Profile via TMDB · Courtesy of TMDB
Merle Haggard
Sign in to saveAlso known as Merle Ronald Haggard, Merle R. Haggard
American country music songwriter, singer, and musician (1937–2016)
OverviewAI-generated
Merle Ronald Haggard (1937–2016) was an American singer, singer-songwriter, guitarist, and recording artist. Born in Bakersfield, he began his professional work period in 1963 and performed in the country music genre. He was a member of the Democratic Party and recorded for Capitol Records. Haggard received the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award, induction into the California Hall of Fame, and the Kennedy Center Honors.
He was known for works including *Merle Haggard's my house of memories*, *Merle Haggard Presents Swinging Texas Fiddlin'*, *My House of Memories*, *New Merle Haggard Anthology*, and *New Merle Haggard Anthology Songbook*. Haggard died of pneumonia from natural causes in Palo Cedro on April 6, 2016.
Synthesized by Vinony from 43 facts across 8 sources: Wikidata, Crossref, Open Library, MusicBrainz, Last.fm, TMDb, Firecrawl, Vinony graph. Generated from structured data (not the Wikipedia text) and checked against those facts — may still contain errors.
Person · Open Library
- Works
- 21
Top works
- Merle Haggard's my house of memories
- Merle Haggard Presents Swinging Texas Fiddlin'
- My House of Memories
- New Merle Haggard Anthology
- New Merle Haggard Anthology Songbook
via Open Library + Wikidata
Film & TV
Acting · Oildale, California, USA
Merle Ronald Haggard (April 6, 1937 – April 6, 2016) was an American country music singer, songwriter, guitarist, and fiddler.
Known for
- Willie Nelson Presents: King of the Roadies — Self (archive footage)2025
- Merle Haggard: Salute to a Country Legend — Self (archive footage)2020
- The American Epic Sessions — Self2016
- Merle Travis: Guitar Man2016
- Johnny Cash: American Rebel — Self2015
- Country: Portraits of an American Sound — Self2015
- A Kentucky Treasure: The Osborne Brothers Story — Self (archive footage)2014
- Merle Haggard: In Performance — Performer2014
- Blaze Foley: Duct Tape Messiah — Self - Songwriter2011
- Merle Haggard: Learning to Live With Myself — Self2010
via TMDB
Music · MusicBrainz
- Type
- Person
- Gender
- Male
- Country
- United States
- Active from
- 1937
- Active to
- 2016
Discography
via MusicBrainz · CC0
Listeners · Last.fm
- Listeners
- 559,873
- Total plays
- 8,074,736
Tags
Merle Ronald Haggard (April 6, 1937 – April 6, 2016) was an American country music singer, songwriter, guitarist, and fiddler. He was a key figure in the development of the Bakersfield sound and had a career spanning more than five decades, achieving 38 number-one hits on the US country charts, several of which also appeared on the Billboard all-genre singles chart. Haggard grew up in a challenging environment and spent time in prison before beginning his music career. <a href="https://www.last
Recent publications · Crossref
5 total works indexed
- The Sloan Digital Sky Survey: Technical Summary
· 2000 · cited 8,913x
- Atezolizumab plus Bevacizumab in Unresectable Hepatocellular Carcinoma
· 2020 · cited 6,674x
- Multi-messenger Observations of a Binary Neutron Star Merger<sup>*</sup>
· 2017 · cited 3,665x
- First M87 Event Horizon Telescope Results. I. The Shadow of the Supermassive Black Hole
· 2019 · cited 3,649x
- Regorafenib for patients with hepatocellular carcinoma who progressed on sorafenib treatment (RESORCE): a randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled, phase 3 trial
· 2017 · cited 3,106x
via Crossref · CC0
Quotes
- “Today I started loving you again I'm right back where I've really always been; I got over you just long enough to let my heartache mend, Then today I started loving you again.”
- “Every fool has a rainbow But he never seems to find The reward that should be waiting At the end of the line. But he'll give up a bed of roses For a hammock filled with thorns And go chasing after rainbows Every time a dream is born. And every fool has a rainbow That only he can see Every fool has a rainbow And the rule applies to me.”
- “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 living right and being 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.”
- “I've lived through 17 stays in penal institutions. Incarceration in a penitentiary. Five marriages, a bankruptcy, a broken back, brawls, shooting incidents, swindlings, sickness, the death of loved ones and more. I've heard tens of thousands chant my name when I couldn't hear the voice of my own soul. I wondered if God was listening and I was sure no one else was.”
- “When the world wide war is over and done And the dream of peace comes through We'll all be drinking some free bubble up And eating some rainbow stew.”
via Wikiquote · CC BY-SA
Key facts
- Born
- Merle Ronald Haggard , ( 1937-04-06 ) April 6, 1937, Oildale, California , U.S.
- Died
- April 6, 2016 (2016-04-06) (aged 79), Palo Cedro, California , U.S.
- Genres
- Country outlaw country Bakersfield sound
- Occupations
- Singer, songwriter, musician
- Instruments
- Vocals guitar fiddle
- Years active
- 1961–2016
- Labels
- Capitol MCA Epic Curb ANTI- Vanguard
- Formerly of
- The Strangers
- Children
- 6, including Marty and Noel Haggard
- Website
- merlehaggard .com
via Wikipedia infobox
Official website
The Official website and store of recording artist Merle Haggard – Merle Haggard Official Store
The Official website and store of recording artist Merle Haggard
merlehaggard.com →Link to the official site · 7,587 chars · not written by Vinony
~40 min read
Encyclopedic overview
Merle Ronald Haggard (April 6, 1937 – April 6, 2016) was an American country music singer, songwriter, guitarist, and fiddler. Widely regarded as one of the greatest and most influential figures in country music, he was a central pioneer of the Bakersfield sound. With a career spanning over five decades, Haggard had 38 number-one hits on the US country charts, several of which also made the Billboard all-genre singles chart.
Haggard overcame a troubled childhood, criminal convictions and time in prison to launch a successful country music career. He gained popularity with his songs about the working class; these occasionally contained themes contrary to the anti–Vietnam War sentiment of some popular music of the time.
Excerpted from Wikipedia’s “Merle Haggard” article, available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 licence.