Skip to main content Skip to footer site map
S30 Ep7: The Highwaymen: Friends Till The End | Clip

The Highwaymen: ‘The Mount Rushmore of Country Music’

SHARE

“For me, it was heaven,” Kris Kristofferson said. “I was up there on stage with my heroes — the people that I worshipped.”

In 1985, Willie Nelson, Waylon Jennings, Johnny Cash, and Kris Kristofferson formed a country supergroup: The Highwaymen. They had already built empires of their own — so what brought them together?

In this excerpt from The Highwaymen: Friends Till The End, Willie Nelson, Kris Kristofferson and others talk about working together to revitalize the country music scene and satisfy their own restless creativity. It was the beginning of the outlaw country movement, and also their friendship.

“We did nothing we didn’t want to do. And we stood up for things we believed in. And it was a beautiful life that way,” Kris Kristofferson said.

Features

Clip | The Havoc Behind ‘The Highwayman’ Music Video
Clip | Willie Nelson Sings ‘Always On My Mind’ at Nassau Coliseum
Excerpt from Live: American Outlaws CD Liner Notes
Clip | How Kris Kristofferson Convinced Johnny Cash to Record His Songs
Clip | How Waylon Jennings Started the Outlaw Movement
Clip | Filmmaker Interview with Director and Producer Jim Brown
Clip | How the Highwaymen Became Family in Montreux
Timeline
The Highwaymen: Friends Till the End - Promo
TRANSCRIPT

[ Cheers and applause ] Nelson: ♪ I was a highwayman ♪ ♪ Along the coach roads I did ride ♪ Well, I had three of my favorite people out there.

I loved them all like brothers.

We all got along good together.

And we had fun together, we made a movie together.

We toured the world a couple of times.

It was just some of the best times of my life.

♪ The bastards hung me in the spring of '25 ♪ ♪ But I am still alive ♪ ♪♪♪ Kristofferson: ♪ I was a sailor ♪ ♪ I was born upon the tide ♪ Colter: These were the icons of American music, not just country -- popular American music, you know?

They had built empires of their own.

♪♪♪ Kristofferson: ♪ I went aloft and furled the mainsail in a blow ♪ ♪ And when the yards broke off, they said that I got killed ♪ Kristofferson: For me, it was heaven.

I was up there on the stage with my heroes -- the people that I worshipped.

Jennings: ♪ I was a dam builder ♪ ♪ Across the river deep and wide ♪ ♪ Where steel and water did collide ♪ ♪ A place called Boulder on the wild Colorado ♪ ♪ I slipped and fell into the wet concrete below ♪ ♪ They buried me in that great tomb that knows no sound ♪ ♪ But I am still around ♪ ♪ Always be around and round and round ♪ Stuart: The thing that was worth the price of admission was to see those four characters walk out onstage.

It's been said before -- It truly was the Mount Rushmore of country music.

It was special.

Cash: ♪ I fly a starship across the universe divide ♪ ♪ And when I reach the other side ♪ ♪ I'll find a place to rest my spirit if I can ♪ ♪ Perhaps I may become a highwayman again ♪ ♪ Or I may simply be a single drop of rain ♪ ♪ But I will remain ♪ ♪ And I'll be back again and again and again and again ♪ ♪ And again and again and again ♪ Kristofferson: We did nothing we didn't want to do.

And we stood up for things we believed in, you know?

And it was a beautiful life that way.

All: ♪ On the road again ♪

© 2024 WNET. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

PBS is a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit organization.