During a career that spanned half a century, country singer Merle Haggard recorded hundreds of songs about America. And the songs are lovely — Haggard’s one-in-a-million voice, somehow both carefree and expertly controlled, settles lazily onto the earthy cushion of bright guitars and swinging piano characteristic of his signature “Bakersfield sound.”

It’s not hard to appreciate why Haggard is adored by millions across the country. At a time when Nashville was churning out slick radio-ready recordings that favored orchestral arrangements, Haggard made music better suited for front porches and honky-tonks than state theaters.

His style was as far from Nashville’s polish as you could get — the stink of big money was nowhere on him, and his elegant, no-bullshit lyrics resonated with a generation only once removed from the Dust Bowl.