Merle Haggard
 

Merle Haggard was big in the days of Outlaw country music, mainly in the 70s to mid 80s. He had many big hits that you may recognize like "Okie From Muskogee", "Silver Wings", "Mama Tried", "Always Wanting You", "Hungry Eyes" and so many more. You would often see him along side outlaw legends, Willie Nelson and Waylon Jennings. He has a strong stance on his views of politics and things happening in America and this really showed in his music. For example, "Fightin' Side of Me" showed his no tolerance of any sort of dissing of the nation or president in anyway, and showing his frustraion toward hippies.
Example in the lyrics of "Fightin Side of Me":

I hear people talkin' bad,
About the way we have to live here in this country,
Harpin' on the wars we fight,
An' gripin' 'bout the way things oughta be.
An' I don't mind 'em switchin' sides,
An' standin' up for things they believe in.
When they're runnin' down my country, man,
They're walkin' on the fightin' side of me.
Yeah, walkin' on the fightin' side of me.
Runnin' down the way of life,
Our fightin' men have fought and died to keep.
If you don't love it, leave it:
Let this song I'm singin' be a warnin'.
If you're runnin' down my country, man,
You're walkin' on the fightin' side of me.

I read about some squirrely guy,
Who claims, he just don't believe in fightin'.
An' I wonder just how long,
The rest of us can count on bein' free.
They love our milk an' honey,
But they preach about some other way of livin'.
When they're runnin' down my country, hoss,
They're walkin' on the fightin' side of me.

Again in Okie From Muskogee:

We don't smoke marijuana in Muskogee;
We don't take our trips on LSD
We don't burn our draft cards down on Main Street;
We like livin' right, and bein' free.

I'm proud to be an Okie from Muskogee,
A place where even squares can have a ball
We still wave Old Glory down at the courthouse,
And white lightnin's still the biggest thrill of all

We don't make a party out of lovin';
We like holdin' hands and pitchin' woo;
We don't let our hair grow long and shaggy,
Like the hippies out in San Francisco do.

And I'm proud to be an Okie from Muskogee,
A place where even squares can have a ball.
We still wave Old Glory down at the courthouse,
And white lightnin's still the biggest thrill of all.

Leather boots are still in style for manly footwear;
Beads and Roman sandals won't be seen.
Football's still the roughest thing on campus,
And the kids here still respect the college dean.

We still wave Old Glory down at the courthouse,
In Muskogee, Oklahoma, USA.

and references are also seen in "Workin Man Blues"

This went over very well in more rural areas, the more conservative states and it got him quite a following and fan club. He also, more that any other outlaw singer, sang and took beat from the old texas coutry music, like of Bob Wills and others like him. This is shown in "No Hard Time Blues", and "Big City" He had a strong sense of family and where he grew up and that was another suject that shows up often in his work.

Merle, like most outlaw country singers, did his time in the hammer and he wrote a few songs for that too. "Branded Man"and "Sing me Back Home" are the biggest ones.

lyrics of "Branded Man"
I'd like to hold my head up and be proud of who I am
But they won't let my secret go untold
I paid the debt I owed them,but they're still not satisfied
Now I'm a branded man out un the cold

When they let me out of prison,I held my head up high
Determined I would rise above the shame
But no matter where I'm living,the black mark follows me
I'm branded with a number on my name

If I live to be a hundred,I guess I'll never clear my name
'Cause everybody knows I've been in jail
No matter where I'm living,I've got to tell them where I've been
Or they'll send me back to prison if I fail

In 2007, Merle toured with Willie Nelson, Ray Price, and Asleep at the Wheel and it was called "The Last Of The Breed". I had the privelege of seeing them at Tulsa, Oklahoma, but was a bit dissapointed with Merle. He come out drunk, and since Tulsa is so close to Muskogee, everyoen wanted to hear "Okie From Muskogee". Willie had to bail him out numerous times because he couldn't remember the lyrics of the song. As I said above, back in his hay day he strongly believed what he said in "Fightin Side of Me", yet during a break between songs, he trashed Bush and the War. I don't mind if people have different beliefs than I do, but he completely contradicted himself in everyway. Sadly it sort of tarnished his music for me in ways that made me feel like I couln't believe any of his music any more. But nevertheless, Merle Haggard was a important part of country music and made many respectable albums throught his days.

If you have any thoughts you would like to share on Merel Haggard go right ahead. My favorite song of his is, "One More Lonely Night". Yours?

