Jim Christie on drums

Renato Caranto on sax

Scott Joss on fiddle/mandolin/guitar and vocals

• Renato Caranto – tenor saxophone
• Jim Christie – drums
• Floyd Domino – keyboards
• Ben Haggard – electric guitar, lead guitar, lead and backing vocals
• Noel Haggard – lead vocals, electric guitar
• Theresa Haggard – backing vocals
• Norman Hamlet – steel guitar
• Scott Joss – fiddle, mandolin, guitars, backing vocals
• Taras Prodaniuk – bass guitar
• Doug Colosio – keyboards, bass guitar
• Biff Adam - Drums
• Don Markham -  Sax
• WILL NAME MORE PEOPLE THAT PLAYED IN BAND OVER THE YEARS

Longest member of the Strangers Norm Hamlet on the left and next

to him on guitar is Ben Haggard, youngest member of the Strangers.

On the right of Merle is Fuzzy Owen, a central person in not only the Bakersfield sound

but in the life and career of Merle's.  He was a co-owner of Tally Records and recorded

Merle's first record after meeting him in 1961.  It was in 1962 that he signed him to the

label.  These two men can tell a million stories about those early days where they were

themselves creating that sound.

In 1950 Fuzzy had worked with Bonnie Owens and released the record "A Dear John

Letter" a duet on Mar-Vel Records.  Bonnie had been married to Buck Owens and

would later marry Merle in 1965, and Merle talked about her to me for years.

For all the years after Merle left Tally Records and went to Capital and began on his

long road to fame, Fuzzy has been on the road wearing the hat of Road Manager,

and taking care of the financial duties of payments from the promoters.  In that itself

you could see the loyalty to the men that helped Merle get where he was today was

paid with loyalty having these guys still on his team.  Willie is another cowboy that

operates on loyalty.

 

Frank Mull was with Merle for many years, knew his mother, and put in four decades on the road with Haggard wearing the tour manager hat, working on the advance work, booking hotels, getting the bands travel arrangements from their home towns, merchandise, doing the guest lists, making sure Merle got

his food, back stage passes, who would get to see Merle, who would get on his bus, or have things autographed, and on and on...

 

When he wasn't on the road he was at home in Nashville doing the advance work for the next tour and loading up his bus with the office and merch-

andise, and also carried some of the bands equipment.

 

I'VE A FEW HUNDRED STORIES ON MERLE'S FRIEND FRANK.  Merle

told me a number of times Frank was like a brother to him, and he had a

unspoken gratitude for all that Frank did for him.  Some just a few words

between these two men got so much done and so many miles traveled

with just the understanding about what needed to be done.

Ninety percent of the time on the road Merle would do sound check with

the Strangers.  His band and their sound was very important to Merle.

Was also a time he could hang more with the guys and chat and share

some time and energy with the Strangers.

Peter Wolf and Merle in New York on Dylan tour...I could see

Merle liked Peter and they spent some good time on Hag's bus.

During the 5 days at the Beacon they hung out a few times, a

few years later he and Haggard would do a duet on his album.

Merle liked most to spend time with his music friends from the

business on his bus during the day, maybe after sound check

and after the show.  Over the years Merle would mention his

ole friend Johnny Rodriguez, he would tell a songwriting story

about Lefty Frizzell, Whitey Shafer, Kris Kristofferson, Johnny,

and some other songwriters in a hotel room many years back.

Merle talked often to me about his idol Lefty Frizzell and the

times in his life and music he was around Lefty.  On one of

Hag's backstage All Access Passes was a picture of Lefty,

and he had pictures around his house of Lefty, and Merle

bought and owned Lefty's guitar.

The last 6 months of Hag here on earth he and I were working

on a movie on Lefty and more on that down the road in the

book...

Chapter in my other book on my introducing Merle Haggard to Les Paul.

That is all I am going to say right now...

Merle, Neil Mcoy and Noel Haggard in Tucson, Arizona back in

about 2007 on Merle's bus, and Merle in his fishing hat...his son Noel

toured with Merle for that last decade of his life and would open the show.

Noel Haggard

Ben Haggard

Theresa Haggard

Merle and Theresa Haggard

Merle married Theresa Lane in 1993, and had two children, Ben

and Jenessa.  Merle told me several times when we were talking

about family how much he loved having a young family, and

after four tries at marriage and family he finally got it right.

Off and on Theresa traveled on the tours and sang back up

vocals in the band.  Merle stayed on his bus more when she

was on tour, and other times he would be out with the band

and sometimes venture out to dinner...of course the boys in

the band loved these times when he would hang with them.