Thursday, July 27, 2017

Merle the Branded Man: Letter to the Editor

In response to David Cantwell's piece in the New Yorker on the musical legacy of Merle Haggard, available here:

I am always pleased to see growing recognition of Merle Haggard, but was disappointed to read David Cantwell's conclusion that the continuation of Merle's legacy rests in the hands of "mainstream radio stars" who will transform his songs into "twenty-first century styles."

At a recent Sturgill Simpson concert, Sturgill announced that there would be no encore because he didn't think it was an authentic experience if everyone expected it. Instead, he walked off stage, and Haggard's "Living with the Shades Pulled Down" came on the speakers. Hearing that album version (horn section included!) perked up my already-ringing ears more than a cover of his song or an encore would have. I left the concert appreciating how country music had evolved from the lonesome blues of Jimmy Rodgers to the Bakersfield sound of Merle Haggard and Buck Owens and finally to the rocking thrum of Sturgill Simpson.

There is a growing category of older country singers who become more relevant either after death or in the fading years of their career. Shoehorning Haggard into this or any other category of country stars does a disservice to the breadth of his recordings and his talent as a musician. Live recordings of Haggard demonstrate his own inimitable talent (although imitations of other country stars were one of his own talents) and the obvious joy he took in sharing a stage with other musicians. The mentioned covers of Jimmy Rodgers, Lefty Frizell and Bob Wills seem to place Haggard in the rich tapestry of American traditional and folk singers, while his famous "Okie from Muskogee" and "Big City" recordings apparently drop him squarely in the middle of the straight-laced conservative country singer category. I believe it would be a mistake that to think that those songs are more representative of his views than "Irma Jackson," a song from the perspective of a black man who can't be with the white woman he loves. Untangling Haggard's views solely by interpreting individual songs is doomed to failure.

One of the keys I have found to unlocking Haggard's music and appeal to his fans is that his songwriting is often from the perspective of one of his own fictional characters. Haggard's voice is not limited to his own experiences, but he retains a vibrant authenticity. That authenticity stems from the fact that Haggard encountered these sorts of people in his own rough and rowdy life while bouncing between prisons or hopping trains. Haggard's legacy should be based on his powerful songwriting, his musicianship, and the influence he has had on those who follow, not on the commercial recording industry's willingness to rebrand his songs for modern audiences. After all - Haggard is already a Branded Man.