This weeks album is a collaboration from Merle Haggard and Willie Nelson called Pancho and Lefty released in 1982. This album is a great morning drinking album from the veteran country outlaws. While only 3 of the 10 songs are actually written by either artist, what a great album this is. Both Willie's and Merle's voices are so distinctive, I like best when they duet together on a few of the songs.
The album opens with the country classic, album title Pancho and Lefty wrote by the late Townes Van Zandt. This song has been covered by many an artist and most recently Steve Earle.
The second song on side one is a tune called It's My Lazy Day, has my favorite lines of the album,
"A little deep thinkin'
Drives me to drinkin'
Hey I'm a takin' it easy, it's my lazy day"
Side one ends with my favorite song of the album wrote by Merle Haggard, a song called Reasons To Quit. Some great lyrics in this song.
"Reasons to quit the smoke and booze don't do me like before
And I'm hardly ever sober and my old friends don't come around much anymore
Reasons to quit below it always lower than the high
And the reasons to quit don't out number all the reasons why
So we keep smokin' and we keep drinkin' havin' fun and never thinkin'
Laughin' at the price tags that we pay
And we keep rollin' down the fast lane like two young men feelin' no pain
And the reasons for quittin's gettin' bigger each day
Reasons to quit I can't afford the habit all the time
I need to be sober I need to write some new songs that will rhyme
Reasons to quit they have no rhyme or reason when you're high
And the reasons to quit don't out number all the reasons why
[ guitar ]
We keep smokin' and we keep drinkin'...
And the reasons for quittin's gettin' bigger each day" Then side two of the album starts with the song called "No Reason To Quit" yet another great song.
Another song I like on the album, and in the spirit of Valentine's Day is a song called "My Life's Been A Pleasure", this song goes out to my most awesome fiance Janis.
"I still love you as I did in yesterday
Many years have gone by though it seems just like a day
It's no wonder that I love you you have been so kind and true
There will never be another it will always be just you
We've come along the way together when you've proved your love is true
My life's been a pleasure and it's all because of you
And to me you'll always be just as sweet as flowers in May
And I'll still love you as I did in yesterday
[ guitar - violin ]
I still love you as I did in yesterday...
And to me you'll always be just as sweet as flowers in May
And I'll still love you as I did in yesterday" The second last song of the album, a tune called "All The Soft Places To Fall" which has a great opening verse.
"Most of my life I've been runnin' around playin' and havin' a ball
And maybe I've been on a party too long these memories are fond to recall
You see we've got these thing about women smokin' and good alcohol
Now I'm lookin' for a homelife and clean smellin' sheets and all the soft places to fall"
Yet something else Janis has brought to my life,mmm, clean sheets on a regular basis.
So, that's the album of this week, a great country classic from Merle and Willie.
Merle Haggard will be playing two shows Saturday March 6th., a 5pm and 8pm show at The River Cree Casino.
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