Kris Kristofferson
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Biography
With his bushy beard, world-weary songs, gnarled looks, weather-beaten voice and an enticing sense of danger and rebellion, Kris Kristofferson was one of the country music âoutlawsâ who, like his friends Johnny Cash, Waylon Jennings, and Willie Nelson, reconstructed the image of country music from the overly sentimental clichés commonly associated with Nashville and the Grand Ole Opry. Born in Brownsville, Texas, on June 22, 1936, his grandparents came to the US from Sweden and his father was a major general in the US Air Force, meaning the family never settled for long in one place. Winning a scholarship to Oxford University, Kris Kristofferson moved to England and started writing songs and, although he went on to join the US Army and became a helicopter pilot, he quit to pursue his music career in 1965. He headed straight to Nashville, Tennessee and took a job sweeping floors at Columbia Studios while pitching his songs to publishers. He wrote some of his best-known songs during this time, leading to a deal with Epic Records after other artists had hits with his songs. At this time, his songs â including "Me and Bobby McGee,â âSunday Morning Comin' Down,â and "Once More with Feelin'" â were better known than the singer-songwriter himself. His career really took off after his then girlfriend Janis Joplin had a number 1 US hit with his song "Me and Bobby McGee" and others had success with his original songs like "The Taker" (Waylon Jennings), "Help Me Make It Through the Night" (Sammi Smith) and "Sunday Morning Comin' Down" (Johnny Cash). Kris Kristofferson diversified into movies starring in Pat Garrett and Billy the Kid (1973), Bring Me the Head of Alfredo Garcia (1974) and A Star is Born (1976) and performed for a while as a duo with his then wife Rita Coolidge. He later forming country supergroup The Highwaymen with friends Waylon Jennings, Willie Nelson, and Johnny Cash. He maintained parallel careers as singer, songwriter and actor through the 1990s and 2000s and his gravelly voice was still proving an irresistible draw even in the latter days of his career. Kris Kristofferson died on September 28, 2024, at the age of 88.
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Albums
Top Tracks
- Track Popularity
- On the Road Again featuring Rosanne Cash
- Me And Bobby McGhee
- Live Forever featuring Johnny Cash
- Desperados Waiting for a Train featuring Johnny Cash
- Loving Her Was Easier (Than Anything I'll Ever Do Again)
- Sunday Mornin' Comin' Down
- The Last Cowboy Song featuring Johnny Cash
- The Road Goes on Forever featuring Johnny Cash
- Help Me Make It Through the Night featuring Kris Kristofferson
- Why Me featuring Rosanne Cash
- Roll Me Up featuring Kris Kristofferson
- Help Me Make It Through the Night
- Against the Wind featuring Johnny Cash
- Jesus Was a Capricorn (Owed to John Prine)
- American Remains featuring Johnny Cash
- Two Stories Wide featuring Johnny Cash
- Silver Stallion featuring Johnny Cash
- If You Don't Like Hank Williams by The Highwaymen
- Why Me
- Broken Freedom Song
- Casey's Last Ride
- Come Sundown
- Daddy's Song
- Dakota (The Dancing Bear) by Rita Coolidge
