The term "outlaw" had been bandied about after
Waylon Jennings' 1972 hit "Ladies Love Outlaws," but it didn't permanently gel until the release of the album
Wanted! The Outlaws in 1976. The songs in this packaged product weren't new -- the album contained previously released material by
Jennings,
Willie Nelson, Tompall Glaser, and
Jennings' wife
Jessi Colter (who had hit the charts a year earlier with "I'm Not Lisa"). But it marked the industry's recognition of the changing times, and as the center point of a campaign to publicize Nashville's new "progressive" breed, it worked like a charm. It quickly became the first country album to sell more than a million copies, and it boosted the careers of all involved. ~ Kurt Wolff