HIS LEGS COULD NO LONGER CARRY HIM ACROSS THE STAGE — BUT WAYLON JENNINGS STILL REFUSED TO SOUND DEFEATED. “I can still kick ass. You’ve just got to bring ’em up here.” Waylon said it from a stool at Nashville’s Ryman Auditorium on January 6, 2000. His back hurt. His legs were failing him. He could no longer command the stage by pacing beneath the lights, so he turned the chair into part of the show and made the audience laugh before they could pity him. For two nights, Waylon performed with the Waymore Blues Band — the handpicked group he called the band he had always wanted. He opened with “Never Say Die.” Then came “Good Hearted Woman,” “Amanda,” “I’m a Ramblin’ Man,” and the songs that had once made Nashville sound a little more dangerous. John Anderson joined him. Travis Tritt came out. Montgomery Gentry stood beside him. Jessi Colter sang four songs, including “Storms Never Last” and “Suspicious Minds.” Waylon remained seated, but nothing about the performance felt small. The black hat was still low. The voice was still deep. The humor was still sharp enough to protect the man beneath it. It became his final full concert. Two years later, on February 13, 2002, Waylon died at 64. He had spent his career refusing to perform on anyone else’s terms. That night, even the chair had to become part of Waylon’s terms.
When Waylon Jennings Refused to Let the Chair Win By the time Waylon Jennings walked onto the stage at Nashville’s…