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m u s i c • t r a d i t i o n a l c o u n t r y • b l u e s • f o l k • a m e r i c a n a m u s i c • a m e r i c a n r o o t s m u s i c • t r a d i t i o n
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Hank Williams: The Biography by Colin Escott, George Merritt & William MacEwen In his brief life, Hank Williams created one of the defining bodies of American music. Songs such as "Your Cheatin' Heart," "Hey, Good Lookin'," and "Jambalaya" sold millions of records and became the model for virtually all country music that followed. But by the time of his death at age 29, Williams had drunk and drugged and philandered his way through two messy marriages and out of his headline spot on the Grand Ole Opry. Even though he was country music's top seller, Williams was so famously unreliable toward the end that he was lucky to get a booking in a beer hall. |
| Now Colin Escott adds the fruit of several years of impeccable new research to what was already the most full-blooded portrait of Hank Williams. With the benefit of recently discovered legal files, exclusive access to Williams's autopsy, and new research on the singer's final hours, Escott brings to light much that was previously unknown or hidden about Hank Williams.
Born September 17, 1923 in Mount Olive, Alabama, Hiriam "Hank" Williams was the second child of Lon and Lillie Williams. Afflicted with spina bifida at birth, Hank may well have gravitated toward music as an alternative to sports. It was while living in Georgiana, Alabama, he befriended Rufe Payne, a black street musician better known as "Tee-Tot." It was Tee-Tot who years later Hank would say had given him "all the music training I ever had." Most music biographers consider Payne the source of the noticeable blues influence running through Hank's music. Hank began performing in Alabama in his early teens and formed a band called the Drifting Cowboys working in beer joints and performing at regional shows. By the early '40s, Hank was one of the biggest draws in the region and was gaining the attention of Nashville. In 1943, Hank met Audrey Mae Sheppard and the couple was married a year later. In 1946, she and Hank traveled to Nashville to meet publisher Fred Rose. At the time Rose, in a partnership with Roy Acuff, ran a "hillbilly" publishing company. Although initially only interested in Williams as a writer, within the year Rose arranged for Hank to record for the Sterling label. He recorded two singles, "Never Again" (1946) and "Honky Tonkin" (1947). In March of 1947, Hank signed with MGM. "Move It On Over" was his first MGM release and his first Billboard chart entry. He released his version of "Lovesick Blues" (Rex Griffin) in February 1949, and it was No. 1 by early May. Ironically enough, no one had wanted him to waste time or tape on the song. The concensus was that the song was a throwaway but "Lovesick Blues" proved to be popular beyond belief. And suddenly Hank Williams was big enough at last for the Opry where he became the first performer to receive six encores. It was also during that year that Audrey gave birth to Randall Hank Williams (Hank Williams, Jr.) and Hank brought together Bob McNett (guitar) Hillous Butrum (bass), Jerry Rivers (fiddle) and Don Helms (steel guitar) to form the most famous version of the Drifting Cowboys. Hank released seven hit singles after "Lovesick Blues", including quot;Wedding Bells", "Mind Your Own Business", "You're Gonna Change (Or I'm Gonna Leave)" and "My Bucket's Got a Hole in It". In 1950, Williams began recording spirituals as Luke the Drifter and 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", "Lone Gone Lonesome Blues", "Why Don't You Love Me", "Moanin' the Blues" and "I Just Don't Like the 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, covered by Tony Bennett (who released a hit version in 1951), Guy Mitchell, Teresa Brewer, The Cowboy Junkies, Frankie Laine, Jo Stafford, and Norah Jones. That same year, Williams released other hits, including the enduring classic "Crazy Heart". In spite of his professional success, Williams' life was becoming unmanageable. His marriage was disintegrating and those who knew him could easily see the real-life parallels in songs like "You're Gonna Change (Or I'm Gonna Leave)" and "Cold, Cold Heart." 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", "Settin' the Woods on Fire", "You Win Again" and "I'll Never Get Out of This World Alive". Wracked with back pain he was developing a serious problem alcohol, morphine and other painkillers. More often than not, he showed up drunk (if at all) for live appearances and was fired from the Grand Ole Opry, told not to return until he was sober. The Drifting Cowboys left Williams. In 1953, Williams was due to play in Canton, Ohio, but he was unable to fly due to weather problems. He hired a chauffeur and was injected with B12 and morphine before leaving in a Cadillac, carrying a bottle of whiskey with him. Sometime after midnight on New Year's Day 1953, sleeping in the backseat of his Cadillac en route to a show, Hank Williams fulfilled the prophecy of his own "I'll Never Get Out of This World Alive." Number one singles
Lovesick Blues
Long Gone Lonesome Blues
Why Don't You Love Me?
Moanin' the Blues
Cold, Cold Heart
Hey, Good-Looking
Jambalaya (on the Bayou)
I'll Never Get Out of This World Alive
Your Cheatin' Heart
Kaw-Liga
Take These Chains From My Heart Related links: Content Provided by Wikipedia.
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"Since migrating from Cambridge,
Mass to Nashville some three decades ago, Mark Brine has carved out a strong
reputation as an uncompromising traditionalist on the country music scene which
has made him one of the elder statesmen of Americana."
-- Shaun Dale, Cosmik Debris Magazine
"I could listen to him sing all night long … he does a good job that boy does." -- Roy Acuff, Ernest Tubb Midnight Jamboree "A fine young man who I think has a great future." -- Hank Snow, Grand Ole Opry "Brine could easily have been added to the cast of 'O Brother, Where Art Thou' without raising an eyebrow. He belongs to that group of artists whose individuality and quirkiness consign them to the periphery of what's commercially viable. But God bless him for not just being another cog in the musical wheel." -- James McSweeney, Flyin Shoes |
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"Brine writes wonderful story songs about ordinary people
and ordinary places. To tell these stories, Mark has a voice that is
as comfortable as a favourite coat."
-- Pete Smith, Country Music Round Up "I think what makes Mark Brine such a gifted songwriter/storyteller is the fact that he seems to be such an obvious fan of many genres of music. He's someone who is like a sponge when it comes to reintegrating influences into his own work." -- Gail Worley, Ink 19 "His career has pursued the path of a truly independent artist - someone who follows his soul and does things his own way … his ability to write and produce has made his name synonymous with quality." -- Doug Floyd, AltCountryTab.com ©2004 Mark Brine Music. All rights reserved. |