Son of dust bowl immigrants, Merle Haggard was born and raised in rough-and-tumble Bakersfield, California, where he absorbed a Jimmy Rogers and Woody Guthrie approach to country music. At the age of twenty Merle Haggard began a stretch in San Quentin Prison for burglary. Three years later he returned to Bakersfield and began his music career in earnest. Soon Merle Haggard was part of the Buck Owens scene with a record deal on Capitol. Songs like "Hungry Eyes" and "Mama Tried" and many of his early hits reflected his squalid past. In 1969 his eighth number 1 hit, "Okie From Muskogee," somehow became an anthem for hippies, but Merle refused to be seduced by pop approval. His follow-up hit, "Fightin' Side Of Me," was pure blue-collar pugnacity. Merle Haggard's songwriting, vocal skills and fine band have earned Merle more than thirty major country awards. br>Merle Haggard Discography
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