rid" of Nelson. The singer decided to set a trap, waiting for the attack with his rifle and — everybody together now — shotgun. Here's how Nelson describes the incident: "He drove by the house, and I ran out the garage door. Steve saw me and took off. That's when I shot his car and shot out his tire. Steve called the cops on me. Instead of explaining the whole damn mess, the beatings and the semi-kidnapping and shooting and all, I told the officers he must have run over the bullet."
In 1973, Nelson took the nickname and ran with it with an album called Shotgun Willie. It was an excellent record Rolling Stone calls "flawless," which probably didn't hurt making the nickname stick.
ncG1vNJzZmivp6x7qL7Up56eZpOkunB9lW1vcm1fqbWmedOrmKChk2K%2Fpq3LZqOinpViwLW70bJkqJ5drLatuMieZKednKi8r3s%3D