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 Merle Haggard |
 Ray Price |
 Willie Nelson |
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Story and photos by Matt Schwenke It was a night of heavy hitters in the country world as Ray Price, Merle Haggard and Willie Nelson shared the stage at the Riverside Theatre.Past the halfway point in their Last of the Breed Tour, the three storied musicians, backed by Asleep at the Wheel, were nothing short of pure entertainment in a night that began with Price and Haggard delivering solo sets before Nelson joined Haggard, and then all three shared the stage. The night even included a guest appearance by Freddy Powers, a singer/songwriter who has worked closely with Nelson and Haggard, as well as Ray Charles and George Jones, and even more recent acts like Big and Rich. With all the musical star power, and each performer having their own niche and distinct sense of entertaining humor, the show began rolling slowly, with Price's croon putting the stamp on Bob Wills' "San Antonio Rose" to open his set and Hank Williams' "Mansion on the Hill" to end it. With the crowd primed, Haggard's set was comparably much more good old country braced by rock, playing fiddle on "Take Me Back to Tulsa" and "Roly Poly" and picking up the tempo. Later, Nelson joined mid-set for "Okie From Muskogee," and the pair began trading guitar licks, vocal lines and solos, eventually causing the crowd to take over the vocal lines in numerous songs. With Nelson's popular material, such as "Crazy" and "Right Life," bearing the weight near the end of the set, and after all the collaborations, it was his humble humor in "You Don't Think I'm Funny Anymore" and "Superman" that capped off a night of superb songwriting and showmanship and left many with a smile on the way out of the venue. |
 Willie Nelson & Merle Haggard |
 Merle Haggard |
 Willie Nelson |
 Ray Price |
 Willie Nelson |
 Merle Haggard |
 Merle Haggard |
 Merle Haggard |
