Obama, Willie Nelson 'Duet' Puts President 'On The Road Again'

Country music icon Willie Nelson sent President Barack Obama off to China with a duet Thursday night during a concert honoring U.S. troops with a rendition of "On the Road Again."

Nelson, along with John Fogerty, performed before a live audience in front of hundreds of service members during the "A Salute to the Troops: In Performance at the White House" program, which was aired by PBS Friday, noted the Huffington Post.

Obama arrived in Beijing, China Monday for Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) meetings, according to CNN. The concert came two days after his Democratic party lost control of the Senate and took historic losses in the House of Representatives.



Obama introduced Nelson on stage, who was also standing next to Fogerty. It was not long before he was joined by first lady Michelle Obama on stage as she joined in the song.

"Honestly, Obama looks a little nervous until Michelle comes onstage too and starts grooving along to Willie’s guitar solo – that seems to loosen the president up a bit," wrote MTV's Caitlin White. "After that, he manages to sing-speak a few of the song's more signature lines. The audience obviously adored the entire performance though."

In opening remarks before the performance, Obama commented that the concert had something for all musical tastes, according to the Washington Post.

"We've got a little bit of rock-and-roll, we've got a little bit of country, a little bit of everything in between," Obama told the audience of mostly military families. "And that's good, because here in America, no matter where you are from, no matter what music you listen to, we're all united out of respect and admiration for the brave men and women who wear our country’s uniform."

Nelson, 81, a member of the Country Music Hall of Fame since 1993, opened the show with the upbeat "We Don't Run," while Fogerty added "Bad Moon Rising" and "Fortunate Son," which was actually a protest song he wrote back in 1969, according to the Post.

Producing less controversy this time around was the rapper Common, who faced criticism from conservatives in 2011 for his appearance at the White House, noted the Post. Common performed poetry while a band played jazz in the background.

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