Merle Haggard was the man of the hour during a BMI-hosted reception on April 19 celebrating the release of
40 #1 Hits on Capitol Nashville. Haggard received a Special Citation of Appreciation from BMI in recognition of his 42-year affiliation with the performing rights organization. Among his BMI songwriting honors are two-time
Country Songwriter of the Year and more than 50 BMI Pop and Country Awards. In addition to toasting the release of the 2-CD #1 collection, Capitol President & CEO Mike Dungan presented a plaque that commemorated "50 albums in five decades."
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| BMI's Paul Corbin, band member/co-writer Freddy Powers, Bobby Bare, Merle Haggard, Toby Keith, BMI's Joyce Rice |
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| Merle Haggard, Capitol's Mike Dungan |
Haggard is also on tour promoting his critically acclaimed Hag Records debut, Haggard Like Never Before. Its current single is Woody Guthrie's "Reno Blues (Philadelphia Lawyer)," a duet with Willie Nelson.
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| Liz & Casey Anderson, Hope Powell |
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| BMI's Thomas Cain, Sonny Curtis | Billy Deaton, BMI's Nancy Moore |
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| XM Radio's Shannon McCombs, "Country Music Across America" host Storme Warren, Country Music Hall of Fame's Kyle Young |
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| Janine & Ronnie Dunn, Merle Haggard, BMI's Joyce Rice, Lee Roy Parnell, Donna KcKenzie |
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| Trick Pony's Ira Dean, Chuck Howard, Merle Haggard |
Photos by Steve Lowry
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