If I Could Only Fly

Merle Haggard has lived hard and dons the deep lines on his face to prove it. An old-school country badass who did time in San Quentin in the 1960s, Hag is also a surprisingly adventurous musical spirit, having spent much of his career defying country conventions by dipping into folk, blues, pop, and even jazz. His latest album—his first for the primarily punk label, Epitaph—is a testament to the man’s life experience and talent. If I Could Only Fly’s both visionary and weathered, with Hag offering up grizzled refrains like, “Watching while some old friends do a line/Holding back the want to in my own addicted mind,” (from “Wishing All These Old Things Were New”) as only someone who’s been there and knows better could do. Among these hard-learned country tales are convincing forays into horn-fueled jazz (“Honky Tonky Mama”), Western swing (“Bareback”) and classic pop (“Lullaby”) that show the one-time Okie from Muskogee hasn’t lost a step along the way. In fact, he’s picked up a few new ones.