
Tag: merle haggard

A very few songwriters have ever as fully inhabited the consciousness of the American mind quite like Merle Haggard. The endless compassion and simmering anger of his greatest songs trace the competing impulses towards mercy and cruelty which soundtracks the manic-depressive character of our culture. Haggard is at once the truest believer and the worst […]
So, I was reading Rachel Lee Rubin’s new short book on Merle Haggard’s “Okie from Muskogee” and I learned something I didn’t know but that also didn’t surprise me.
It’s time to talk some tunes. Cool piece on the 40th anniversary of the B-52s releasing “Rock Lobster.” I reviewed Jaimie Branch’s incredible Fly or Die album awhile back. It

Were you thinking, I really need to know what Jacobin has to say about Merle Haggard? Probably not. Unfortunately, Jacobin decided to publish a Merle Haggard obituary of sorts, by Jonah Walters. It is, without exaggeration, the worst essay I have ever seen in that publication and one of the worst essays on music I […]
One more Merle Haggard post is necessary to commemorate of the career of one of the greatest musical artists in American history. I wanted to share with you 10 songs I think are just outstanding. My l
A few disorganized thoughts on the death of Merle Haggard. This death is a tremendous blow to the world of American music. One of the finest singers and songwriters of any genre in American history, w

Fuck everything. Life is no longer worth living. Merle Haggard is, in my opinion, the greatest artist in country music history. Much more later. …If you have never read the legendary New Yorker profile of Haggard, do so. This is near the beginning: In Hampton, Virginia, at five o’clock one drizzly, cool January morning, Theresa […]
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