Waylon Jennings & Willie Nelson - Take It To The Limit (1983)

Like many of Willie Nelson's mid-to-late-1980s efforts, TAKE IT TO THE LIMIT is more pop than country. Slick production, complete with lush background vocals and saxophone solos, creates the setting for the disc's ten songs. The material leans toward dramatic ballads such as the title track (a Seventies hit for the Eagles) and "We Had it All." TAKE IT TO THE LIMIT also includes cover versions of Simon and Garfunkel's "Homeward Bound," David Allen Coe's "Would You Lay With Me (In a Field of Stone)," and a mellow re-recording of Rodney Crowell's "Till I Gain Control Again," which previously appeared on WILLIE AND FAMILY-LIVE.

Although Waylon gets equal billing on the album cover, he only sings on half the tracks, best among them the title track and a cover version of George Jones' 1950s first hit, "Why Baby Why." Those expecting a reprise of 1978's WAYLON AND WILLIE, a classic of "outlaw country," may be disappointed by this highly polished production, but fans of 1980s hit country radio should enjoy it.