~
Today, September 17, is the birthday of Hank Williams, Sr. who was born in 1923 in Mount Olive, Butler County, Alabama.
He relocated to Georgiana with his family, where he met Rufus Payne,
who gave him guitar lessons in exchange for meals or money. Payne had a
major influence on Williams' later musical style, along with Roy Acuff (link below) and Ernest Tubb (link below). Williams would later relocate to Montgomery, where he began his music career in 1937, when producers at radio station WSFA hired him to perform and host a 15-minute program. He formed the Drifting Cowboys backup band, which was managed by his mother, and dropped out of school to devote his time to his career.
After recording Never Again and Honky Tonkin with Sterling Records, he signed a contract with MGM Records. In 1947, he released Move It on Over (my favorite song by him and the basis for Rock Around the Clock by Bill Haley & His Comets) (link below), which became a hit, and also joined the Louisiana Hayride radio program.
Hank Williams, Sr. - 1948
photographer unknown
After recording Never Again and Honky Tonkin with Sterling Records, he signed a contract with MGM Records. In 1947, he released Move It on Over (my favorite song by him and the basis for Rock Around the Clock by Bill Haley & His Comets) (link below), which became a hit, and also joined the Louisiana Hayride radio program.
After an initial rejection, Williams joined the Grand Ole Opry. He was unable to read or notate music to any significant degree. Among the hits he wrote were Your Cheatin' Heart, Hey, Good Lookin' and I'm So Lonesome I Could Cry.
He was born with a mild undiagnosed case of spina bifida occulta, a disorder of the spinal column, which gave him lifelong pain. After ears of back pain, alcoholism and prescription drug abuse severely compromised his health. In 1952, he was dismissed by the Grand Ole Opry because of his unreliability and alcohol abuse. On New Year's Day 1953, he died suddenly while traveling to a concert in Canton, Ohio at the age of 29. There is some controversy as to the cause of his death (links below).
Tributes to Williams took place the day after his death. His body was initially transported to Montgomery and placed in a silver coffin shown at his mother's boarding house. The funeral took place on January 4 at the Montgomery Auditorium, in Alabama, where an estimated 15,000 to 25,000 attended while the auditorium was filled with 2,750 mourners.
His final single released during his lifetime was ironically titled I'll Never Get Out of This World Alive. Your Cheatin' Heart was written and recorded in 1952 but released in 1953 after Williams's death. The song was number one on the country charts for six weeks. It provided the title for the 1964 biographic film of the same name, which starred George Hamilton. The Cadillac in which Williams was riding just before he died is now preserved at the Hank Williams Museum in Montgomery, Alabama.
Despite his short life, Williams is one of the most celebrated and influential popular musicians of the 20th century, especially in regards to country music.
He was born with a mild undiagnosed case of spina bifida occulta, a disorder of the spinal column, which gave him lifelong pain. After ears of back pain, alcoholism and prescription drug abuse severely compromised his health. In 1952, he was dismissed by the Grand Ole Opry because of his unreliability and alcohol abuse. On New Year's Day 1953, he died suddenly while traveling to a concert in Canton, Ohio at the age of 29. There is some controversy as to the cause of his death (links below).
Tributes to Williams took place the day after his death. His body was initially transported to Montgomery and placed in a silver coffin shown at his mother's boarding house. The funeral took place on January 4 at the Montgomery Auditorium, in Alabama, where an estimated 15,000 to 25,000 attended while the auditorium was filled with 2,750 mourners.
His final single released during his lifetime was ironically titled I'll Never Get Out of This World Alive. Your Cheatin' Heart was written and recorded in 1952 but released in 1953 after Williams's death. The song was number one on the country charts for six weeks. It provided the title for the 1964 biographic film of the same name, which starred George Hamilton. The Cadillac in which Williams was riding just before he died is now preserved at the Hank Williams Museum in Montgomery, Alabama.
Despite his short life, Williams is one of the most celebrated and influential popular musicians of the 20th century, especially in regards to country music.
Tracklist:
Side 1:
A - Move It On Over
Side 1:
B - (Last Night) I Heard You Crying In Your Sleep
Companies, etc.
Record Company – Loew's Incorporated
Credits:
Written By Hank Williams
Notes:
Original pressing on shellac
Barcode and Other Identifiers
Barcode (Stamped side A): 10033A 6 G
Barcode (Stamped side B): 10033B 7 S
Hank Williams With His Drifting Cowboys – Move It On Over / (Last Night) I Heard You Crying In Your Sleep
Label: MGM Records – 10033
Format: Shellac, 10", 78 RPM
Country: US
Released: 1947
Genre: Folk, World, & Country
Style: Country, Honky Tonk
Viewfinder links: Side 1:
A - Move It On Over
Side 1:
B - (Last Night) I Heard You Crying In Your Sleep
Companies, etc.
Record Company – Loew's Incorporated
Credits:
Written By Hank Williams
Notes:
Original pressing on shellac
Barcode and Other Identifiers
Barcode (Stamped side A): 10033A 6 G
Barcode (Stamped side B): 10033B 7 S
Hank Williams With His Drifting Cowboys – Move It On Over / (Last Night) I Heard You Crying In Your Sleep
Label: MGM Records – 10033
Format: Shellac, 10", 78 RPM
Country: US
Released: 1947
Genre: Folk, World, & Country
Style: Country, Honky Tonk
Roy Acuff & the Smoky Mountain Boys
Bill Haley & His Comets ~ (We're Gonna Rock Around the Clock)
Ernest Tubb
Net links:
Hank Williams website
Hank Williams Museum
Biography.com ~ bio
Fox News ~ Jett Williams: Dad had little-known funny side
PBS.org ~ American Masters: About Hank Williams
NPR ~ Hank Williams' Lost Music: Rare And Resurfaced
USA Today ~ What happened that may have killed Hank Williams?
Access Atlanta ~ Hank Williams' last ride
YouTube links:
Move It on Over
Jambalaya
I'm So Lonesome I Could Cry
Hey, Good Lookin'
Hank Williams A&E Biography (2000) (45 min., 36 sec.)
Styrous® ~ Monday, September 17, 2018
