Untamed Hawk: The Early Recordings Of Merle Haggard CD - Import

Recorded between 1962 and 1968. Includes liner notes by Dale Vinicur.

UNTAMED HAWK chronicles Haggard's transformation from raw honky tonk artist to the hottest act in country, the "working man's poet." From the outset a gifted singer and writer of heartbreak songs, Haggard saw his career take off when he realized that he could transform his own experiences--including childhood poverty and a stint in prison--into compelling, honest music. UNTAMED HAWK is full of such songs, including not just the hits like "Branded Man" and "Mama Tried" but also obscure gems like "Piedras Negras" and "Wine Take Me Away." There's precious little filler among these six hours of music.

With UNTAMED HAWK, German reissue label Bear Family gives Haggard's early career the same reverent, archival treatment it has given the work of so many other country, pop, and jazz greats. This five-disc set (complete with a meticulously illustrated and annotated 50-page book) includes all of Haggard's recordings, including a number of outtakes made between 1963 and mid-1969. Each disc is crammed with more than 70 minutes of music, and every track has been painstakingly remastered. The result is a definitive, albeit expensive, set that is a must for any hardcore Haggard fan.

5 CD box set of Merle's complete recordings for Tally and Capitol from 1962 to 1968 (except the Jimmie Rodgers tribute available separately). The classic early hits are here, like Strangers, Swinging Doors, The Bottle Let Me Down, I Threw Away The Rose, Branded Man, Sing Me Back Home, Lonesome Fugitive, and Mama Tried, but the importance of this set is that it shows Merle's developing artistry in the album tracks, abandoned cuts, and rare singles. Other sets skim the surface; this one tells the complete story.

Personnel: Merle Haggard (vocals, guitar); Betty Jane Baker, Robert Zwirn, Glen Campbell, Randall Shepard, Loulie Jean Norman, Bonnie Owens (vocals); Roy Nichols (guitar, electric guitar); Leonard Raymond Sipes, Joe Simpson , Gene Moles, Jack Collier, Lewis Talley, Phil Baugh (guitar); James Burton (electric guitar, dobro); Ralph Mooney (steel guitar); George French, Jr., Glen D. Hardin, James Ellington (piano); Helen "Peaches" Price, Roy Edward Burris (drums).

Audio Mixer: Larry Walsh.

Liner Note Author: Dale Vinicur.

Recording information: Audio Arts Inc., Hollywood, CA (??/??/1962-12/08/1968); Audio Arts, Inc., Hollywood, CA (??/??/1962-12/08/1968); CAP (??/??/1962-12/08/1968); Capitol Recording Studios, Hollywood, CA (??/??/1962-12/08/1968); Columbia Recording Studio, Nashville, TN (??/??/1962-12/08/1968); HR Recording Studios, Hollywood, CA (??/??/1962-12/08/1968); Las Vegas, CA (??/??/1962-12/08/1968); Nashville West, Hollywood, CA (??/??/1962-12/08/1968); Vegas, CA (??/??/1962-12/08/1968).

Illustrators: R.A. Andreas; Patrick Milligan; Brad Benedict.

Photographers: R.A. Andreas; Patrick Milligan; Brad Benedict.

Personnel includes: Merle Haggard (vocals, guitar); Bonnie Owens (vocals); James E. Burton (guitar, dobro); William Robert "Billy" Mize, Glen Campbell (guitar, background vocals); Roy E. Nichols, Wynn Stewart, Gene Moles, Leonard R. "Tommy Collins" Sipes, Phil Baugh, Lewis A. Ley, Jack Collier, Lewis A. Talley, Maurice A. "Shorty" Mullins (guitar); Ralph Mooney (steel guitar); George French, Jr., James E. Ellington, Glen D. Hardin (piano); Bobby Austin, Bob Morris, Bert Dodson, Jerry Ward, Leon Chase Copland (bass); Henry Sharpe, Helen "Peaches" Price, James Beck Gordon, Roy "Eddie" Burris (drums); Betty Jane Baker, Loulie Jean Norman, Randall Shepard, Robert S. Zwirn (background vocals); Clifford Hills.

Reissue producer: Richard Weize.