Glen Dee Hardin is an American piano player and arranger. He has performed and recorded with such artists as Roy Orbison, Elvis Presley, Emmylou Harris, John Denver, and Ricky Nelson.
Merle Ronald Haggard was an American country music singer, songwriter, guitarist, and fiddler.
Princetta Kay Adams is an American country music singer.
This is a list of notable events in country music that took place in 1969.
This is a list of notable events in country music that took place in 1966.
This is a list of notable events in country music that took place in 1965.
Tony Booth is an American country music singer who participated in Buck Owens' "Bakersfield sound" revolution.
Roy Ernest Nichols was an American country music guitarist best known as the lead guitarist for Merle Haggard's band The Strangers for more than two decades. He was known for his guitar technique, a mix of fingerpicking and pedal steel-like bends, usually played on a Fender Telecaster electric guitar. Nichols is considered one of the founders of the country music subgenre the “Bakersfield Sound”, which includes such notable country artists as Haggard, Buck Owens, and Don Rich.
Bonnie Owens was an American country music singer who was married to Buck Owens and later to Merle Haggard.
The Bakersfield sound is a sub-genre of country music developed in the mid-to-late 1950s in and around Bakersfield, California. Bakersfield is defined by its influences of rock and roll and honky-tonk style country, and its heavy use of electric instrumentation and backbeats. It was also a reaction against the slickly produced, orchestra-laden Nashville sound, which was becoming popular in the late 1950s. The Bakersfield sound became one of the most popular and influential country genres of the 1960s, initiating a revival of honky-tonk music and influencing later country rock and outlaw country musicians, as well as progressive country.
The Buckaroos were an American band led by Buck Owens in the 1960s and early 1970s, who, along with Merle Haggard's The Strangers, were involved in the development and presentation of the "Bakersfield sound." Their peak of success was from 1965 to 1970. In 2005, CMT named the Buckaroos No. 2 on its list of the 20 Greatest Country Music Bands.
The Academy of Country Music Awards, also known as the ACM Awards, were first held in 1966, honoring the industry's accomplishments during the previous year. It was the first country music awards program held by a major organization. The academy's signature "hat" trophy was first created in 1968. The awards were first televised in 1972 on ABC. In 1979, the academy joined with Dick Clark Productions to produce the show. Dick Clark and Al Schwartz served as producers while Gene Weed served as director. Under their guidance, the show moved to NBC in 1979, then to CBS in 1998, and Amazon Prime Video in 2022.
Swinging Doors and the Bottle Let Me Down is the second studio album by American country music singer Merle Haggard and The Strangers, released in 1966 on Capitol Records. It is sometimes called Swinging Doors and has also been released with two fewer songs as High on a Hilltop.
Alan Edgar "Buddy" Owens, known professionally as Buddy Alan, is an American country music artist. The son of Buck Owens and Bonnie Owens and stepson of Merle Haggard, Alan recorded four albums for Capitol Records in the 1970s. He also charted eight singles in the Top 40 on the Billboard country charts, including his No. 7 debut single "Let the World Keep On A-Turnin'", a duet with Buck.
"(My Friends Are Gonna Be) Strangers" is a song written by Liz Anderson. Best remembered as American country music artist Merle Haggard's first national Top 10 record, it was also a Top 10 song concurrently for Roy Drusky. The song is also known as All My Friends Are Gonna Be Strangers, (From Now On) All My Friends Are Gonna Be Strangers, and simply Strangers. Haggard went on to name his band The Strangers after the record's success. The song was subsequently recorded by scores of additional country stars as an album track including George Jones, Ernest Tubb, Porter Wagoner, Ferlin Husky, as well as Liz Anderson herself and Anderson's daughter Lynn Anderson.
Ralph Eugene Mooney was an American steel guitar player and songwriter, he was inducted into the Steel Guitar Hall of Fame in 1983. He was the original steel guitarist in Merle Haggard's band, The Strangers and Waylon Jennings's band, The Waylors.
James Snyder (1934–2020) was an American country singer, songwriter, and guitarist from Wheeling, West Virginia who charted on the country and western music billboards in the 1960s and 1970s, died December 11, 2020. and gained recognition for his work on the West coast country music scene, leading the house band at North Hollywood's historic Palomino Club. He became a prominent figurehead on the LA country scene during the 1970s, with strong influence. Snyder played the Grand Ole Opry in May 1970 with his biggest hit, “The Chicago Story.” Jimmy Snyder and the Palomino Riders won their first ACM award in 1980 for “Best Non-Touring Country Band". In February 1970, he was nominated "Most Promising Artist of the Year" by Record News, Cashbox, and Billboard Magazine. Snyder soon found himself playing with Elvis Presley, appearing on several of his West Coast performances. Elvis Presley used to joke that Snyder actually sang the Presley song "Memories" on the record, because of Snyder's uncanny ability to imitate the singer's voice. Snyder worked with countless country music greats, including longtime friends Merle Haggard, with whom he recorded "Haggard State of Mind," and Willie Nelson. He penned the Buck Owens tune "All I Want For Christmas Is My Daddy" as well as Kay Adams' "Husband Stealer" at Tower Records. In recent years, Leon Russell invited Snyder to sing on "He'll Have To Go" for the Legend In My Time: Hank Wilson Vol. III album, released by Leon Russell in 1998. Russell was Snyder's piano player at the Rag Doll Club in North Hollywood.
Wally Lewis is an American country-rockabilly singer and songwriter. His best known tune "Kathleen" reached number 15 on the U.S. pop chart in 1957.
Just Between the Two of Us is a duet album by country singers Bonnie Owens and Merle Haggard with the Strangers. It was released in 1966 by Capitol Records.
Blue Jungle is the forty-seventh studio album by American recording artist Merle Haggard, with backing by his band, The Strangers, released in 1990. The album peaked at number 47 on the Billboard country albums chart. It was co-produced by Mark Yeary, the honky tonk piano player of Merle Haggard's band, 13 years in a row awarded the ACM Band of the Year, The Strangers.
