Merle Haggard - Oh Boy Presents Merle Haggard
Oh Boy Classic Records have been busy re-releasing some great material from the "Classic" artists. I had the chance to listen to one of their recent releases, Oh Boy Classics presents Merle Haggard, and I was taken back in time. These are all previously released favorites from Merle. Many sounded slightly different, he sang them just differently enough that if you were used to singing along with them you would be thrown off balance. However, maybe it isn't so bad to just sit back and listen instead of trying to sing along.
The album is packed front to back with such great tunes as; "Silver Wings," "Mama Tried," "The Fightin' Side of Me," "Okie From Muskogee," and the list seems almost endless. It just makes your toes start keeping rhythm with the music and you sink into a state of total musical enjoyment.
Overall, this is a great album. If you are a Merle Haggard fan and have a collection of his material already, this is great because it consolidates many great songs in one spot. If you haven't built up a Merle collection but would like to start, this is a great start. I can only think of two or three songs that I would add to it for the "perfect" Merle collection.
Reviewed by Jolene Downs.
