Workin' Man: Willie Sings Merle is Willie Nelson's 78th solo studio album, a deeply personal tribute to his lifelong friend, collaborator, and fellow country legend Merle Haggard. Nelson and Haggard shared one of the most celebrated friendships in country music history, recording three collaborative albums together: Pancho and Lefty (1983), Last of the Breed (2007, alongside Ray Price), and Django and Jimmie (2015). This album distills that bond into eleven of Willie's hand-selected Merle Haggard compositions, delivered in Nelson's unmistakable voice.
The track list spans the full arc of Haggard's songwriting genius, from “Swinging Doors” and “Tonight the Bottle Let Me Down” (off Merle's first #1 country album in 1966) to defining late-60s anthems like “Mama Tried” and “Okie from Muskogee,” to ‘70s classics including the beloved holiday track “If We Make It Through December,” the southern-rock-charged “Ramblin' Fever,” and the honky-tonk staple “I Think I'll Just Stay Here and Drink.”
Produced by Nelson alongside longtime collaborator Mickey Raphael and recorded at Nelson's Pedernales Studios in Austin, the album carries extraordinary historical weight: it features the final studio recordings of Sister Bobbie Nelson (piano) and Paul English (drums), two members of the Nelson Family Band who were constants in Willie's life longer than anyone. They are joined by Raphael on harmonica, Kevin Smith on bass, and Billy English on drums and percussion.
This is country music history, preserved.
What Alliance Authentic Preservation Means: Every copy listed was moved directly from the pressing source into preservation: uncirculated, unhandled, and documented before it ever reached the open market. Each preserved copy includes an embedded NFC chip. Tap it with any smartphone to access your Certified Copy: verified authenticity, documented condition, and a full provenance chain from pressing source to you.
Limited to 3 individually numbered copies.
