I Love Merle Haggard—Here Are 3 Songs That Carry That Same Honky-Tonk Spirit

Merle Haggard had the kind of influence on the country music genre that every artist dreams of having. A pioneer of the Bakersfield sound, Haggard amassed 38 No. 1’s during his career, demonstrating that a country artist can maintain success while also experimenting with different genres. But don’t get it twisted, if there’s one thing Haggard did well, it was honky-tonk music. Here are three honky-tonk tunes that might remind you a little bit of the icon.

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“Good-Hearted Woman” by Waylon Jennings

Fun fact, this one was actually written by Jennings and Willie Nelson when they were in the middle of a poker game. It tells the story of a “good-hearted woman” putting up with an outlaw man, a theme common in this genre of music. In The Billboard Book of Number One Country Hits, Nelson admits that the song actually took inspiration from the good-hearted women in his and Jennings’ lives at the time.

“I think Connie and [Jennings’ wife Jessi Colter] both were the object of that song,” he shared. “Naturally, we started thinking about the ones who were having to put up with us at that particular time.”

A duet version of the song, featuring both Jennings and Nelson, came out in 1976.

“She Thinks I Still Care” by George Jones

“She Thinks I Still Care” was one of George Jones’ first No. 1 hits, and rightfully so. This song is funny, groovy, and classic honky-tonk. Even Jones can admit that this one had a pretty big impact on his career.

“For years after I recorded [She Thinks I Still Care], the song was my most requested,” he said in his autobiography, I Lived to Tell It All. “And it became what people in my business call a ‘career record,’ the song that firmly establishes your identity with the public.”

“I’ve Got A Tiger By The Tail” by Buck Owens

This one is fun, danceable, and just an overall good time. This Buck Owens classic sings about the feeling of falling in love fast. In the first verse, Owens sings:

Well, I thought the day I met you, you were meek as a lamb
Just the kind to fit my dreams and plans
Now, the pace we’re livin’ takes the wind from my sails
And it looks like I’ve got a tiger by the tail.

This song has the kind of swing to it that Haggard would definitely be proud of. Honestly, it’s impossible not to dance to this honky tonk tune, in which you can hear the influence of that Bakersfield sound.

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