Country legend Merle Haggard dies on his birthday

Country giant Merle Haggard, who rose from poverty and prison to international fame through his songs about outlaws, underdogs, and an abiding sense of national pride in such hits as “Okie From Muskogee” and “Sing Me Back Home,” died Wednesday in Palo Cedro, Calif. His manager said Haggard died of pneumonia he had battled for months, but his publicist said no official cause of death has been determined. Haggard was 79.

A masterful guitarist, fiddler, and songwriter, Haggard wielded his firm, direct baritone for more than 40 years, releasing dozens of albums and No. 1 hits.

Haggard—along with fellow California country star Buck Owens—pioneered the twangy Bakersfield sound, a direct contrast to the smooth, string-laden country records popular in Nashville, Tenn., in the 1960s.

His music was rough but sensitive, reflecting on childhood, marriage, and daily struggles. He told stories of shame and redemption, or just putting his foot down, as in “The Fightin’ Side of Me” and “I Think I’ll Just Stay Here and Drink.”

His childhood story could have come straight from a John Steinbeck novel.

Haggard’s family migrated from Oklahoma to California and lived as outsiders in their adopted state. Born in 1937 near Bakersfield, Haggard was raised in a converted railway boxcar, the only dwelling his parents could afford. When Haggard was 9, his beloved father suddenly fell ill and died, leaving Haggard with lasting grief. He turned to petty crime and spent several years in and out of institutions.

He served three years in San Quentin for burglarizing a cafe during a drunken spree. But he saw Johnny Cash play during that stint in prison, and he returned to Bakersfield in 1960 at age 22, ready to write music.

Haggard’s first hit was a cover of Wynn Stewart’s “Sing a Sad Song,” and by 1966, the Academy of Country and Western Music had voted him most promising vocalist. He became a superstar in 1967, first with a cover of Liz Anderson’s “I’m a Lonesome Fugitive,” then with such originals as “Sing Me Back Home” and “The Legend of Bonnie and Clyde,” featuring Glen Campbell on banjo.

Fame brought him unexpected respectability. Then-Gov. Ronald Reagan erased his criminal record and pardoned him in 1972.

Few faces in country were as recognizable as Haggard’s, with its wary, sideways glance and chiseled, haunted features that seemed to bear every scar from his past.

General audiences knew him best for “Okie From Muskogee,” a patriotic anthem released in 1969 at the height of the Vietnam War that quickly became a cultural touchstone for its anti-hippie lyrics: “We don’t burn our draft cards down on Main Street; we like living right and being free.”

He was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame in 1994. Fellow country superstars remembered him fondly.

“Merle Haggard was an original. Not just a singer, not just a songwriter, not just another famous performer. He was your common everyday working man,” said Hank Williams Jr.

“He was my brother, my friend. I will miss him,” said longtime friend Willie Nelson. Tanya Tucker recalled fondly the time she and Haggard ate bologna sandwiches by the river: “I just can’t imagine a world without Merle.”

“We’ve lost one of the greatest writers and singers of all time. His heart was as tender as his love ballads,” said Dolly Parton. “I loved him like a brother.”

Haggard emphasized the importance of reporting the truth in his songs.

“I’ll tell you what the public likes more than anything,” he told the Boston Globe in 1999. “It’s the most rare commodity in the world—honesty.”

Haggard is survived by six children—Marty, Dana, Kelli, Noel, Jenessa, and Ben—and his sister, Lillian Haggard Rea.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.