I Drink My Beer In A Tavern

Many country singers sing of heartaches and tribulation. In fact, along with pickup trucks and alcohol, they are at the core of country music subject matter. By and large, these songs are written just to fit the template which appeals to the targeted demographic.

When it comes to living the life chronicled in country music, Merle Haggard is the real deal.

He was actually born in a converted boxcar. At the tender age of 11 he began a sordid life of crime which he would follow for over a decade and would include a prison escape. Eventually he would land in one of California's more notorious houses of detention, San Quentin.

After his release in 1960 he decided to pursue a musical career and eventually earned himself the reputation of "Poet Of The Working Man."