“Sing Me Back Home:” A Snapshot of a Prisoner’s Story

The song “Sing Me Back Home” was originally sung and written by Merle Haggard. It was written for his fellow prisoners in San Quentin State Prison. The song had numerous covers including Don Williams’. Check out the story told by the version of Don Williams.

Sing Me Back Home, Prisoners’ Snapshot of Final Moments

Merle Haggard is one of the talented songwriters and singers in country music. When he was in prison, he was with two fellow prisoners who were sentenced to death. One was executed for non-lethal kidnapping and the other for killing a patrolman during an attempt to escape prison.

In the song “Sing Me Back Home,” Haggard takes the role of an inmate who watches the execution of a fellow inmate. During the final moments, his final requests were granted. Another inmate who regularly sang with a guitar was requested to sing a final song. He then remembered a visiting church choir that sang hymns and praises for the prisoners the week before. Towards the end of the song, the inmate reminisced his carefree childhood memories with his mother.

Don Williams

When it comes to country music, Don Williams, the Gentle Giant, is one of the well-known artists in this field. Most of his country hits were covered by other country music artists. Some of his original hits were “I Believe in You,” Listen to the Radio,” and “Country Boy.” In total, he had 17 No.1 country hits. In 2010, he was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame.

Williams died on September 8, 2017. He left his legacy through his influence with various recording artists. Exactly a month before his death anniversary, we remember the contributions of Don Williams to country music.  Unfortunately, the New York Times Magazine listed Williams’ material destroyed in the 2018 Universal fire.

Watch his rendition of the song here:

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