“A mother is the truest friend we have, when trials, heavy and sudden, fall upon us; when adversity takes the place of prosperity; when friends who rejoice with us in our sunshine, desert us when troubles thicken around us, still will she cling to us, and endeavor by her kind precepts and counsels to dissipate the clouds of darkness, and cause peace to return to our hearts.” – Washington Irving

If you were to put me in a fantasy music ship and asked me to concoct a concept for an album, it would be something like the upcoming release The Lost Notebooks of Hank Williams. Bob Dylan gets the unfinished lyrics of Hank Williams, then recruits greats like Alan Jackson, Lucinda Williams, Levon Helm and Jack White to finish writing the songs and make an album out of it. See the cover art work, get the track listing and find out where you can pre-order your copy of what promises to be an instant classic.

Bonus: See Lucinda Williams performing her song live from the night she got married on stage!

30 years ago country music legend Merle Haggard released the album Back to the Barrooms right on the heels of The Way I Am. The album’s theme of loss imbued with a going down to hell drinking attitude have stood the test of time leaving in its wake a generation of musicians and fans in awe of the masterpiece from the man they call The Hag. Read on for a 30-year-retrospective on the greatest drinking album ever recorded.

PBS will air another installment of their incomparable American Masters series this time focusing their sights square on Merle Haggard, a man who is in the argument for greatest country music artist that has ever been. The special is called Learning To Live With Myself and it promises to be an absolute mind blower for Haggard fans and a go to reference for anyone else looking to discover “The Hag.” See a preview, an interview with the director and listen to a 10 song study guide to get you prepared for the show’s premiere Wednesday night!