Sing Me Back Home: The Music Of Merle Haggard

Blackbird Presents – 8914027545

Format: 2 x CD, Album
Country: US
Released: 2020
Genre: Folk, World, & Country
Style: Country
[Tracklist]
01 What Am I Gonna Do (With The Rest Of My Life): Ben Haggard (4:54)
02 Heaven Was A Drink Of Wine: Ben Haggard & Aaron Lewis (4:04)
03 The Farmer's Daughter: Tanya Tucker (2:55)
04 I'm A Lonesome Fugitive: Bobby Bare (3:30)
05 0That's The Way Love Goes: Connie Smith (3:00)
06 Big City: John Anderson (3:05)
07 Carolyn/Daddy Frank: Toby Keith (4:10)
08 Don't Give Up On Me: Buddy Miller (3:10)
09 Footlights: Jake Owen & Chris Janson (4:26)
10 Going Where The Lonely Go: Lucinda Williams (3:39)
11 Kern River: Jamey Johnson (4:46)
12 Silver Wings: Alabama (1:52)
13 I Think I'll Just Stay Here And Drink: Hank Williams, Jr. (2:18)
14 Today I Started Loving You Again: Loretta Lynn (2:32)
15 Honky Tonk Night Time Man: Lynyrd Skynyrd (4:18)
16 Mama Tried: The Avett Brothers (3:02)
17 White Line Fever: John Mellencamp (4:53)
18 Rainbow Stew: Kacey Musgraves (2:28)
19 It's All In The Movies: Ronnie Dunn (3:19)
20 The Bottle Let Me Down: Billy F Gibbons (2:50)
21 Workin' Man Blues: Billy F Gibbons & Warren Haynes (6:04)
22 If We Make It Through December: Dierks Bentley (2:35)
23 Natural High: Sheryl Crow (3:32)
24 Misery And Gin: Miranda Lambert (3:01)
25 Pancho And Lefty: Willie Nelson & Kenny Chesney (4:38)
26 Sing Me Back Home: Keith Richards (5:14)
27 Reasons To Quit: Keith Richards & Willie Nelson (3:45)
28 Ramblin' Fever: Willie Nelson & Toby Keith (2:57)
29 Okie From Muskogee: Various (1:35)
[Credits]
Executive-Producer: Keith Wortman, Mark Rothbaum, Theresa Haggard, Music Director: Ben Haggard, Buddy Cannon, Don Was
[Notes]
Recorded Live On April 6th, 2017 at Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, Tennessee. The lineup for the Merle Haggard tribute concert—dubbed Sing Me Back Home. The Music of Merle Haggard—just got a little bigger with the addition of Sheryl Crow and Rolling Stones guitarist/vocalist Keith Richards. "Stuff happens, but you just have to be your own man, and have something to say," said Keith in a statement.

Livin' Lovin' Losin': Songs of the Louvin Brothers

Universal South UNSF-02460-2

Format: CD, Compilation
Country: US
Released: 2003
Genre: Folk, World, & Country
Style: Country, Bluegrass
[Tracklist]
01 Intro to Charlie and Ira (0:26)
02 Cash on the Barrelhead: Joe Nichols and Rhonda Vincent (3:17)
03 My Baby's Gone: Emmylou Harris and Rodney Crowell (3:31)
04 How's the World Treating You: James Taylor and Alison Krauss (3:18)
05 I Can't Keep You in Love With Me: Vince Gill and Terri Clark (2:58)
06 Must You Throw Dirt in My Face: Merle Haggard and Carl Jackson (2:51)
07 If I Could Only Win Your Love: Ronnie Dunn and Rebecca Lynn Howard (2:34)
08 When I Stop Dreaming: Glen Campbell and Leslie Satcher (4:00)
09 I Wish You Knew: Kathy Louvin and Pamela Brown Hayes (2:27)
10 The New Partner Waltz: Linda Ronstadt and Carl Jackson (2:50)
11 Are You Teasing Me: Patty Loveless and Jon Randall (3:02)
12 I Don't Believe You've Met My Baby: Dierks Bentley and Harley Allen (2:40)
13 You're Running Wild: Carl Jackson, Larry Cordle and Jerry Salley (2:40)
14 The Angels Rejoiced: Dolly Parton and Sonya Isaacs (2:38)
15 Let Us Travel, Travel On: Marty Stuart and Del McCoury (2:39)
16 Keep Your Eyes on Jesus: Johnny Cash, Pam Tillis and The Jordanaires (3:24)
[Creduts]
Harley Allen (vocals) Dierks Bentley (vocals) Bruce Bouton (pedal steel guitar) Glen Campbell (vocals) Johnny Cash (vocals) Terri Clark (vocals) Larry Cordle (vocals) J. T. Corenflos (guitar) Tony Creasman (drums) Rodney Crowell (vocals) Glen Duncan (fiddle) Ronnie Dunn (vocals) Vince Gill (vocals) Emory Gordy (bass) Kevin Grantt (bass) Mike Bub (bass) Merle Haggard (vocals) Emmylou Harris (vocals) David Harvey (mandolin) Pamela Brown Hayes (vocals) Rebecca Lynn Howard (vocals) Roy Huskey Jr. (bass) Sonya Isaacs (vocals) Carl Jackson (vocals/guitar/banjo/mandolin/percussion) Mike Johnson (pedal steel guitar) The Jordanaires (vocals) Randy Kohrs (dobro) Alison Krauss (vocals) Kathy Louvin (vocals) Patty Loveless (vocals) Catherine Marx (piano) Del McCoury (vocals) Joe Nichols (vocals) Martin Parker (drums) Dolly Parton (vocals) Jon Randall (vocals) Matt Rollings (piano) Linda Ronstadt (vocals) Jerry Salley (vocals) Leslie Satcher (vocals) Adam Steffey (mandolin) Marty Stuart (vocals/mandolin/electronic drums) James Taylor (vocals) Pam Tillis (vocals) Steve Turner (drums) Jim Van Cleve (fiddle) Rhonda Vincent (vocals)
Producer: Carl Jackson & Kathy Louvin, Liner Notes: Tom Wilmeth, Designer: Beth Middleworth & Susan Levy, Engineer: John "Babbacombe" Lee, Luke Wooten, Jim Brady, John Carter Cash & Hank Williams
[Notes]
The Louvin Brothers were an American country music duo composed of brothers Ira Louvin and Charlie Louvin. They helped popularize close harmony, a genre of country music. Their partnership ended in 1963 with Charlie continuing a long and successful career as a solo artist. Ira died in an automobile accident in 1965 and Charlie died in 2011 from pancreatic cancer. Ira Louvin's daughter, Kathy Louvin, approached producer Carl Jackson with the idea of a Louvin Brothers tribute album. Jackson then enlisted the various artists who performed on the tracks. The project was kept a secret from Charlie, the surviving Louvin Brother, until he accidentally heard about it and later became involved in the sessions. Guest vocalists include Glen Campbell, Johnny Cash, James Taylor, Emmylou Harris, Alison Krauss, Vince Gill, Merle Haggard, Linda Ronstadt, Dolly Parton, and many others. The recitation on "Keep Your Eyes on Jesus" was one of the last sessions Cash did before his death.

