@rpeluso: Your reminder of Merle Haggard compels me to admit I failed to keep up with this major American artist in his later years. And to admit that I had forgotten---but was reminded by other posters in this thread---of the last series of albums Johnny Cash recorded, perhaps the best of his life.
But how on Earth did I neglect to include Bob Dylan?! I fully understand those who can’t tolerate his current "craggy" voice, but that doesn’t in the least bother me. His 2000’s albums are amongst my favorites of his, and that’s saying a lot.
His early-2000 show at the Pantages Theater in Hollywood was one of my lifetime favorites, and I’ve attended many. I had last seen Dylan ten years earlier, and he was dreadful (so was his 3-pc. band), amongst the worst of my life. Oh that Bob! ;-)
