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Hiram "Hank" Williams (September 17, 1923 – January 1, 1953) was an American singer, guitarist, and songwriter, who has become an icon of country music and one of the most influential musicians of the 20th century. A leading exponent of the Honky Tonk style, he had numerous hit records, and his charismatic performances and succinct compositions fueled his fame. His songbook is one of the backbones of country music, and has been covered in a range of pop and rock styles. His legend has only grown since his premature death at the age of 29. His son Hank Williams Jr., his daughter Jett Williams, and his grandchildren Hank Williams III and Holly Williams are also professional musicians.
Childhood
Birth
Williams was born in 1923, in the small unincorporated town of Mount Olive, about eight miles southwest of Georgiana, Alabama. He was named after Hiram I of Tyre, but his name was misspelled as "Hiriam" on his birth certificate. He was born with a mild undiagnosed case of spina bifida occulta, a disease of the spinal column, which gave him life-long pain—a factor in his later abuse of alcohol and drugs. His parents were Alonzo Huble Williams, known as "Lon," a train conductor for a regional lumber company, and Jessie Lillybelle Williams, known as "Lillie." He had an older sister named Irene.Early childhood
During his early childhood, the Williams family moved frequently throughout southern Alabama as his father's job required. In 1930, when Williams was seven years old, his father began suffering from face paralysis. At a VA clinic in Pensacola, Florida, doctors determined that the cause was a brain aneurysm, so they sent Lon Williams to the VA Medical Center in Alexandria, Louisiana. Lon remained hospitalized for eight years and was thus mostly absent throughout Hank's childhood.In 1931, Lillie Williams settled her family in Georgiana, Alabama, where she worked as the manager of a boarding house. She managed to find several side jobs to support her children, despite the bleak economic climate of the Great Depression. She worked in a cannery and served as a night-shift nurse in the local hospital. Hiram and Irene also helped out by selling peanuts, shining shoes, delivering newspapers, and doing other simple jobs. With the help of U.S. Representative J. Lister Hill, the family began collecting Lon's military disability pension. Despite Lon's medical condition, the Williams family managed fairly well financially throughout the depression.
Preteen years
In 1933, Hiram moved to Fountain, Alabama, to live with his uncle and aunt, Walter and Alice McNeil. Meanwhile, his cousin Opal McNeil moved in with Hiram's family in Georgiana so that she could attend the high school there. In Fountain, ten-year-old Hiram became close friends with his cousin J.C. McNeil, who was the same age. There he learned some of the trades and habits that would dominate the rest of his life. His Aunt Alice taught him to play the guitar, and his cousin J.C. taught him to drink whiskey.After a year of living with his relatives in Fountain, Hiram moved back to Georgiana, where he met Rufus Payne, a black blues musician living in the nearby town of Greenville. Payne often travelled through Georgiana and other towns in the area to perform in the streets and other public places. Payne, who was known more commonly as "Tee-Tot," became Hiram's mentor and greatly influenced his musical style.
In the fall of 1934, the Williams family moved to Greenville, Alabama, a larger town about fifteen miles to the north of Georgiana. Lillie opened a boarding house next to the Butler County courthouse, and Hiram was able to spend more time with Payne. Sometimes Hiram would stay at Payne's house overnight. In 1937, Hiram got into a rough fight with his physical-education coach. Furious with the coach, his mother demanded that the school board fire him. When the school board refused to take action, she decided to move the family to Montgomery.
Career
Early career
In July, 1937, the Williams and McNeil families opened a boarding house on South Perry Street in downtown Montgomery, a much larger city than any of them had ever lived in. It was at this time that Hiram decided to informally change his name to Hank, a name which he said was better suited to his aspired career in country music,After school and on weekends, Hank sang and played his Silverstone guitar on the sidewalk in front of the WSFA radio studios. He quickly caught the attention of WSFA producers, who occasionally invited him to come inside and perform on air. So many listeners contacted the radio station asking for more of the "Singing Kid" that the producers hired him to host his own fifteen-minute show, twice a week for a weekly salary of fiteen dollars.
In August, 1938, Lon Williams was temporarily released from the hospital, and he showed up unannounced at the family's home in Montgomery. Lillie was unwilling to let him reclaim his position at the head of the household, so he stayed only long enough to celebrate Hank's birthday in September before he returned to the medical center in Lousiana. It was the first time Hank had seen his father in over eight years, and even after the reunion, he felt as though he had grown up without a father.
