As a prisoner he watched Johnny Cash play live at San Quentin, then he became a legend himself.
Nearly eight years after his death, the legacy of country superstar Merle Haggard, who did time in San Quentin Prison before going on to become the face of a music genre, is still thriving in his hometown of Bakersfield.
.” The song and the accompanying live album of the same name pushed him into the stratosphere of country music legend and icon — an instant hit that came to define not only his career but the sound he helped pioneer. His older brother Lowell had passed down his guitar, and young Merle taught himself by listening to country greats like Hank Williams and Lefty Frizzell, the latter, though from Texas, widely credited as providing early inspiration for the Bakersfield sound.