Bobbie Nelson, Willie Nelson's piano-playing older sister, celebrated her 90th birthday on New Year's Day. She's performed as "Sister Bobbie" in her brother's group since the 1970s.
Watch friends and family pay tribute to Bobbie Nelson in the video above.
Unlike Willie, Bobbie is not a pot smoker. In 2017, she said:
“I think he smokes too much, but that’s just because I’m worried about his health.”
Willie, who's 87. has had some breathing problems in the past that knocked him off tour pre-Covid, but remains coy about his use, joking in 2019:
"I'm not smoking any more, but I'm not smoking any less either."
In 2006, Louisiana troopers raided Nelson's tour bus, securing more than 1.5 pounds of pot and three ounces of magic mushrooms. Both Nelsons and the tour manager were arrested, but only Willie received six-months' probation. She recalled about the incident:
“All I knew was that if Willie was going to jail, they’d have to take me to jail, too."
Bobbie, who has a heart condtion and a Pacemaker, says about Willie's smoked-out bus:
“Sometimes I need a break.”
More Nelson Links
• Willie's White House Saga Told in Jimmy Carter Doc
• Willie Wins 10th Grammy at 2020 Award Show
• The Story Behind Willie's Trusty Guitar, Trigger
• Outlaw Music Festival, New York, 2019
