Suzzy Bogguss Sings Merle Haggard’s “The Bottle Let Me Down”

If you’re in Austin, Texas this week for SXSW, don’t miss Suzy Bogguss, who will be appearing at BMI’s Howdy Texas party this Tuesday alongside Tony Joe White and St. Paul and the Broken Bones. The country singer recently released Lucky, a killer collection of Merle Haggard songs. Listen to one of the album’s best tracks, “The Bottle Let Me Down,” below.

“This song has been a favorite of mine for umpteen years,” says Bogguss, who scored her first hit with Haggard’s “Somewhere Between” 26 years ago. “I love Merle’s version, and I loved Emmylou Harris’s version. In a way, it was kind of scary to cover this song, and that’s one of the reasons I wanted to give it my own kind of bluesy take on it. I wanted to sing it in my low register so I could get down there and get into my moodier voice. I’ve got Jessi Alexander and Jon Randall singing background because they’re two of my most favorite, most genuine musician friends out there. I just thought they’d be perfect for this.”

Read our recent Q&A with Suzy Bogguss here.