"Sing Me Back Home"

Merle Haggard is great. I like Waylon Jennings better though.

Awesome thread, Merle is one of my favorties. Check out my review of 'Workin' Man Blues' btw.

Keep it up I look forward to this here thread.

Yeah, Merle one cool dude. I just so happen to like Waylon better too, but I thought I would change it up a bit.

I knew you would like this, crash override :). Can't wait to see your review, headed there now.

love the hag,....


here's a few of my faves

i've always kinda thought as ramblin fever as my unofficial theme song,...makes me think of dusty ol dirt roads, wash boarded out from two much wear and not enough rain,...and singin real loud with my friends
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=noSGo6gb3Bg

because who wouldnt want to be somewhere in the middle of montana
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RFUFWda25Hk

i'll just keep on bein the way i am
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lAtB_qaYxRY

shut your mouth before i **** it

No kiddin

Some good picks I'm seeing. Yeah, Merle brings back some good ol memories for me too. Mostly summertime. If you like Rambin Fever, you would probably also like White Line Fever and the Fugitve too. Definetly check out The Fugitive if you havent heard it.

White Line Fever
A sickness born down deep within my soul
White Line Fever
The years keep flyin' by like the highline poles
The wrinkles in my forehead show the miles I've put behind me
They continue to remind how fast I'm growin' old
Guess I'll die with this fever in my soul
I wonder just what makes a man keep pushing on
What makes me keep on hummin' this old highway song
I've been from coast to coast a hundred times before
I ain't found one single place where I ain't been before
White Line Fever
A sickness born down deep within my soul
White Line Fever
The years keep flyin' by like the highline poles

The Fugitive

Down every road there's always one more city
I'm on the run, the highway is my home

I raised a lot of cane back in my younger days
While Mama used to pray my crops would fail
Now I'm a hunted fugitive with just two ways:
Outrun the law or spend my life in jail

I'd like to settle down but they won't let me
A fugitive must be a rolling stone

Down every road there's always one more city
I'm on the run, the highway is my home

I'm lonely but I can't afford the luxury
Of having one I love to come along
She'd only slow me down and they'd catch up with me
For he who travels fastest goes alone

I'd like to settle down but they won't let me
A fugitive must be a rolling stone
Down every road there's always one more city
I'm on the run, the highway is my home

I'm on the run, the highway is my home

My only question is did you put the asterisks there or did the censor?

Sorry flowerchild. No more spamming your thread. Carry on.

surely you jest,..i never speak in asterisks

Looks like I have to run through George Carlin's list and see what fits.......

OKIE FROM MUSKOGEE

Okie From Muskogee was a live album in 1969 done no other place than in Muskogee, Oklahoma. It reached #1 on the Country Billboards in 1970. Merle picked Muskogee, Oklahoma of all places because of family ties to the town. This album being live is more special than any studio version he could have done because you get to hear the people of Muskogee reactions to the things he sang about. You get a much clearer vision of people beliefs and ways of living in this town of Muskogee and these people absolutely loved Merle for it. By far the most exciting thing that has ever happened to this town and they still talk about it to this day.

Mama Tried is the first song of the concert and most definitely gets things moving. This song is about a rebellious kid who was going to do what he was going to do and wouldn't let anyone tell him any different. He came from a good humble family that did everything right and tried to turn him in the right direction, especially Mama, but as he says in his song "I turned 21in prison doing life without parole, no one could steer me right but Mama tried, Mama tried, Mama tried to raise me better, but her pleading I denied. That leaves only me to blame cause Mama tried"

No Hard Times is one that I really enjoy especially to sing along with. This song just makes you appreciate those ol boys who are poor as church mice, live off their land, and are just as happy as everybody else. Merle does a interesting vocal job in this one by adding some wild pitch changes.

Silver Wings is a very simple story line about Merle watching his woman fly away in an airplane. But its amazing how clear a picture he puts in your head and you can see the whole thing.

The next two tracks involve the mayor of Muskogee giving Merle a key to the city and so on. You can just hear in his voice the admiration and appreciation the mayor has for Merle.

Swingin Doors Many country bands have done a song of similar subject matter about hanging out at a bar for so long it has now become their home, but I think I like Merle's version the best. It is very catchy and has a great chorus that really makes you want to sing along, and what Ilike about it is that he never says the bar is his new home but he descibes everything in the bar that is now his. I just think it is a clever spin.

I'm A Lonesome Fugitive Another one of Merle's songs about prison and the life after.

