Sad news to report as country music legend, Merle Haggard has passed away on his 79th birthday. Merle had been recovering from a double pneumonia that hit him in December 2015. He was set to reschedule his December tour dates and had lost a lot of weight with the pneumonia. He had been looking forward to regaining his strength and hitting the road again. He is in our hearts and we send our condolences to his family and friends.
His son Ben who was in the band, had handled all the social media sites and it was great to see the other side of the once private, gruff, reserved man. He would share such great photos. Like the one below where a fan was praying for Merle’s strength:
Told dad there was a guy praying behind the bus, he looked down and weeped.. Moved by the love from the fans! pic.twitter.com/0yS4VA4iF4
— Ben Haggard (@BenHaggardMusic) February 3, 2016
Merle would update us on his health as well, like the following post on Facebook:
Thank you all for your kind words and prayers! This picture speaks for itself on how I'm doing. Hope to see you all soon!
Posted by Merle Haggard on Monday, December 7, 2015
Sadly, Ben posted the following this morning:
A week ago dad told us he was gonna pass on his birthday, and he wasn't wrong. A hour ago he took his last breath…
Posted by Ben Haggard on Wednesday, April 6, 2016
It is time to celebrate such an amazing man! Here are my top ten Merle Haggard songs that even though I was a young rocker, Merle brought the country to my heart.
- Okie from Muskogee
- Sing a Sad Song
- Today I Started Loving You Again
- Misery and Gin
- Mama Tried
- Workin Man’s Blues
- My Mary
- I Think I’ll Just Stay Here and Drink:
- No Reason To Quit
- My Favorite Memory
Leave a Reply