"Kern River" is a song written and recorded by American country music artist Merle Haggard backed by

The Strangers Strangers are people who are unknown to another person or group. Strangers or The Strangers may also refer to: History * Elizabethan Strangers or Strangers, a name applied to French and Belgian immigrants to Norwich, East Anglia, England, during ...

. It was released in July 1985 as the only single and title track from his album '' Kern River''. The song peaked at number 10 on the ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...

'' Hot Country Singles chart.

Content

The song grimly recounts the story of the singer's girlfriend drowning in the Kern River, California. In the 2013 biography ''Merle Haggard: The Running Kind'' writer David Cantwell calls the track "a scary record" that "screamed quiet and startled you alive."

Personnel

* Merle Haggard– vocals, guitar, fiddle

: * Roy Nichols - guitar * Norm Hamlet - steel guitar * Tiny Moore - fiddle, mandolin *Mark Yeary - keyboards *Dennis Hromek - bass *Biff Adams - drums *Jim Belkin - fiddle

Chart performance

Covers

"Kern River" was covered by Dave Alvin on his 2006 album ''

West of the West ''West of the West'' is an album by American artist Dave Alvin, released in 2006. The album pays tribute to California songwriters. It reached number 35 on the Top Independent Albums chart. Reception Writing for Allmusic, music critic Mark Demin ...

'', and by

Emmylou Harris Emmylou Harris (born April 2, 1947) is an American singer, songwriter and musician. She has released dozens of albums and singles over the course of her career and has won 14 Grammys, the Polar Music Prize, and numerous other honors, including ...

on her 2008 album '' All I Intended to Be''.

References

Merle Haggard songs Emmylou Harris songs 1985 singles 1985 songs Epic Records singles Kern River Songs written by Merle Haggard {{1985-country-song-stub