Merle Haggard

Did You Know?

• Haggard endorsed Fender guitars and had a Custom Artist signature model Telecaster.
• In 2001, C. F. Martin & Company introduced a limited edition Merle Haggard Signature Edition 000-28SMH acoustic guitar.
• Haggard played two shows to raise money to pay for changes in road signage for Merle Haggard Drive.

Early life

Merle Haggard was born in Oildale, California, to Flossie Mae and James Francis Haggard. His parents had moved from Checotah, Oklahoma, in 1934 after their farm burned down, settling first in Bakersfield before converting a boxcar into a home in Oildale. James Haggard died of a brain hemorrhage in 1946, a loss that deeply affected nine-year-old Merle. His mother then worked as a bookkeeper to support the family.

When Merle was 12, his older brother Lowell gave him a guitar, and he taught himself to play, influenced by Bob Wills, Lefty Frizzell, and Hank Williams. While his mother was at work, he began getting into trouble; a weekend in juvenile detention did not improve his behavior. By age 13, he was stealing and writing bad checks. In 1950 he was sent to a juvenile detention center for shoplifting.

The following year, he ran away to Texas with a friend, riding freight trains and hitchhiking. After returning, they were accused of robbery and jailed, but released when the real robbers were found. Haggard was later sent to the Fred C. Nelles Youth Correctional Facility, from which he escaped with a friend to Modesto, California. There he worked various jobs and made his musical debut in a Modesto bar, earning $5 and free beer.

Career

After his release from San Quentin in 1960, Haggard dug ditches for his brother's electrical contracting company before returning to performing and recording with Tally Records. His first record for Tally was not a success, with only 200 copies pressed. In 1962, while performing at a Wynn Stewart show in Las Vegas, he heard Stewart's "Sing a Sad Song" and received permission to record it; the resulting single became a national hit in 1964. The following year, he had his first national top-10 record with "(My Friends Are Gonna Be) Strangers", written by Liz Anderson. Haggard later recalled being reluctant to visit Anderson but finding that her songs included several number-one hits.

Personal life

Haggard was married five times. His first marriage was to Leona Hobbs from 1956 to 1964, with whom he had four children: Dana, Marty, Kelli, and Noel. In 1965 he married singer Bonnie Owens, former wife of Buck Owens, who helped him make his big break and with whom he shared writing credit for "Today I Started Loving You Again". They divorced in 1978 but remained close friends, with Owens continuing as his backing vocalist until her death in 2006.

He married Leona Williams in 1978, divorcing in 1983. In 1985 he married Debbie Parret, divorcing in 1991. He married his fifth wife, Theresa Ann Lane, on September 11, 1993; they had two children, Jenessa and Ben. Haggard began smoking marijuana in 1978 at age 41.

In 1983 he bought $2,000 worth of cocaine and partied for five months before quitting. He quit cigarettes in 1991 and marijuana in 1995, though a 2009 Rolling Stone interview indicated he had resumed regular marijuana smoking. He underwent angioplasty in 1995. In November 2008, he had surgery to remove part of his lung after a lung cancer diagnosis, returning home on November 8 and playing shows in January 2009.

In December 2015 he was treated for pneumonia. He died on April 6, 2016, his 79th birthday, from complications of pneumonia at his home in Palo Cedro, California, and was buried in a private funeral at his ranch.

Legacy and honors

Haggard received numerous awards from the Academy of Country Music, Country Music Association, and National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences. He was inducted into the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame in 1977, the Country Music Hall of Fame in 1994, and the Oklahoma Music Hall of Fame in 1997. In 2006 he received a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award and was honored as a BMI Icon. By that time, his songwriting catalog had earned 48 BMI Country Awards, nine BMI Pop Awards, a BMI R&B Award, and 16 BMI "Million-Air" awards, representing over 25 million performances.

He accepted a Kennedy Center Honor on December 4, 2010. In July 2007, a stretch of road in Oildale was renamed Merle Haggard Drive. In 2015, the converted boxcar where he lived was moved to the Kern County Museum. On June 14, 2013, California State University, Bakersfield awarded him an honorary Doctor of Fine Arts degree.

On November 6, 2013, the mayor of Winchester, Virginia, awarded him the Key to the City. On January 26, 2014, he performed "Okie from Muskogee" at the 56th Annual Grammy Awards. In 2023, Rolling Stone ranked him at number 138 on its list of the 200 Greatest Singers of All Time.