Hank Williams
Hiram "Hank" King Williams Sr. (born September 17, 1923 in Mount Olive , Alabama , † January 1, 1953 in Oak Hill , West Virginia ) was an American country musician and songwriter . He has influenced numerous musicians, for example Johnny Cash , Merle Haggard , Bob Dylan and David Allan Coe .
In most polls for the best singer the genre has ever produced, Hank Williams ranks high - if not number one. Williams occupies a comparable position when looking for the author of the best or most important song in country history - or in general when looking for the most influential figure in the history of country music. The Rolling Stone leads Williams in its list of the 100 greatest singers of all time at number 27 in the list of the 100 greatest artists of all time at number 74 and in the list of 100 best songwriters of all time ranked 13th
Life
Beginnings
Hank Williams was born in 1923 in simple circumstances as the son of Jessie Lillybelle "Lillie" Skipper (1898-1955) and the woodworker Elonzo Huble "Lon" Williams (1891-1970) in Alabama . He had a sister born in 1922; an older brother died shortly after giving birth. His first chords on the guitar learned Williams from the black street musician Rufus "Tee Tot" Payne . As a teenager, he performed in Alabama with The Drifting Cowboys after his family moved to the city of Montgomery in 1937 . The Drifting Cowboys, in the original line-up with Braxton Schuffert, Freddie Beach and Smith "Hezzy" Adair, later remained his backing band in other line-ups. In 1939 Williams dropped out of high school without a degree and began working for the local radio station WSFA. Due to its popularity, he soon had his own program there, which was broadcast twice a week with an air time of fifteen minutes.
In 1941, with the entry of the United States into World War II, the situation of Williams and his band deteriorated noticeably. All of the original members of the Drifting Cowboys were drafted into the army, and the replacements took offense at Williams' increasingly obvious drinking problems . His great role model Roy Acuff is quoted as saying: "Boy, your voice is worth millions, but you don't have a brain for ten cents." Williams often appeared drunk on the dates of his show, so the WSFA in August 1942 said he was more habitual Drunkenness threw out. In 1943 he met Audrey Mae Sheppard, whom he married that same year. She also became his manager.
Career
Sponsored by influential songwriter and producer Fred Rose , Williams made his first Sterling Records recording, Never Again, in 1946 . Honky Tonkin followed in 1947 . Both singles were successful and earned him a contract with MGM Records . His first single on the new label Move It On Over became a country hit. In August of that year, Williams became a permanent member of the Louisiana Hayride radio show in Shreveport , Louisiana . Because of the show's popularity and the broadcaster's reach, he became known throughout the southeastern United States. His cover version of the Emmett Miller song Lovesick Blues from 1949 was his next big hit, which also hit the pop charts.
In the same year his son Randall Hank Williams was born and he appeared for the first time on the most famous country show, the Grand Ole Opry in Nashville . As the first artist on the live radio show, which has existed since 1925, he gave six encores. With a group of Grand Ole Opry musicians, Williams came to Germany in November 1949 to look after the troops, where he performed in the Titania Palace in Berlin . 1950 to 1952 more hits followed and he also recorded under the pseudonym Luke The Drifter . Cold, Cold Heart, the b-side of his 1951 single Dear John, became one of his most famous songs.
In 1952, his marriage to Audrey failed and he married Billie Jean Jones Eshlimar in October. The wedding turned into a show spectacle. 14,000 people bought a ticket for the event celebrated in the New Orleans Municipal Auditorium. That same month he was expelled from the Grand Ole Opry for becoming unreliable due to his alcohol consumption. He then returned to the Louisiana Hayride .
Sickness and death
In addition to Williams' alcohol addiction, he became addicted to morphine towards the end of his life . In addition, he suffered from severe mental and health problems throughout his life. Williams has repeatedly dealt with his difficult life circumstances in his song lyrics. Two of his most famous lines come from the last song that was released while he was still alive:
"No matter how I struggle and strive,
I'll never get out of this world alive"
On January 1, 1953, Hank Williams was found dead during a police check in a car that was supposed to take him to a show in Canton , Ohio . The 29-year-old's cause of death was cited as a heart attack , which was attributed to medication combined with excessive alcohol consumption.
family
His son Hank Williams Jr. also became a well-known country musician. His children Hank Williams III and Holly Williams also work as musicians. One of Williams' great nephews is the comic artist J. H. Williams III . Hank Williams' illegitimate daughter Jett Williams was born five days after his death. His paternity was only recognized in court in 1985.
Awards
In 1961, Hank Williams was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame. In 2010 he was posthumously honored with a Pulitzer Prize (Special Citation).
Biographical film
In 2015, Marc Abraham directed a biopic about Hank Williams entitled I Saw the Light . The film spans the singer's last nine years from 1944 to 1953, from marrying Audrey to Williams' death. The main roles are played by Tom Hiddleston and Elizabeth Olsen .
