Noel Haggard isn’t just the spitting image of his father, Merle. Apparently, he inherited the country music legend’s rambling spirit and, shall we say, innovative ways of seeking out adventure. Add the fact that Noel himself is a country music artist, and the apple really doesn’t fall far from the tree.
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First, the tree: Merle Haggard grew up in Bakersfield, California, as the youngest of three siblings. His father, James Haggard, died of a brain tumor when Merle was only nine years old. From that point on, Merle grew increasingly restless, seeking out adventure and, more often, trouble, as kids in small towns are wont to do. Throughout his late childhood and early teens, Merle hitchhiked across multiple states, working odd jobs and, when those dried up, committing small crimes.
Trouble seemed to follow Merle wherever he went, and after spending the last years of his childhood in and out of detention facilities, he landed himself in San Quentin Prison after trying to escape the Bakersfield Jail, where he was being kept for attempted robbery of a local roadhouse. (This is where Merle would later watch a young Johnny Cash perform one of his iconic prison concerts.)
Noel Haggard Had a Similarly Rambling Spirit As His Father, Merle Haggard
While Noel Haggard didn’t lead quite as rough-and-tumble of a life as his father, Merle Haggard, did as a kid, there were plenty of moments where Noel proved he was, in fact, his father’s son—and not just because the two looked remarkably similar. During a 2025 conversation with Dillon Weldon backstage at the Grand Ole Opry, Noel recalled sneaking onto his father’s tour bus. Noel was about eleven, which is how old Merle was when he was hopping train cars and hitchhiking.
Just before Merle and his band were about to leave on tour, Noel got the bright idea to come along, too. Stuffing crackers in his pocket for sustenance on his journey, Noel snuck into the luggage compartment of the tour bus. Fortunately, he managed to survive this incredibly dangerous drive to a gas station 200 miles down the road. (Assuming the bus was traveling down interstates, this means Noel was hiding out amongst the duffel bags for several hours. Here’s to hoping he rationed his crackers accordingly.)
When Noel felt the tour bus stop at the gas station, he climbed out of the compartment to the surprise of Merle and his manager, Fuzzy Owen. Owen looked at Merle and asked him what he wanted to do with his son, to which Merle replied, “Put him to work.” So, Noel passed out programs at his father’s shows, which he called his “first start on the road.”
In a way, it had to have felt like a full-circle moment for Merle, who started his similarly wayward antics after his father died. And for Noel, well, he lucked out in his first adventure by landing in a luxury tour bus, not a dusty, cold train car.
Photo by Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images
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