Besides his stellar vocal stylings and emotionally perceptive songwriting, Merle Haggard was one of country music’s most durable hitmakers. In a chart life that stretched from 1963, when his “Sing a Sad Song” debut peaked at No. 19, to 2015, when his duet with Willie Nelson, “It’s All Going to Pot” snuffed out at No. 48, the California native scored 38 No. 1 singles.
Several of his songs that reached a lower altitude nonetheless became staples in the Haggard canon, among them “Swinging Doors,” “The Bottle Let Me Down,” “Today I Started Loving You Again,” “I Take a Lot of Pride In What I Am,” “If We’re Not Back in Love by Monday,” “Ramblin’ Fever” and “Are the Good Times Really Over.”
Here are his chart-toppers:
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The ’60s
Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images“The Fugitive” (1966)
Embedded from www.youtube.com.“Branded Man” (1967)
Embedded from www.youtube.com.“Sing Me Back Home” (1967)
Embedded from www.youtube.com.“The Legend of Bonnie and Clyde” (1968)
Embedded from www.youtube.com.“Mama Tried” (1968)
Embedded from www.youtube.com.“Hungry Eyes” (1969)
Embedded from www.youtube.com.“Workin’ Man Blues” (1969)
Embedded from www.youtube.com.“Okie From Muskogee” (1969)
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The ’70s
Waring Abbott/Getty Images“The Fightin’ Side of Me” (1970)
Embedded from www.youtube.com.“Daddy Frank (The Guitar Man)” (1971)
Embedded from www.youtube.com.“Carolyn” (1971)
Embedded from www.youtube.com.“Grandma Harp” (1972)
Embedded from www.youtube.com.“It’s Not Love (But It’s Not Bad)” (1972)
Embedded from www.youtube.com.“I Wonder if They Ever Think of Me” (1972)
Embedded from www.youtube.com.“Everybody’s Had the Blues” (1973)
Embedded from www.youtube.com.“If We Make It Through December” (1973)
Embedded from www.youtube.com.“Things Aren’t Funny Anymore” (1974)
Embedded from www.youtube.com.“Old Man From the Mountain” (1974)
Embedded from www.youtube.com.“Kentucky Gambler” (1974)
Embedded from www.youtube.com.“Always Wanting You” (1975)
Embedded from www.youtube.com.“Movin’ On” (1975)
Embedded from www.youtube.com.“It’s All in the Movies” (1975)
Embedded from www.youtube.com.“The Roots of My Raising” (1976)
Embedded from www.youtube.com.“Cherokee Maiden” (1976)
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The ’80s
Beth Gwinn/Getty Images“I Think I’ll Just Stay Here and Drink” (1980)
Embedded from www.youtube.com.“My Favorite Memory” (1981)
Embedded from www.youtube.com.“Big City” (1982)
Embedded from www.youtube.com.“Yesterday’s Wine” with George Jones (1982)
Embedded from www.youtube.com.“Going Where the Lonely Go” (1982)
Embedded from www.youtube.com.“You Take Me for Granted” (1983)
Embedded from www.youtube.com.“Pancho and Lefty” with Willie Nelson (1983)
Embedded from www.youtube.com.“That’s the Way Love Goes” (1983)
Embedded from www.youtube.com.“Someday When Things Are Good” (1984)
Embedded from www.youtube.com.“Let’s Chase Each Other Around the Room” (1984)
Embedded from www.youtube.com.“A Place to Fall Apart” with Janie Fricke (1984)
Embedded from www.youtube.com.“Natural High” (1985)
Embedded from www.youtube.com.“Twinkle, Twinkle Lucky Star” (1987)
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