Red Headed Stranger is Willie Nelson's 1975 concept album and the record that made him a star on his own terms. Newly signed to Columbia with creative control, he cut it quickly in Texas with a small band, including sister Bobbie Nelson on piano and Mickey Raphael on harmonica, and the result is sparse, haunting and patient. It tells the story of a preacher on the run after killing his wife and her lover, weaving brief originals with older songs such as Fred Rose's "Blue Eyes Crying in the Rain." Label executives thought it sounded like a demo. It became a cornerstone of outlaw country.