Sing Me Back Home Probably one of Merle's best creations. A very emotional and helpless situation that tells of a man on death row that wants Merle to sing and a play a song that his mother used to sing for him so that the music can take him back to that moment in time.

Branded Man One of my favorites on this album. "No matter where I'm livin, I gotta tell them where I've been" is one of the best lyrics. He just can't get away from the "black mark" of prison no matter how hard he tries.

In the Arms of Love I don't have a lot to say about this one because I'm not real crazy about it. Probably the only weak song on the whole album though and Merle didn't even write it, Buck Owens did.

Workin Man Blues This song sums up so many lives of people around where I live its unbelievable. I would hate to think how many times my dad has played this song and sang along to every word, especially, "Hey, hey the workin man, workin man like me, ain't never been on welfare thats one place I won't be, cause I'll go back workin." Great guitar beat and rhythm on top of everything else. I think Crash Override reviewed this song wonderfully in his journal so you can go look at his.

Hobo Bill's Last Ride An interesting story that keeps you listening in this one. Merle slows her down a bit and reverts back to his old fashioned style that matches well with the old fashioned story.

Billy Overcame His Size Wow, two songs in a row about Bills. I just now noticed that. Anyway, a good message in this one. In fact they wrote it coming up to this concert in Muskogee. I feel that this song gives the message that no matter how big or small you are in size, its the things that you do that determine how big or small a person you are.

If I Had Left It Up To You Such a good one! And so sad, poor Merle. Reading the lyrics just does this no justice, mind you. This song is all in his voice.

You made plans to leave a thousand times I know
And a thousand times, I should have let you go
But each time I'll always beg you back somehow
If I'd left it up to you it'd all be over now

It'd all be over now cept the crying
I'd be used to spending all my nights alone
Wish I'd found the way to let you go somehow
If I'd left it up to you
it'd all be over now

White Line Fever Merle wrote this one for all the container drivers out there, and I bet this was certainly blaring on their radios in 1969 and 70 and if I was a truck driver (haha) I would still have it blaring. "The wrinkles in my forehead showthe miles I've put behind me. They continue to remind me how fast I'm growing old. Guess I'll die with this fever in my soul" You would think when Merle sings this song, he has been a truck driver for all his life it is so believable. And the song does make you wonder how those truck drivers do keep pushing on.

Okie From Muskogee It's worth listening to this song just to hear the rowdy Muskogee crown laugh and hoot and holler during the whole song. This song disapproves and makes fun of the hippie culture that was so big at that time and says they do everything the right way in Muskogee. Like this:

We don't smoke marijuana in Muskogee;
We don't take our trips on LSD
We don't burn our draft cards down on Main Street;
We like livin' right, and bein' free.

I'm proud to be an Okie from Muskogee,
A place where even squares can have a ball
We still wave Old Glory down at the courthouse,
And white lightnin's still the biggest thrill of all

We don't make a party out of lovin';
We like holdin' hands and pitchin' woo;
We don't let our hair grow long and shaggy,
Like the hippies out in San Francisco do.

And I'm proud to be an Okie from Muskogee,
A place where even squares can have a ball.
We still wave Old Glory down at the courthouse,
And white lightnin's still the biggest thrill of all.

Leather boots are still in style for manly footwear;
Beads and Roman sandals won't be seen.
Football's still the roughest thing on campus,
And the kids here still respect the college dean.

We still wave Old Glory down at the courthouse,
In Muskogee, Oklahoma, USA.

Not only did this song tell the other side of the story, but was an important mark in history in the eventful year of '69.

^ Cool Merle review, I really enjoyed it. I don't think I've ever heard this live album, but all the live material I have seen/heard I have really liked.

Sing Me Back Home. x3

Merle Haggard is what you're talking about when you say country music.

Listening to Same Train, Different Time right now and it's quite good. Not sure if it's his best work or anything, but it doesn't make me want to kill myself like most Country does in this style.

Merle Haggard has always been my favorite country singer. I think he is one of those artist that has the perfect voice. Although I don't much care for today's modern country, I have always been a fan of the more Traditional country artist.

Some of my favorite singles are:

My Favorite Memory
Someday When Things Are Good
Natural High

What's amazing is Merle Haggard is 76 years old a still making good albums. His voice is in fantastic shape and still plenty of vitality in his performances. Bob Dylan is five years younger than Merle Haggard and sings like he's dying of tuberculosis.