S.O.D. "Branded Man" by Merle Haggard

6/1/2016     A country music legend has left us. Many of us will be paying our respects and feeling the loss for a long time. It's certainly an enormous loss to the world of country music, musicians in general and for the people who loved this man and were in tune with what he stood for.  He's about as rough cut as it gets, starting from his birth which took place in a box car that his father made livable.  In and out of and escaping from juvenile detention centers and prisons, he would end up in San Quentin, influenced by a performance there from Johnny Cash. He dabbled with the guitar before this and even did some performing, but set his mind on a musical career after Cash's concert and a good friend's execution who was on death row.  

     Merle collaborated with many musicians over the course of his career, releasing 14 albums with other artists and working extensively with George Jones and Willie Nelson.  Haggard's band was called The Strangers, with whom he made many records.  In all Haggard released 47 studio albums and 82 singles, with 38 becoming a #1 hit.  Many awards, accolades and tributes have been bestowed upon Mr Haggard including a Kennedy Center honor, being inducted into three music halls of fame, and having  3 1/2 miles of 7th Standard Road in Oildale, California renamed Merle Haggard Drive. This is where he grew up.  

     "Branded Man" is a 1967 single that Haggard wrote, which turned out to be his 2nd #1 song and is from the album of the same name.  It has to do with an ex-convict and whether he will be accepted into society after being released from prison. The very last song Haggard recorded was "Kern River Blues" regarding the late 70s when he left Bakersfield and his disappointment with politicians. In the song, his son Ben, provides guitar.