Alan Jackson has always been very open about his admiration for the late great, Merle Haggard. Lucky for Jackson, before Haggard died the two of them founded a friendship and collaborated on several different occasions. Most recently, Jackson covered the song, "That's The Way Loves Goes," which is a tribute song to Merle Haggard released in 2021.
Every friendship has its funny feuds and comedic confrontations. That being so, Merle Haggard and Alan Jackson experienced these as well and it all took place over a delectable slice of lemon pie. Well, delectable to Jackson, but not to Haggard in the slightest.
In an interview with the Tennessean promoting his album Where Have You Been, Alan Jackson told the story about Merle Haggard and his mother's homemade lemon pie. On some arbitrary night, Merle Haggard opened for Alan Jackson at a show, as Jackson recalled, "He opened for me, believe it or not, which was very strange." "It felt weird going on after Merle. It was such a treat having him out there. He's just so classy," added Jackson.
The incident in question happened before the show when the two of them and their bands were eating backstage. Jackson remembered, "I just remember one time we came into catering and Merle's sittin' in there" and "The guys said, 'Merle, how's the food today?" According to Jackson, Haggard said, "Oh, it's pretty good, but don't eat that god -- n yella pie."
Jackson concluded his story with, "I never did tell him that was my mama's pie" and "[Haggard] was just that way. He was crazy. He was funny." The pie Haggard detested was Alan Jackon's mother's "lemon icebox kinda pie." "It was one of my favorites but not everybody likes it, you know," shared Jackson.
The story may seem trivial in the greater scheme of things, but in regards to Alan Jackson and Merle Haggard, it is a testament to their tight-knit friendship. Following Haggard's death, Jackson stated, "I've been wanting to do something for Merle ever since he died," and he did as he released his highly acclaimed tribute song, "That's The Way Loves Goes." Which is a song Haggard released in 1983 on his album, That's The Way Love Goes.
The country music icon, Merle Haggard, passed away in 2016 due to Pneumonia. Haggard passed away at 79-years-old on April 6, his birthday.