Asleep at the Wheel Legend, Ray Benson, Turns 66 Today

And then @willienelsonofficial showed up to join the @theavettbrothers for a #townesvanzandt song at #RayBenson birthday for @myhaam #SXSW

A post shared by Austin 360 (@austin360) on Mar 14, 2017 at 7:58pm PDT

Today Grammy award winning Asleep at the Wheel's leader, Ray Benson, celebrates his 66th birthday.

But the celebration happened yesterday at Austin 360, when Willie Nelson joined The Avett Brothers on stage to honor their big buddy.

Benson's latest project is with Dale Watson, the two released theor duets album, Dale & Ray, in January. “The idea for this record is older than Willie Nelson,” Benson said. “Dale and I are kind of kindred spirits. We both have made careers as outsides, fighting for the opportunity to play and showcase the kind of music that we want to play. For this record, we got to write and create original music that I’m extremely proud of.”

Happy birthday, Ray!