Okie from Muskogee was quickly recorded to cash in on the success of the title song, which became a pop music sensation upon its release in the fall of 1969. Haggard & the Strangers went to Muskogee, OK, where they ran through a number of their hits and working-class anthems. The first side is devoted to classics like "Mama Tried," "Swinging Doors," "Sing Me Back Home," and "Workin' Man Blues," while the first part of the second side is devoted to songs about the mythological "Hobo Bill," before it concludes with rousing versions of "White Line Fever" and "Okie from Muskogee." While the record isn't necessary, it is a hell of a lot of fun and not bad evidence of why Hag was the most popular figure in country music at the end of the '60s. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine, Rovi
