Merle Haggard - Blue Jungle (1990)

Though the 1990s weren't kind to Merle Haggard in terms of album sales, his songwriting expertise still remained intact, as this 1990 release shows. With typical Haggard economy, BLUE JUNGLE unpeels the complex singer's many layers. There's the champion of the down-and-out on "My Home Is in the Street" and "Under the Bridge," the patriot railing against flag burners on "Me and Crippled Soldiers," and the understated, heartbreaking love song, "Driftwood." From the updated Bakersfield swing of the title track to the honky-tonk raunch of "A Bar in Bakersfield," BLUE JUNGLE is a glimpse of a performer with nothing to lose, away from the spotlight yet very much engaged with his material.