Q: I think they stole that from Seinfeld.

A: They probably did. They probably did.

Q: Another thing you always thrive on is singing duets. On your new album, you sing with your daughter, Paula, Lucinda Williams. And next we're going to hear you singing with Norah Jones.

A: Well, Norah Jones is so talented. She's got such a beautiful voice and knows so much about singing and is just a natural, I guess. I love her. I love singing with her. And she brought this particular song to the session. And I think her friend wrote it, I'm not exactly sure. I had thought maybe she had written it. But what a song, it's already to me, I think a jazz classic.

SONG: DREAMS COME TRUE

Q: Do you remember when you first met Norah Jones?

A: Well Norah and I worked together in San Francisco. In fact, we worked this club (The Fillmore) for four days and she opened. And I got to know her. She came out, we sang together, Help Me Make It Through The Night and a couple more songs. And that's, you know, the first time I realized that, hey, here's a special person.

Q: And special in that she can swing from jazz to country, which is a rare thing. You do that. Norah does that. And of course, maybe even the first person to do it so well was the late Ray Charles, your friend.

A: Right. Right.

Q: Now, I know about you and Ray playin' chess. I want to dig a little bit deeper here. Did you ever perceive or did Ray Charles ever express to you any racism he encountered when, as an African-American, he began singing country music?

A: (Pause) Well, I can only speak for myself. I was a Ray Charles fan anyway, because I remembered What'd I Say and Georgia. And then all of a sudden, here's Ray Charles doing I Can't Stop Loving You. Whoa. No, I just thought it was so natural to hear Ray Charles doing that.

Q: And he never expressed any obstacles that he came upon in trying to break into country music?

A: No, in fact, I had read -- we never talked about it, but I had read a couple of times how he was a real country music fan while growing up. So he knew Roy Acuff, Ernest Tubb and all these, you know, country music folks. And there's not really that much difference between the blues and country, when you go right back to the roots.

Q: Both you and Ray have sung some mighty gospel songs. Do you follow any distinct spiritual path?

A: Well, I think there's an obvious spiritual path that we both follow. I don't think it's possible to describe it or put it in words. But it's definitely there, a feeling.

Q: Well, maybe you've been told about the power of your own eye contact. It's a spiritual power. It affects those of us that come into your path. And it's mighty, and it's sweet. Have people told you about that?

A: Yeah, you know, I've had people tell that, that, you know, that they liked it when I looked 'em in the eye. And, of course, I've always been raised to do that. Not to be afraid to look a man in the eye or a lady in the eye when you're talking to 'em. There is, I think, a power there that you lose when you don't do that.

Q: One of the places that you call home now is Hawaii. What's it like there for your wife and your two youngest boys? A lot of horseback riding? Do they feel isolated? Do they love it?

A: Well, there's quite a bit of water sports, because we live close to the ocean. And both the boys are into surfin' and swimmin' and they love that. They play a lot of soccer. They're playing golf and they're playin' music. And they're having a big time. And the fact that they're doing it on Maui is -- just makes them lucky little rascals (laughs). They'll realize it later on in life how lucky they are.

on Texas... (mp3)

Q: But I know that ultimately it always comes right back here to Texas for you. We're here at your studios. And I bet you have tons of unreleased songs and sessions and tapes. Are you the kind of guy that has your archives in order?

A: Oh, my goodness, no. One of the things that I have been wanting to do, planning to do, must do, is spend a day or two or three or something and go through the studio here and see what's here. I have no idea.

Q: I bet ya it takes a little bit longer than that.

A: It might (laughs).

Q: So many of your friends are here in Texas, as is your piano-playing family band mate and our beloved sister Bobbie. You have a gospel record that will come out with Bobbie before too long. She's one of the anchors of your life, isn't she?

A: Yes, she is. We grew up playing music together, living together, playing together.

Q: We have the third new Willie Nelson composition on "It Always Will Be". You sing, "Sometimes far into the night and until the morning light, I pray with all my might to be in Texas." That's pretty intense stuff. So do you miss home when you're on the road or is the road your home?

A: Well, Texas is my home. I've learned to live on the bus pretty good and turn it into quite an art. I don't know, the roads used to be a little different and I could tell you exactly when I left Oklahoma, Texas, Louisiana or New Mexico and came into Texas. I could tell when I left one state and hit Texas. If it's two in the morning I'd wake up and say, "Okay." I don't know if I could still do that or not, because all roads are bad now. But (laughs) -- it's seems like when I left Arkansas and come into Texas, everything smoothed out. I woke up and said, "What's that?"

SONG: TEXAS