
Though they're touring separately, the paths of legendary singer/songwriters Kris Kristofferson and Merle Haggard will meet for a co-headlining performance New York's Town Hall club on Oct. 25.
The two grizzled country music veterans will be on the road in support of recently-released albums. Kristofferson's The Austin Sessions is his debut for Atlantic Records and his first new recording since 1995. Haggard's latest is a double CD set titled ''Merle Haggard For The Record'' (BMG/BNA Entertainment) that features two duets with Jewel as well as tracks with Alabama, Brooks & Dunn and Willie Nelson.
Kristofferson, who rarely takes to the road these days, will be playing a limited 10-city club tour in October. Like on his new album, the Songwriters' Hall of Fame member will perform new renditions of old classics like ''Sunday Morning Coming Down,'' ''Me and Bobby McGee,'' and ''Help Me Make It Through The Night.''
Haggard, a relentless road warrior, is currently back on the concert trail after an August bout with pneumonia and exhaustion that caused him to cancel about a dozen shows. ''Merle Haggard For The Record,'' a live, pay-per-view television special, will air on Oct. 2 from the Las Vegas Hilton.
A limited number of copies of Haggard's forthcoming album Cabin In The Hills are currently available from his official web site (www.thehag.com). According to the site, 4,500 copies of the CD were printed without UPC barcodes, so they're being offered up as a collector's items.
Haggard also released Merle Haggard Live at Billy Bob's Texas (Smith Recording Group) this year. The album was recorded at the Fort Worth club this spring.