Willie Nelson stands as a figure whose life stories often blur the lines between myth and reality. Emblematic of this is an incident from the late 1970s, which could have earned him the moniker “Colt .45 Willie” for his role in dissolving a heated gunfight—not with his songs, but with his signature serenity and Colt pistols.
The Transformation from “Shotgun Willie” to “Colt .45 Willie”
Renowned for his calm demeanor, Nelson was known affectionately as “Shotgun Willie” at the time, a nod to an occasion when he had sought to protect his daughter from an abusive spouse. In stark contrast, “Colt .45 Willie” emerged in a moment where his goal was not to unleash bullets but to cultivate peace.
The tale begins following a performance at the Birmingham Coliseum in Alabama’s capital, an unlikely place for a brush with violence. As Nelson and his entourage, including stage manager and bus driver Randy “Poodie” Locke, traversed the multi-level structure of a six-story parking garage, an alarming commotion shattered the night’s calm. Suddenly, gunfire rings out, reverberating through the building.
Locke vividly recalls the chaos in Willie: An Autobiography, “We hear ‘Kaboom!’ ‘Kaboom!’ It’s the sound of a .357 magnum going off in the parking garage,” Locke recounted. “The echoes sound like howitzer shells exploding. It’s kind of semi-dark, and this guy comes blowing through this parking deck and jumps in the Franks Brothers’ Suburban. Now, here comes this b**** with a fing pistol. ‘Kaboom!’ She’s chasing this motherfer. It sounds like a f***ing war.”
Willie Nelson’s Intervention
The unexpected shootout quickly drew police to the scene, who arrived to find the sounds of gunfire bouncing off the garage walls, shrouding the incident in confusion. In the ensuing melee, every bystander was treated as a potential suspect; the officers took no chances, frisking people for weapons while forcing them to the ground.
Amidst this disarray, Willie Nelson approached, a figure of unexpected calm. His attire was casual, marked by tennis shoes and denim cutoffs, but there was something notable about his appearance: two Colt .45 revolvers protruded conspicuously from his waistband. The barrels of the revolvers, notably lengthy, peeked out below the fringe of his shorts.
Locke tells of Nelson’s entrance onto the frenetic scene with a folkloric reverence, “Willie just walks over and says, ‘What’s the trouble?’” His mere presence seemed to cast an immediate lull over the space. There’s something about Nelson—the way his eyes convey kindness, how his smile disarms—Locke describes it as “magic.”
From Tense Standoff to Peaceful Resolution
The police holstered their firearms and the civilians rose from the concrete in response to his question. The tension dissolved almost as quickly as it had begun. And soon, in a turn of events that only adds to the legend, Willie Nelson went from potential target to gracious host, signing autographs for the shocked onlookers.
While such an aura might be considered supernatural, Nelson’s pacifism and approach to life are well-documented. His practiced optimism, his covenant with peace over anger—persons of success might turn to alcohol, tobacco, or other vices, but Nelson has consistently chosen the more gentle path. He is a man known equally for his support of both medicinal and recreational marijuana use.
Decades have passed since that harrowing shoot-out, yet the image of Willie Nelson, the peaceful resistor, endures in music history lore. And while his post-show routine now involves a more serene setting on his tour bus, winding down with quietude and a bit of smoke, there’s no doubt that somewhere close at hand, a trusty firearm remains—lest “Shotgun Willie” ever needs to make another appearance.