Merle Ronald Haggard was an American country music performer, composer, guitarist, and fiddler (he passed away on April 6, 2016).
Haggard was born in Oildale, California. After his father passed away, his boyhood was rocky, and he spent some time in jail as a young man. After leaving San Quentin State Prison in 1960, he was able to rebuild his life and begin a lucrative career in country music.
Who is Merle Haggard husband Leona Williams?
In 1978, Haggard married Leona Williams. In 1983, they divorced.
American country music performer Leona Belle Helton (born January 7, 1943, in Vienna, Missouri) is also known by her stage name Leona Williams.
Williams, who has been playing since 1958, has accompanied artists including Loretta Lynn, Merle Haggard, and The Strangers. (From 1978 until 1983, she was married to Haggard.) A duet with Haggard called “The Bull and the Beaver” was her lone Top 40 success, and she also appeared eight times on the Hot Country Songs list.
She performed in Loretta Lynn’s touring band as a bass guitarist and backup singer. Williams joined the Hickory record label in 1968 and put out the songs “Once More” and “Country Girl with Hot Pants On” in that year. She collaborated with The Strangers to make the album San Quentin’s First Lady for MCA Records in 1976. It was the first country album made by a woman inside a jail.
