Merle Ronald Haggard is a country music living legend. His music and lyrics have helped shape the world of country music and have influenced other music genres for five decades. His body of work includes more than 600 recorded songs, including 250 originals, 70 feature albums, 40 No. 1 hits, and scores of Top 10 hits. He remains one of the best known, most covered, and, arguably, the single-most influential singer-songwriter in country music history.
Mr. Haggard is a champion of working-class virtues and the dignity of the common man. His honest, authentic lyrics speak of plain folk, poverty, patriotism and pride. Born in Oildale, California, living in a converted boxcar, he paid his dues for a misdirected youth after the death of his father, and found his way back to a life of extraordinary achievement through his music. He embodies one's ability to rise above circumstance, course correct, and find redemption.