A Mother's Love

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My mom, a true original has been a fan of Country Music Legend Merle Haggard for as long as I can remember. When I was a kid in the 80's she would alternate working back to back double shifts at the restaurant and then go on tour with "The Hag," eventually taking up pedal-steel-guitar. From 1987 - 1992 she kept a room in our house dedicated to country music, complete with a state-of-the-art stereo and sound system and a massive LP collection. On most days I would come home from school, the house would be filled with music, loud and pure. If she were practicing downstairs, I would sneak in to listen, since she would always stop playing if anyone else was home. That time is imprinted on me, in such a real tangible way. Even though I have an active dislike of country music, since it can be too sentimental or maudlin, I have fond memories of my stepdad and she in matching, gorgeosly hand-tooled cowboy boots and dressy ornamental western shirts with silver and pearl-snap buttons that people actually wear un-ironically now.

She moved to L.A. last year. When I last spoke with her on the phone a couple of days ago, she said with was going to a recording session with Merle in Redding, CA. Just for the hell of it, I Googled the Hag and found some recent P.R. pertaining to an August 18th Session. Let me know how it went mom.

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