The Drifting Cowboys
Hank's successful radio show fueled his entrance to a music career. His generous salary was enough for him to start his own band, which he dubbed the Drifting Cowboys. The original members of the band were guitarist Braxton Schuffert, fiddler Freddie Beach, and comic Smith "Hezzy" Adair. The Drifting Cowboys travelled throughout central and southern Alabama, performing in clubs and at private parties. Hank dropped out of school in October, 1939, so that the Drifting Cowboys could work full time.Lillie Williams stepped up to be the Drifting Cowboys' manager. She began booking show dates, negotiating prices, and driving them to some of their shows. Now free to travel without Hank's school schedule taking precedence, the band was able to tour as far away as western Georgia, and the Florida Panhandle. Meanwhile, Hank returned to Montgomery every weekday to host his radio show.
The nation's entrance into World War II in 1941 marked the beginning of hard times for Hank Williams. All his band members were drafted to serve in the military, and many of their replacements refused to continuing playing in the band because of Hank's worsening alcoholism. His idol, Grand Ole Opry star Roy Acuff warned him of the dangers of alcohol, saying "You've got a million-dollar voice son, but a ten-cent brain." Despite Acuff's advice, Williams continued to show up for his radio show intoxicated, so in August, 1942, WSFA fired him due to "habitual drunkenness."
Later career
- This section is underrepresented in comparison to the rest of the article and needs to be expanded.
In 1950, Williams began recording as Luke the Drifter, an appellation given to Williams for use in identifying his more moralistic and religious-themed recordings, many of which are recitations rather than his usual crooning. Fearful that disc jockeys and jukebox operators would become hesitant to accept these non-traditional Williams recordings, thereby hurting the marketability of Williams's name, the name "Luke the Drifter" was employed to cloak the identity of the artist--though the source of the recordings was quite evident. Around this time, Williams released more hit songs, such as "My Son Calls Another Man Daddy", "They'll Never Take Her Love from Me", "Why Should We Try Anymore?", "Nobody's Lonesome for Me", "Long Gone Lonesome Blues", "Why Don't You Love Me?", "Moanin' the Blues" and "I Just Don't Like This Kind of Livin'". In 1951, "Dear John" became a hit but the B-side, "Cold, Cold Heart", has endured as one of his most famous songs, aided by the #1 pop version by Tony Bennett in 1951 being the first of many recordings of Williams' songs in a non-country genre. (Cold, Cold Heart has subsequently been covered by Guy Mitchell, Teresa Brewer, Dinah Washington, Lucinda Williams, Cowboy Junkies, Frankie Laine, Jo Stafford, and Norah Jones, among others). That same year, Williams released other hits, including the enduring classic "Crazy Heart".
Despite Hank's numerous country hits, the legend of Hank Williams seems to rest in the duality of his writings. On one hand, Hank would sing about having a rowdy time ("Honky Tonkin'") or drifting aimlessly ("Lost Highway"), but would then sing religious songs of remorse, most particularly, the title track to the album "I Saw The Light."
Williams' life would become unmanageable however, due to his success. His marriage, always turbulent, was rapidly disintegrating, and he developed a serious problem with alcohol, morphine and other painkillers. Much of this abuse came from attempts to ease his severe back pain, which was caused by a birth defect, spina bifida occulta. In 1952, Hank and Audrey separated and he moved in with his mother, even as he released numerous hit songs, such as "Half as Much", "Jambalaya (On the Bayou)", "Settin' the Woods on Fire", "You Win Again" and "I'll Never Get Out of This World Alive". Williams' drug problems continued to spiral out of control as he moved to Nashville and officially divorced his wife. A relationship with Bobby Jett during this period resulted in a daughter, Jett, who would be born just after his death.
In October of 1952, Williams was fired from the Grand Ole Opry. Told not to return until he was sober, he instead rejoined the Louisiana Hayride. On October 18, 1952, he married Billie Jean Jones Eshliman. A ceremony was held at the New Orleans Municipal Auditorium and 14,000 people bought tickets to attend. Soon after, the Drifting Cowboys decided to part ways with Williams.
Death
On January 1, 1953, Williams was due to play in Canton, Ohio, but he was unable to fly due to weather problems. He hired a chauffeur and, before leaving the old Andrew Johnson Hotel in Knoxville, Tennessee was injected with B12 and morphine. He then left in a Cadillac, carrying a bottle of whiskey with him.
When the seventeen year-old chauffeur pulled over at an all-night service station in Oak Hill, West Virginia, he discovered that Williams was unresponsive and becoming rigid. Upon closer examination, it was discovered that Hank Williams was dead. Controversy has since surrounded Williams' death with some claiming Wiiliams was dead before leaving Knoxville.
Williams' final single was ominously titled "I'll Never Get Out of This World Alive". Five days after his death, his illegitimate daughter by Bobbie Jett (Jett Williams) was born. His widow, Billie Jean, married country singer Johnny Horton in September of that year (1953).