Singles
| year | A side | Charts * | B side | Charts * |
| 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" | 4th | "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 '" | 14th | "I'll Be a Bachelor 'Til I Die" | - |
| 1948 | "I'm a Long Gone Daddy" | 6th | "The Blues Come Around" | - |
| 1948 | " I Saw the Light " | - | "Six More Miles (To the Graveyard)" | - |
| 1948 | "A Mansion on the Hill" | 12 | "I Can't Get You Off of My Mind" | - |
| 1949 | "Lovesick Blues" | 1 | "Never Again (Will I Knock on Your Door)" | 6th |
| 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)" | 4th | "Lost Highway" | 12 |
| 1949 | "My Bucket's Got a Hole In It" | 2 | "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" | 9 |
| 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" | 5 |
| 1950 | "Moanin 'the Blues" | 1 | "Nobody's Lonesome for Me" | 9 |
| 1951 | "Cold, Cold Heart" | 1 | "Dear John" | 8th |
| 1951 | "Howlin 'at the Moon" | 3 | "I Can't Help It (If I'm Still in Love with You)" | 2 |
| 1951 | "Hey Good Lookin '" | 1 | "My Heart Would Know" | - |
| 1951 | "(I Heard That) Lonesome Whistle" | 9 | "Crazy Heart" | 4th |
| 1951 | "Baby, We're Really in Love" | 4th | "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" | 2 | "You Win Again" | 10 |
| 1952 | "I'll Never Get Out of This World Alive" | 1 | "I Could Never Be Ashamed of You" | - |
| 1953 | "Kaw League" | 1 | "Your Cheatin 'Heart" | 1 |
| 1953 | "Take These Chains from My Heart" | 1 | "Ramblin 'Man" | - |
| 1953 | "I Won't Be Home No More" | 4th | "My Love for You" | - |
| 1953 | "Weary Blues from Waitin '" | 7th | "I Can't Escape From You" | - |
| 1954 | "The Angel Of Death '" | ? | "(I'm gonna) Sing, Sing, Sing" | ? |
| 1955 | "Please Don't Let Me Love You" | 9 | "Faded Love and Winter Roses" | - |
| 1966 | "I'm So Lonesome I Could Cry" (re-release) | 43 | "You Win Again" | - |
| 1976 | "Why Don't You Love Me" (re-release) | 61 | "Ramblin 'Man" | - |
| 1989 | "There's a Tear in My Beer" | 7th | (dubbed recording with Hank Williams, Jr.) |
Charts * = US country single charts , separate for A and B sides
literature
- Colin Escott , et al .: Hank Williams: The Biography. Brown, Little Boston 1994.
- Franz Födermayr , Werner A. Deutsch: On the vocal repertoire of expression by Hank Williams , in: Contributions to Popular Music Research Vol. 07/08 (1989), pp. 93-105 ( full text )
- Paul Hemphill: Lovesick Blues: The Life of Hank Williams. Viking, New York 2005.
- Jeffrey J. Lange: Hank Williams Sr. . In: Encyclopedia of Alabama . 2014.
- Roger M. Williams: Hank Williams. Time-Life Records, Alexandria 1981.
Web links
- Literature by and about Hank Williams in the catalog of the German National Library
- http://www.hankwilliams.com/
Individual evidence
- ↑ Country's Top 10 Most Influential Artists
- ↑ Results of a poll for the best country songs of all time
- ^ The Ten Most Influential Country Artists of All-Time. February 9, 2013, accessed July 5, 2020 .
- ↑ http://www.rollingstone.com/music/lists/100-greatest-singers-of-all-time-19691231/hank-williams-20101202
- ↑ http://www.rollingstone.com/music/lists/100-greatest-artists-of-all-time-19691231/hank-williams-20110420
- ↑ The 100 Greatest Songwriters of All Time. Rolling Stone , August 2015, accessed August 8, 2017 .
- ↑ Colin Escott: Hank Williams: The Biography . Little, Brown and Company, Boston 1994, ISBN 0-316-24986-6 .
- ^ Rüdiger Bloemeke: Live in Germany, Voodoo Verlag, Hamburg, 2008, ISBN 978-3-00-023781-2
- ↑ http://www.ninthart.com/display.php?article=473
- ^ Entry on Hank Williams on the Country Music Hall of Fame website ( Memento from October 26, 2011 in the Internet Archive )
- ^ The 2010 Pulitzer Prize Winners: Special Awards and Citations
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Williams, Hank |
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES | Williams, Hiram King (maiden name); Williams, Hank Sr. |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | American country musician |
| DATE OF BIRTH | September 17, 1923 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Mount Olive , Alabama |
| DATE OF DEATH | January 1, 1953 |
| Place of death | near Knoxville , Alabama |