Ready Willie and able

Willie Nelson is on the road again. At 75, the Texas outlaw country legend is still burning biodiesel on the highways of America — touring with reckless abandon.

Nelson has been singing his songs for more than 40 years in six decades. His first recording dates back to 1956, but his rise to prominence wouldn’t come until the mid-’70s, when he pioneered what became known as outlaw country. It was during this period where he made chart-topping records like “Red Headed Stranger,” “Sound in Your Mind” and the famed duet with Waylon Jennings, “Waylon and Willie.”

From here it was on to ’80s hits like the ubiquitous “On the Road Again,” and the crossover success of “Always on My Mind,” which reached No. 2 on the Billboard Pop Charts in 1982.

Nelson still remains one of the most venerable icons in American music, known just as much for his rebelliously spirited, heartfelt songs as he is for his bearded smile and the bandanna tied around his ruddy-turned-gray long hair.

Earlier this year, Nelson released the album “Moment of Forever,” which includes a cover of Dave Matthews’ “Gravedigger.” Just a few weeks ago he also unveiled a collaboration with jazz great Wynton Marsalis called “Two Men with the Blues.”

Here are 10 things you might not know about the outlaw Texas troubadour before his Tuesday night show at the Charlottesville Pavilion:

l Willie Nelson was born in Abbott, Texas, in 1933.

l In 1985 Nelson started the annual Farm Aid concerts with John Mellencamp and Neil Young to benefit family farming in the United States. The shows later spawned a non-profit organization that has donated almost $30 million to farm causes. Dave Matthews is now the fourth member of the Farm Aid board of directors.

l Willie Nelson has won seven Grammy Awards, the first in 1975 and the latest in 2007 for best country collaboration with Ray Price.

l Nelson hosts an annual 4th of July Picnic in his native Texas. The first took place in 1973 in Dripping Springs. This year the event in San Antonio featured special guests Merle Haggard, Price, Johnny Bush and Pat Green.

l Nelson owns the Willie Nelson Biodiesel Co., which produces and distributes the alternative fuel biodiesel in six states.

l Willie Nelson appeared in his first feature film, “The Electric Horseman,” in 1979 with Robert Redford and Jane Fonda. He also had a memorable role in 1997’s “Wag the Dog” with Robert De Niro and Dustin Hoffman and recently played Uncle Jesse in the 2005 film version of the popular television show “The Dukes of Hazard.”

l Nelson named his famous old and weathered acoustic guitar “Trigger,” after Roy Rogers’ horse.

l Nelson wrote a book about his life, “Willie: An Autobiography,” in 1988.

l Willie Nelson has appeared on more than 300 albums and written more than 2,000 songs.

l Never one to resist collaboration, Nelson made an appearance in the video or Snoop Dogg’s new single, “My Medicine.”