|
Okie From Muskogee (song)
"Okie from Muskogee" is a song recorded by American country music artist Merle Haggard and The Strangers, which Haggard co-wrote with drummer Roy Edward Burris. "Okie" is a slang name for someone from Oklahoma, and Muskogee (population 40,000) is the 11th largest city in the state. The song was released in September 1969 as first single and title track from the album ''Okie from Muskogee'', and was one of the most famous songs of Haggard's career. Background Haggard told '' The Boot'' that he wrote the song after he became disheartened watching Vietnam War protests and incorporated that emotion and viewpoint into song. Haggard says, "When I was in prison, I knew what it was like to have freedom taken away. Freedom is everything. During Vietnam, there were all kinds of protests. Here were these ervicemengoing over there and dying for a cause—we don't even know what it was really all about. And here are these young kids, that were free, bitching about it. There's something wrong ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Merle Haggard
Merle Ronald Haggard (April 6, 1937 – April 6, 2016) was an American country music singer, songwriter, guitarist, and fiddler. Haggard was born in Oildale, California, toward the end of the Great Depression. His childhood was troubled after the death of his father, and he was incarcerated several times in his youth. After being released from San Quentin State Prison in 1960, he managed to turn his life around and launch a successful country music career. He gained popularity with his songs about the working class that occasionally contained themes contrary to anti–Vietnam War sentiment of some popular music of the time. Between the 1960s and the 1980s, he had 38 number-one hits on the US country charts, several of which also made the ''Billboard'' all-genre singles chart. Haggard continued to release successful albums into the 2000s. He received many honors and awards for his music, including a Kennedy Center Honor (2010), a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award (2006), a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
