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  • The Hag

  • The Life, Times, and Music of Merle Haggard
  • Written by: Marc Eliot
  • Narrated by: Marc Eliot
  • Length: 17 hrs and 50 mins
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars (11 ratings)

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The Hag

Written by: Marc Eliot
Narrated by: Marc Eliot
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Publisher's Summary

The definitive biography of country legend Merle Haggard by the New York Times best-selling biographer of Clint Eastwood, Cary Grant, The Eagles, and more.

Merle Haggard was one of the most important country music musicians who ever lived. His astonishing musical career stretched across the second half of the 20th century and into the first two decades of the next, during which he released an extraordinary 63 albums, 38 that made it on to Billboard's Country Top 10, 13 that went to number one, and 37 number one hit singles. With his ample songbook, unique singing voice, and brilliant phrasing that illuminated his uncompromising commitment to individual freedom, cut with the monkey of personal despair on his back and a chip the size of Monument Valley on his shoulder, Merle's music and his extraordinary charisma helped change the look, the sound, and the fury of American music.

The Hag tells, without compromise, the extraordinary life of Merle Haggard, augmented by the deep secondary research, sharp detail, and ample anecdotal material that biographer Marc Eliot is known for, and enriched and deepened by more than 100 new and far-ranging interviews. It explores the uniquely American life of an angry rebellious boy from the wrong side of the tracks bound for a life of crime and a permanent home in a penitentiary, who found redemption through the music of "the common man".

Merle Haggard's story is a great American saga of a man who lifted himself out of poverty, oppression, loss, and wanderlust to catapult himself into the pantheon of American artists admired around the world. Eliot has interviewed more than 100 people who knew Haggard, worked with him, were influenced by him, loved him, or hated him. The book celebrates the accomplishments and explore the singer's infamous dark side: the self-created turmoil that expressed itself through drugs, women, booze, and betrayal. The Hag offers a richly anecdotal narrative that will elevate the life and work of Merle Haggard to where both properly belong, in the pantheon of American music and letters.

The Hag is the definitive account of this unique American original and will speak to fans of country music and rock biographies alike.

©2022 Marc Eliot (P)2022 Hachette Books

What listeners say about The Hag

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

A very great listen

If you are a Merle Haggard fan this is a must listen. The story of his life and career is something that everyone should read in here. Book was well written and I learned a lot about one of the best country singers in the world. Hag you were the best.

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Excellent

A very informative well written book highly recommend if your a Hag fan or not.

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It was okay, but...

This gives a pretty good overview of Haggard's life, however, I could have done without it's long, drawn out sections about other people (ie: Buck Owens). You're buying the book to read a biography of Merle Haggard, not of other people.

It was very real, they didn't sugarcoat his behaviour, particularly his treatment of his wives, which I thought was good.

The performance by the narrator was good, except I wish he had not tried to impersonate the people he was quoting (ie: Willie Nelson, Buck Owens, Merle Haggard himself). I found that annoying more than helpful.

All in all, an okay book.

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