Merle Haggard and Willie Nelson: Django and Jimmie

Legacy 88875093782

Format: CD, Album
Country: US
Released: 02 Jun 2015
Genre: Folk, World, & Country
Style: Country
[Tracklist]
01 Django And Jimmie (2:53)
02 It's All Going To Pot (2:57)
03 Unfair Weather Friend (4:14)
04 Missing Ol' Johnny Cash (3:27)
05 Live This Long (3:35)
06 Alice In Hulaland (3:02)
07 Don't Think Twice, It's All Right (4:11)
08 Family Bible (3:37)
09 It's Only Money (3:56)
10 Swinging Doors (2:51)
11 Where Dreams Come To Die (3:19)
12 Somewhere Between (3:24)
13 Driving The Herd (2:50)
14 The Only Man Wilder Than Me (2:35)
[Credits]
Producer: Buddy Cannon, Art Direction: Federico Ruiz, Coordinator: Shannon Finnegan, Creative Director: Frank Harkins, Designer: Federico Ruiz, Photographer: Danny Clinch
[Notes]
Willie Nelson and Merle Haggard first teamed up on record for Pancho & Lefty in 1983, a record released some 20 years after both singers began their careers. Back then, they were both hovering around 50, already considered old guys, but Django and Jimmie arrives 32 years after that record, when there's no question that the pair are old-timers. Appropriately enough, mortality is on their minds throughout Django and Jimmie, a record whose very title is taken from Willie and Merle's childhood idols. It's a song that seems like a confession, as does the casual admission that they didn't think they'd "Live This Long," but neither Nelson nor Haggard wrote this, nor the title track or the album's first single, the near-novelty "It's All Going to Pot." These are made-to-order originals by some of the best in the business -- Buddy Cannon, Jamey Johnson, and Larry Shell wrote "It's All Going to Pot," Jimmy Melton and Jeff Prince the title track -- and it shows how producer Cannon has a sharp ear for material, along with a way with a relaxed groove. That comfortable, familial atmosphere is one of the best things about Django and Jimmie and extends far beyond the marquee names; the studio pros, friends, family, and fellow travelers who support Willie and Merle help give this a warm, worn-in feel that's appealing on its own terms. As comforting as the vibe is, it's the singers and their songs that linger. Neither Nelson nor Haggard make any attempt to hide their age -- Willie is a bit thinner than he used to be, Merle a bit growlier -- and their age is affecting when they revisit songs from the past, whether they wrote them or not (Hag's "Swinging Doors" is revived, as is the country standard "Family Bible" and Bob Dylan's "Don't Think Twice, It's All Right"). This nod to the passage of time isn't as explicit as "Live This Long" or "Missing Ol' Johnny Cash," where they bring in fellow survivor Bobby Bare to reminisce about their old pal. Often, country memories can get maudlin, but Willie and Merle are filled with good humor here and the pair often strike a delicate balance of fun and sweet melancholy which gives Django and Jimmie a soulful lift. Both singers are aware they're approaching the twilight, but they're not cursing the dark, they're enjoying the sunset.--AllMusic Review by Stephen Thomas Erlewine

Willie Nelson and Merle Haggard: Smoke and Joke in the Studio

Making of Django and Jimmie

Willie Nelson and Merle Haggard have teamed up over the years, from their 1983 classic "Pancho and Lefty" to their Last of the Breed album and tour with Ray Price, but as Haggard has said, they only do it when the material is right. The duo linked, though, once they heard "Django and Jimmie," a tribute to Nelson and Haggard's respective heroes, Django Reinhardt and Jimmie Rodgers (written by Jimmy Melton and Jeff Prince). "It pulled my heard right out," says Haggard. "I thought, 'That's a pretty good song.'" It became the genesis of their new album, out June 2nd. In honor of Nelson's 82nd birthday, enjoy this 10-minute video – filmed at Austin's Arlyn Studios – which gives a rare glimpse into Haggard and Nelson working in the studio, full of weed and jokes. ("Can I borrow some money to get home?" Haggard asks Nelson.) "It’s almost surreal," says producer Buddy Cannon, of being part of it. (via Rolling Stone, Read more...)