Legacy and influence
His son Hank Williams, Jr., daughter Jett Williams, grandson Hank Williams III and granddaughters Hillary Williams, and Holly Williams are also country musicians. (Hank Williams III also plays in the metal band Superjoint Ritual, as well as fronting his own metal act, AssJack).
Hank Williams' remains are interred at the Oakwood Annex in Montgomery, Alabama. His funeral was said to have been far larger than any ever held for any governor of Alabama and is still, as of 2005, the largest such event ever held in Montgomery. As of 2005, more than fifty years after Williams' death, members of his Drifting Cowboys continue to tour and bring his music to generations of fans.
In February 2005 the Tennessee Court of Appeals has upheld a lower court ruling stating that Hank Williams' heirs -- son Hank Williams Jr. and daughter Jett Williams -- have the sole rights to sell his old recordings made for a Nashville, TN radio station in the early '50s. The court rejected claims made by Polygram Records and Legacy Entertainment in releasing recordings Williams made for the "Mother's Best Flour Show", a program that originally aired on WSM-AM. The recordings, which Legacy Entertainment acquired in 1997, include live versions of Williams' hits and his cover version of other songs. Polygram contended that Williams' contract with MGM Records, which Polygram now owns, gave them rights to release the radio recordings.
Awards
- 1990 — TNN/Music City News – Video of the Year
- 1990 — TNN/Music City News – Vocal Collaboration of the Year
- 1989 — Academy of Country Music – Video of the Year
Music Videos
- "Honkey Tonk Blues"
- "There's A Tear In My Beer" (with Hank Williams, Jr) (1989)
Singles
| Year | Title | Chart positions | B-side |
| U.S. Country | |||
| 1947 | "Never Again (Will I Knock on Your Door)" | "Calling You" | |
| 1947 | "Wealth Won't Save Your Soul" | — | "When God Comes and Gathers His Jewels" |
| 1947 | "My Love for You (Has Turned to Hate)" | — | "I Don't Care (If Tomorrow Never Comes)" |
| 1947 | "Pan American" | — | "Honky Tonkin'" |
| 1947 | "Move It On Over" | #4 | "I Heard You Crying in Your Sleep" |
| 1947 | "On the Banks of the Old Pontchartrain" | — | "Fly Trouble" |
| 1948 | "My Sweet Love Ain't Around" | — | "Rootie Tootie" |
| 1948 | "Honky Tonkin'" | #14 | "I'll Be a Bachelor 'Til I Die" |
| 1948 | "I'm a Long Gone Daddy" | #6 | "The Blues Come Around" |
| 1948 | "I Saw the Light" | — | "Six More Miles (To the Graveyard)" |
| 1948 | "A Mansion on the Hill" | — | "I Can't Get You Off of My Mind" |
| 1949 | "Lovesick Blues" | #1 | "Never Again (Will I Knock on Your Door)" |
| 1949 | "Never Again (Will I Knock on Your Door)" | #6 | b-side of "Lovesick Blues” |
| 1949 | "Wedding Bells" | #5 | "I've Just Told Mama Goodbye" |
| 1949 | "Mind Your Own Business" | #5 | "There'll Be No Teardrops Tonight" |
| 1949 | "You're Gonna Change (Or I'm Gonna Leave)" | #4 | "Lost Highway" |
| 1949 | "I'm So Lonesome I Could Cry" | #1 | "My Bucket's Got a Hole In It" |
| 1949 | "My Bucket's Got a Hole In It" | #2 | b-side to "I'm So Lonesome I Could Cry” |
| 1950 | "I Just Don't Like This Kind of Living" | #5 | "May You Never Be Alone" |
| 1950 | "Long Gone Lonesome Blues" | #1 | "My Son Calls Another Man Daddy" |
| 1950 | "My Son Calls Another Man Daddy" | #9 | b-side to "Long Gone Lonesome Blues” |
| 1950 | "Why Don't You Love Me?" | #1 | "A House Without Love" |
| 1950 | "Why Should We Try Anymore?" | #9 | "They'll Never Take Her Love from Me" |
| 1950 | "They'll Never Take Her Love from Me" | #4 | b-side to "Why Should We Try Anymore?” |
| 1950 | "Moanin' the Blues" | #1 | "Nobody's Lonesome for Me" |
| 1950 | "Nobody's Lonesome for Me" | #9 | b-side to "Moanin' the Blues” |
| 1951 | "Cold, Cold Heart" | #1 | "Dear John" |
