Crispin Sartwell of Record panned the album, calling it "country music in name only." He elaborated that whereas Nelson's earlier songs were honest ballads about concrete situations which listeners could relate to, Tougher Than Leather is built around high-handed philosophical preaching. He also criticized the lack of variety in the music, describing it as "utterly bland and homogeneous."[2]
Stephen Thomas Erlewine of Allmusic gave the album a mixed review, saying the performance by Nelson's touring band was "robust" yet many of the songs were mediocre and "the album simply doesn't hold together thematically".[1]
Track listing
All tracks composed by Willie Nelson, except where indicated
