BAKERSFIELD, Calif.—Merle Haggard is recovering after having a malignant tumor removed from his lung.

Friends said Monday’s surgery at Bakersfield Memorial Hospital was a success and that the 71-year-old country crooner was in stable condition.

Doctors informed Haggard, who’s from a Bakersfield suburb, about a spot on his lung in May. He told The Bakersfield Californian in August that he wasn’t going to seek treatment, but friends and family members convinced him otherwise.

Haggard became a household name after the anthem “Okie From Muskogee” hit No. 1 in 1969. He has had 38 No. 1 hits stretching back to 1966.



SAN JOSE, Calif.—The bass player for the Deftones is in a San Jose hospital following a serious car crash.

The rock band’s singer, Chino Moreno, says 38-year-old Chi Cheng was injured in the crash Monday in Santa Clara. Moreno told the Sacramento Bee that he didn’t have many details but that it’s “very serious.”

The Deftones came together in Sacramento in 1988 and released their first album in 1995 on Madonna’s Maverick Records label. A song on their 2000 album, “White Pony,” earned the band a Grammy Award for best metal performance.

The Deftones have been working on their sixth album for release next spring.