Music City remembers Merle Haggard
When Thursday was officially proclaimed as Merle Haggard Day in Nashville, there were only three hours before midnight. But an all-star lineup of musicians and 18,000 fans packed into Bridgestone Arena crammed an entire day’s worth of celebrating into a few hours.
The tribute show and concert taping “Sing Me Back Home: The Music of Merle Haggard” assembled artists from contemporary country star Kacey Musgraves to rock god Keith Richards to honor Haggard’s legacy on what would have been his 80th birthday. The masterful country music songwriter, singer and performer died at his Northern California home on April 6, 2016 – the day he turned 79.
The three-hour show, emceed by actor W. Earl Brown (“Deadwood,” “Preacher”) featured not only a selection of "the Hag's" biggest hits – “Mama Tried,” “If We Make it Through December” and Miranda Lambert's understated performance of "Misery and Gin" were a few of the crowd’s favorites – but some of his lesser-known gems, such as the tender ballad “The Farmer’s Daughter,” lovingly performed by Tanya Tucker.
Though the concert was far more celebratory than somber, a poignant moment came early in the evening. Ben Haggard spent eight years playing lead guitar in his father’s band the Strangers, beginning when he was just 15 years old. Now in his mid-20s, he led the Strangers in the show’s opening song: “What Am I Gonna Do (With the Rest of My Life).”
After the performance, he and the Strangers remained onstage for another 40 minutes, expertly backing artists like Bobby Bare (who sang “I’m a Lonesome Fugitive”), Connie Smith (“That’s the Way Love Goes”), John Anderson (“Big City”) and Toby Keith, who delivered a muscly rendition of “Daddy Frank the Guitar Man.”
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Some of the night’s finest moments came from collaborations. Warren Haynes and Billy Gibbons transformed “Workin’ Man Blues” into a traditional blues song that built into a rafter-rattling rocker, while Jamey Johnson and Alison Krauss teamed up on Blaze Foley’s “If I Could Only Fly.”
After Richards’ moving performance of “Sing Me Back Home” – with gospel group the McCrary Sisters backing him, it felt almost like a hymn – he was joined by Willie Nelson for an impeccably cool rendition of “Reasons to Quit,” one of many duets Nelson and Haggard recorded over the years.
Nelson found another duet partner in Kenny Chesney for “Pancho and Lefty,” the Townes Van Zandt song Nelson and Haggard recorded in the mid-1980s, before leading the entire room in the group finale: Haggard's 1969 smash "Okie from Muskogee."
"This has been a monumental moment," Haggard's widow, Theresa, said from center stage as fans gave the performers a standing ovation. "I know Haggard's here right now."