During the late '50s, Wynn Stewart and Tommy Collins were two of the pioneering Bakersfield artists to have hits, and both were influential on Merle Haggard's career, musically as well as professionally. For about a year and a half, in 1962 and 1963, Merle Haggard played bass with Wynn's band in Las Vegas. During this time, Haggard heard a song that Wynn had written,
"Sing a Sad Song"
and asked Wynn if he could record it.
Wynn gave him the song and Merle recorded it. The record became Merle's first national hit, climbing to number 19 on the country charts in 1964.

Watch a video of Merle singing his first hit
"Sing a Sad Song",
written by Wynn Stewart

Listen to Wynn's version

Buck Owens, Merle Haggard, Wynn Stewart, and Tommy Collins were a continuance of the West Coast's robust, independent-minded country music scene. Their style of music, collectively known as the "Bakersfield Sound", helped define the country music of a generation.

Merle Haggard says,"Wynn's sound was what influenced Buck and me both, and in a strange twist of fate, his band was the heart of the old Frizzell band -- Roy Nichols was part of the Lefty band, and he went to Wynn Stewart, along with Ralph Mooney, who played the steel guitar, and they were the basis of the modern West Coast sound."

Another quote from Merle: "I thought, 'You know what I'll do? I'll take a little bit of Lefty, a little bit of Elvis, a little Wynn Stewart, a little bit of Ernest Tubb and the other influences I had -- Jimmie Rodgers, Chuck Berry, Grady Martin and Roy Nichols, Bob Wills -- and just be honest with it, try to make somethin' out of what I was."

Patsy Cline recorded a Wynn Stewart-written song,
"You Took Him Off My Hands".
Listen to Patsy's version on Youtube

Wynn Stewart made the first recording of this song as,
"You Took Her Off My Hands"
co-written with Harlan Howard.
Listen to Wynns's version on Youtube

Wynn's song from 1962,
"Another Day, Another Dollar"
was played on all major television networks in a Volkswagen Jetta commercial.
Watch the commercial on Youtube

Wynn's version of "Pretty World" was also played on all major television networks in a K-Mart commercial.
Watch the commercial on Youtube