Customer Reviews

Hag: The Best of Merle Haggard

5 star:		(13)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I say artist since Merle is indeed an icon not some single/45 maker typically known to this genre of music but a serious artist that is best served up on individual albums showing his development or with the great box set "Down Every Road" that beautifully sums it all up and belongs in any serious CD collection.
The song selection here on HAG is a great mix and flows seamlesly and is enough to turn any rock fan into a country fan.
The sound is extraordinary as is the running time and liner notes and overall a great CD that included his famous duets with the great Johnny Cash(from the CASH CD Solitary Man),and the classic Willie Nelson cut Pancho and Lefty as well as a newer track with Toby Keith spanning a trip down memory lane circa 1962- 2005..Interesting photos of Merle standing over a grave site within as a middle age man with additional shots of him younger and the elder statesmen which he now is, akin to 2006 when this great CD hit.

If you were going to buy a best of to introduce someone to Merle Haggard, this is a good one. Plenty of classics here, But I kind of wish they included more of his MCA and Epic era hits.

I really like old country music. It's much more sincere and real that the current garbage permeating the airwaves. Merle Haggard is a prime example of that old country music. He's one of the greatest songwriters to emerge from country music, and his songs are still valid today. Many people dismiss him as a right wing blowhard because of songs like Okie from Muskogee and The Right Side of Me. I actually like Okie, and its criticisms of hippie lifestyles is kind of funny and true, considering hippies were silly and naive. I used to dislike The Right Side of Me, but it's grown on me over the last year, and it's not as jingoistic as I thought. Even if you don't like these 2 songs because of their (possible) right wing bias, one shouldn't dismiss everything Merle has done over his career because of them. Merle is a true artist and a complicated man. The Grateful Dead have covered his songs (most notably Mama Tried, included here), so even the hippie Dead recognized that Merle is a great songwriter, and his political views (which are probably more complicated than most people think) shouldn't matter when it comes to his art. Personally, I think there's more wisdom in a 3 minute Haggard song (and a Cline and Wiliams one) than in all the political rants of lefties and righties combined. There was a recent article on Amazon's plog about how people in Seattle were rather rude to him when he was performing, showing that liberals can be closed minded as well. The biggest surprise here is the duet Merle does with Toby Keith, She Ain't Hooked on Me Anymore. It's a great song, co-written by Keith himself, and it makes me want to go out and buy some CD's of Toby's. This is a wonderful collection, featuring many of Merle's greatest, including Mama Tried, Okie from Muskogee, Hungry Eyes, and The Bottle Let Me Down. Haggard is still going strong today, and his music will go on forever....

This is one of the best CD's of any genre music that I own. I'm not a big country fan but I have always liked Merle , waylon , and Johnny Cash. This is as excellent complilation of Merle that you will find. The recording is outstanding and there is not a bad selection on this long CD. I tell all the kids I teach who like contemporary country, which sounds like imitation Southern Rock to me , about this CD. I listen to this CD constantly and never get tired of it. This is what real country music is supposed to sound like.

What can anyone say about Merle Haggard that has not already been said? He has an awesome voice that brings for delightful country songs almost effortlessly. Years and years of quality songs and song writing that cannot be beat! High quality CD and a fair price. The delivery is super fast too!

Merle Haggard is a musical genius, and this album shows why. Twenty six career spanning, great songs from one of country's greatest singer/songwriters. VERY highly recommended.

If one wants a good overview of Merle Haggards music, this is a great disc. His style(s) are revealed in the songs he sings here.

no need to skip tracks, pop it in and let it play,great car cd, remastering is excellent. Classic cover photo. Nice set,buy it.

Out of 26 songs, 23 are keepers for me. This is a very good deal; I am quite happy with the purchase.

A great collection of cuts from Merle Haggard's long recording career, and a nice set to introduce your friends to good country music if they haven't discovered it yet, or Merle who's arguably one of the best in the country genre.