WILLIE NELSON: The Scientist

YUMSUGAR: Chipotle’s furthering its quest to create a more sustainable fast food system. Today the quickservice chain unveiled its new nonprofit organization, the Chipotle Cultivate Foundation, to help support sustainable food practices. It’s also debuted a short animated film, which will air prior to feature films in theaters nationwide. The spot, titled “Back to the Start,” is about a fictional farmer’s venture into industrial farming practices and his eventual return to a more sustainable way of life. For the short, Chipotle commissioned Willie Nelson to sing Coldplay’s “The Scientist.” The cover song is available for download on iTunes, with proceeds […]

CONTEST: Win Tix To See Willie Nelson At The Mann

[Illustration by ALEX FINE] A man who needs no last name, Willie is to Country what Neil is to rock: the Buddha, bestowing laid-back grace on all those who bask in his benevolent THC-tinged glow. Born April 30, 1933, in Abbott, Texas, Nelson begins writing songs at age seven. After serving briefly in the Air Force during the Korean War and studying agriculture at Baylor University, Nelson moves through a series of luckless, low-paying career changes–disc jockey; door-to-door vacuum and encyclopedia salesman. By 1958, in dire financial straits and married with children, Nelson is forced to sell his songs for […]

EARLY WORD: Return Of The Red-Haired Stranger

Willie Nelson’s Country Throwdown Tour 2011 ( www.countrythrowdown.com) will make a highly anticipated stop in Philadelphia on May 27th  when eight top country acts and six emerging singer/songwriters take the stage at The Mann for a one-of-a-kind-festival experience. The only tour of its kind in the world of country music, Willie Nelson’s Country Throwdown Tour 2011 features eight headliners, including Willie Nelson, Jamey Johnson, Randy Houser, Lee Brice, Brantley Gilbert, Craig Campbell, Lukas Nelson & Promise of the Real. Recently added to the tour, Drake White, is sure to entertain with his signature freestyle twist on original songs, ad-libs and […]