| 1951 | "Dear John" | #6 | b-side to "Cold, Cold Heart” |
| 1951 | "I Can't Help It (If I'm Still in Love with You)" | #2 | "Howlin' at the Moon" |
| 1951 | "Howlin' at the Moon" | #3 | b-side to "I Can't Help It” |
| 1951 | "Hey Good Lookin'" | #1 | "My Heart Would Know" |
| 1951 | "(I Heard That) Lonesome Whistle" | #9 | "Crazy Heart" |
| 1951 | "Crazy Heart" | #2 | b-side to "Lonesome Whistle” |
| 1951 | "Baby, We're Really in Love" | #4 | "I'd Still Want You" |
| 1952 | "Honky Tonk Blues" | #2 | "I'm Sorry for You, My Friend" |
| 1952 | "Half as Much" | #2 | "Let's Turn Back the Years" |
| 1952 | "Jambalaya (On the Bayou)" | #1 | "Window Shopping" |
| 1952 | "Settin' the Woods on Fire" | #3 | "You Win Again" |
| 1952 | "You Win Again" | #7 | b-side of "Settin' the Woods on Fire” |
| 1952 | "I'll Never Get Out of This World Alive" | #1 | "I Could Never Be Ashamed of You" |
| 1953 | "Kaw-Liga" | #1 | "Your Cheatin' Heart" |
| 1953 | "Your Cheatin' Heart" | #1 | b-side to "Kaw-Liga” |
| 1953 | "I Won't Be Home No More" | #4 | "Take These Chains from My Heart" |
| 1953 | "Take These Chains from My Heart" | #1 | b-side to "I Won't Be Home No More” |
| 1953 | "Weary Blues from Waitin'" | #7 | no b-side |
| 1955 | "Please Don't Let Me Love You" | #9 | no b-side |
| 1966 | "I'm So Lonesome I Could Cry" | #43 | re-release |
| 1976 | "Why Don't You Love Me" | #61 | re-release |
| 1989 | "There's a Tear in My Beer" | #7 | dubbed recording with Hank Williams, Jr. |
Selected list of cover versions of Hank Williams songs
Cover versions of Hank Williams songs include:
- "Lovesick Blues" was covered by Ryan Adams, as well as George Strait and Patsy Cline. (Note: Hank Williams covered "Lovesick Blues" himself. The song was originally recorded by Emmett Miller.)
- The Blue Ridge Rangers, (in reality, a solo album by John Fogerty), covered "Jambalaya" on the 1973 album Blue Ridge Rangers.
- James Brown covered "Your Cheatin' Heart" in (1969).
- The Carpenters covered "Jambalaya" on their 1973 album Now & Then.
- Johnny Cash covered "I'm So Lonesome I Could Cry" on The Man Comes Around (2003). Also Cash covered "On the Evening Train" on A Hundred Highways (2006).
- David Crowder Band covered Williams' "I Saw The Light" (with Marty Stuart) on A Collision (2005).
- Bob Dylan has played live covers of Williams' songs throughout his career, including "You Win Again," "I'm So Lonesome I Could Cry," "Lost Highway," and "(I Heard That) Lonesome Whistle." He also perfomed an impromptu version of "Lost Highway" in the D.A. Pennebaker film Don't Look Back.
- "Just Waitin'" (by Williams' pseudonym Luke the Drifter) was covered by The Fall in (1992).
- George Thorogood and the Destroyers sang their own rock version of "Move It On Over."
- Jimmie Dale Gilmore covered "I'm So Lonesome I Could Cry" on Spinning Around the Sun, and "I'll Never Get Out of the World Alive" on Come on Back.
- Grateful Dead covered "You Win Again" on Europe '72 (1972).
- Al Green covered "I'm So Lonesome I Could Cry" in (1972).
- Huey Lewis & the News covered "Honky Tonk Blues" on the album Sports.
- Norah Jones covered Cold, Cold Heart on Come Away With Me in (2002).
- Frankie Laine covered Ramblin' Man in 1952, Your Cheatin' Heart in 1953, Cold, Cold Heart in 1968, and Jambalaya in 1986. He and Jo Stafford cut duet versions of Hey Good Lookin' in 1951, and of Settin' the Woods on Fire in 1952.
- Mark Lanegan and Isobel Campbell covered "Ramblin' Man" for their album Ballad of the Broken Seas.
- The Melvins covered "Ramblin' Man," with vocals provided by Hank III, on their 2000 release The Crybaby.
- Van Morrison and Linda Gail Lewis covered "You Win Again," "Jambalaya," and "Why Don't You Love Me" on the CD You Win Again (2000). Also Morrison covered "Your Cheatin' Heart" on Pay the Devil (2006).
