Merle Haggard was integral in popularizing some of country’s most memorable movements, from the rugged, electric Bakersfield sound to the outlaw country aesthetic and later the Western-swing revival. His true legacy, though, is his songwriting. Like so many of the genre’s greats, his canon is marked by conflicted patriotism and fluid politics. His signature song, “Okie from Muskogee,” is either a loving tribute to or a scathing indictment of conservative values, depending on the performance, and his turn-of-the-century output has documented his ever-firming opposition to the war in Iraq in real time. Haggard plays tonight with his 10-piece band, The Strangers, and opener Loretta Lynn, the 70-something “Coal Miner’s Daughter” singer who this year hopes to release a follow-up to the acclaimed 2004 album Van Lear Rose, which she recorded with Jack White. (Also Wednesday, July 15.)
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