OldiesButGoodies

December 2024

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Country

In the twilight of his life, Merle Haggard used to say there was only one thing he could never set aside — his music. Even as his body grew weary and time pressed heavier on his shoulders, he clung to his guitar like a vow he had made long ago. As long as his fingers could still find the strings, his soul still had a story worth telling.Then the moment softens. The pace slows. Because out of all the songs he ever wrote, one memory never faded, never shifted with the years. It waited quietly. That song was “Kern River.” To Merle, “Kern River” was never just a tune or a chapter in his catalog. It was a piece of his life he carried without words — not to escape it, not to justify it — but to hold it gently, in that private place where the deepest truths are kept, untouched and forever alive.

Country

THOUSANDS OF STAGES, COUNTLESS APPLAUSE — YET ONLY ONE STAR EVER HEARD HIS HEART UNFILTERED. Night after night, Merle Haggard carried his songs beneath blazing spotlights, but when the noise faded, he searched the sky in silence. Between success and sorrow, he whispered questions only the darkness could hold. Then, on a quiet night when the world felt far away, a truth settled in his soul: every lyric he had ever written was reaching toward the same small star he had believed in since he was a boy. “Twinkle, Twinkle Lucky Star” was never just another song. It was a confession in melody — a weary man asking life for one gentle favor: a touch of luck in love, a moment of calm for a restless heart. And in that fragile plea, listeners finally heard it — not a legend at ease, but a human being still searching for light when the night felt endless.

Country

ON A SOFT SEPTEMBER AFTERNOON… HE KNEW THIS WALK WOULD NEVER HAPPEN AGAIN. He wasn’t as steady as he once was, yet when she slipped her arm through his, Merle Haggard straightened with quiet resolve — like a father who still had one final promise to keep. There were no grand words, no formal blessings. Just the familiar pressure of his hand resting over hers, the same hand that once cradled a guitar and sang “Daddy Frank” like a hymn for families who learned to endure by leaning on love.Between each careful step lived a truth no stage light ever revealed. He had shared his stories with the world, but his calm, his strength, his unspoken reassurance — those were reserved for her alone. And as they moved slowly toward the life waiting ahead, his silence carried more meaning than any song he ever wrote. It said what every daughter needs to hear, and what every great father knows by heart.

Country

I Won’t Be Sleeping Alone – Gene Watson