- Mike Ness of Social Distortion covered "You Win Again" on his solo album Cheating at Solitaire, and "Six More Miles (to the Graveyard)" and "A House of Gold" on his follow-up solo album, Under the Influences.
- Josh Pearson formerly of Lift to Experience covered "I´m So Lonesome I Could Cry" in 2006.
- Madeleine Peyroux covered ""Weary Blues from Waitin'" on Careless Love in (2004).
- Elvis Presley also covered "I´m So Lonesome I Could Cry" on his historic Elvis: Aloha From Hawaii.
- The Red Hot Chili Peppers covered "Why Don't You Love Me" on their self-titled debut album.
- The Residents covered "Hey Good Lookin'", "Six More Miles (To the Graveyard)", "Kaw-Liga", "Ramblin' Man", "Jambalaya" and "Sousaside" on their 1986 album The American Composers Series.
- The Saints (Lincoln, Nebraska) covered "Lost Highway" and "Six More Miles (To the Graveyard)" on their (2005) release A New Kind of Patriot.
- Social Distortion covered "Alone and Forsaken" on their 1997 Canadian promotional EP, When the Angels Sing.
- The The did an entire album of Hank Williams covers called Hanky Panky.
- Williams' grandson Hank III did a cover of "I Could Never Be Ashamed Of You" on disc two of his 2006 album Straight to Hell.
- Williams' daughter Jett Williams has covered several of her father's songs.
- Martina McBride recorded "You Win Again" on her 2005 album of country standards, Timeless.
- Many country artists have done Hank Williams tribute albums, including: Charlie Pride, George Jones, and bluegrass veteran Larry Sparks.
- Johnny Dowd covers "Pictures From Life's Other Side" on his Pictures From Life's Other Side CD (Munich Records-Europe) 2001
Tributes
Songs which pay tribute Hank Williams include:
- "Hank Williams, You Wrote My Life" by Moe Bandy (written by Paul Craft)
- "The Ride" and "The Ghost of Hank Williams" by David Allan Coe
- "Tower of Song" by Leonard Cohen
- "Alcohol and Pills" by Fred Eaglesmith
- "The Life of Hank Williams" by Hawkshaw Hawkins
- "Are You Sure Hank Done It This Way?" and "If Old Hank Could Only See Us Now" by Waylon Jennings
- "The Ghost Of Hank Williams" by the Kentucky Headhunters
- "If You Don't Like Hank Williams" by Kris Kristofferson
- "Things Change" by Tim McGraw
- "That Heaven Bound Train" by Johnny Rion (also covered by Carl Shrum)
- "Mission from Hank" by Aaron Tippin
- "Has Anybody Here Seen Hank?" by the Waterboys
- "Family Tradition" by Hank Williams, Jr
- "From Hank to Hendrix" and "This Old Guitar" by Neil Young.
Other songs include : "The Death of Hank Williams", "Hank, It Will Never Be the Same Without You", "Hank Williams Meets Jimmie Rodgers", "Tribute to Hank Williams", "Hank and Lefty Raised My Country Soul", "Hank Williams Will Live Forever", "Hank Williams Sings the Blues No More", "In Memory of Hank Williams", "Thanks Hank", "Hank's Home Town", "Good Old Boys Like Me" (Hank Williams and Tennessee Williams), , "Why Ain't I Half as Good as Old Hank (Since I'm Feeling All Dead Anyway)?", "The Last Letter" (Mississippi disc jockey Jimmy Swan's reading of a letter to Williams by M-G-M boss Frank Walker), "Midnight in Montgomery," and Charley Pride's album There's a Little Bit of Hank in Me. (Brackett 2000, p.219n22), "The Night Hank Williams Came To Town".
The play Hank Williams: Lost Highway is a tribute to Hank Williams. It is recount of his life.
Samples
- Cold,ColdHeart.ogg of "Cold Cold Heart."
Quotes
- "A good song is a good song, and if I'm lucky enough to write it, well....! I get more kick out of writing than I do singing. I reckon I've written a thousand songs and had over 300 published."Gleason, Ralph (06-28-1969). 1952 interview of Hank Williams. Rolling Stone. — Hank Williams
- "When I wrote about Hank Williams 'A hundred floors above me in the tower of song', it's not some kind of inverse modesty. I know where Hank Williams stands in the history of popular song. Your Cheatin' Heart, songs like that, are sublime, in his own tradition, and I feel myself a very minor writer." — Leonard Cohen
References
- The Time-Life Country and Western Classics: Hank Williams, p.2. Quoted in Brackett, David (1995/2000). Interpreting Popular Music. ISBN 0520225414.
Notes
External links
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