- Critic score
- Publication
- By date
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Oct 4, 2011Now 74 and short half a lung, he's not making the best music of his life, just the best albums.
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Entertainment WeeklyOct 6, 2011Here he rails against government and the state of music in a voice that radiates so-what intransigence. [7 Oct 2011, p.75]
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Oct 3, 2011At 74, one of American music's patriarchs sounds as sprite as ever, kicking off with a great honky-tonk anthem, the joyous title song.
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MojoDec 22, 2011A release that impresses throughout. [Nov 2011, p.99]
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UncutOct 18, 2011Working In Tennessee resonates with much of the cool, complicated clarity of his very best work. [Nov 2011, p.85]
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Oct 6, 2011The mood is what's irresistible. Sashaying through a bunch of tunes that showcase his craft, Haggard sounds laidback and happy. And the bounce spreads right through the band.
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Oct 4, 2011Merle Haggard may be 74 but he sounds utterly playful in the title track of his new album, one of his strongest collections in a couple of decades.
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Nov 11, 2011While it lacks the emotional heft of Merle's acclaimed 2010 album, I Am What I Am, the cancer survivor's latest album boasts plenty of flinty independence.
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Oct 4, 2011The album--recorded at Haggard's California ranch--benefits from a relaxed, among-friends vibe, and Haggard's more upbeat singing about his past.
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Oct 3, 2011He's proceeding at the pace of a 74-year-old legend with nothing to prove, yet he's not resting on his laurels, he's just doing what he's always done: singing songs so expertly his virtuosity almost goes unnoticed.
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Oct 5, 2011The album won't rope in new listeners, but those who've loved him all these years will find plenty to sink their teeth into.
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Oct 4, 2011If this intermittently pleasant but insignificant album has a purpose, it's to prove that the 74-year-old country legend can still do it like clockwork.
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Sep 30, 2011Working in Tennessee glides along on its Bakersfield groove with the greatest of ease, despite the album's title.
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Oct 7, 2011His smoke-scarred and whiskey-soothed voice sounds great, and the Strangers are in fine form, but the 11 songs that make up the 35-minute long Working in Tennessee lack the insights and urgency we hope for in a new Haggard collection.
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Oct 4, 2011Working In Tennessee is often sleepy to the point of being narcoleptic. Still, even when he strains to hit notes, which he does often, Haggard sounds like he's enjoying himself.