Merle Haggard Sings Two for the Farmers – ‘The Farmer’s Daughter’ and ‘In My Next Life
Saturday night (or Sunday morning if you want to be technical about it) we 'spring forward' an hour. And our friends at the KDLT Weather center say we staring eyeball-to-eyeball at fifty degree plus temperatures next week. And major league baseball teams are playing each other down in Florida and Arizona. So it must be true.
Spring must be on the way!
For many, spring brings with it thoughts of love. But for others, spring brings thoughts of planting!
Oh, it's not time yet, but it won't be long and we'll see tractors of all colors (when I was a young 'un it was only red or green) in the fields. Then, patches of green. And then the hopes and prayers.
Hope we get rain. Hope we don't get too much rain. Hope the rain comes at the right time. Geez, is it ever gonna rain??
Country music is filled with 'rural' songs, with 'farm' songs. And Merle Haggard had two of the best. Of course, the mere fact that Merle Haggard is my favorite singer may have something to do with the fact that I love these.
Merle's classic 'The Farmer's Daughter' deals with the farmer giving away the thing he loves most. And no, it isn't his farm.
I think the greatest 'overlooked' Hag classic is a song he had as a single in 1994. By then perhaps country music was changing and Merle was no longer in vogue. His great single 'In My Next Life' didn't even crack the country Top 40, but for me, it epitomizes all that is good about country music. It brings the life of a farmer and his wife into focus in under four minutes. And that is songwriting genius.
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