His music got me through a few tough nights when I was younger. Come to think of it, he may be the only singer I've ever listened to when I really was actually crying in my beer. Forlorn? Really want to sink into it? No one does the job like Hank Williams. This multi-talented son of a gun did the happy shit too. Cry in it, or spill it. Whatever.
~ NOTE: ALL MEDIA IS HOSTED BY THE BLOGS & SITES NAMED BELOW ~
Listen:Hank Williams - Your Cheatin' Heart mp3 at Rocky 52
Hank Williams - Last Night I Heard You Crying In Your Sleep mp3 at The Look Back
Hank Williams - Hey Good Lookin' mp3 at Rocky 52
Hank Williams - Move It On Over mp3 at Rocky 52
Hank Williams - Kaw-Liga mp3 at Internet Archive
7 comments:
Where I grew up, it wasn't cool to like country music. So it took me a while to see the light (pun intended). And even after I came to realize how great Hank was, I resisted listening to any other country artists for a long time. But I eventually came around. Not to Hank Jr., or Garth Brooks, or any of the pablum played on country radio. But to Johnny Cash, and Merle Haggard, and Buck Owens -- and to the torch carriers like Lucinda Williams and Robbie Fulks and (at his best) Dwight Yoakam. Once I overcame my teenage prejudices, I realized there's a lot of great music I'd been missing out on. Hank Jr. still sucks, though.
Marc
Your experience parallels mine. Hank was my first, then on to other old school types. And you absolutely pegged it with "teenage prejudices", I credit punk rock for prying me away from what I was being force fed. After that it was just about how the music made me feel, not who did it, when it was done, or what genre it was. Thanks for piping in Marc.
I love Hank Williams, but also his predecessors like Jimmie Rodgers. It seems like back in the day genres weren't so air-tight. Rodgers, the greatest country artist of his day, recorded with Louis Armstrong, and there is a lot of jazz to Bob Wills and the Texas Playboys. But today jazz and country are pretty much poles apart.
The problem with country today is the reliance on cliches: gravel roads, pick-ups, Friday night football, porches, beer, and disdain for the city. But I agree with Tom and Marc that old-school country is the shiznit.
On another note, if you look at videos of Hank Williams, he sort of bounces on his toes when he performs; I love that. He also has an interesting spoken-word album or two when he recorded as "Luke the Drifter. He even gets gangster: "Violence just waitin' for you."
I completely agree with all of you about Hank and the others, but I'm not so quick to dismiss Hank Junior. If you can find it, have a listen to his album "Hank Williams Jr & Friends". This is a fine album (okay, not as good as his father or Willie or the best of Johnny Cash and so on) but well worth checking out.
Duly noted Tibbles, will check that out on your recommendation. Thanks for piping in!
Tom, if you can't find the album (I had it on vinyl, but it took me years to find a CD of if) and are really interested, send me an email (email Ronni at TimeGoesBy, she will send it on to me – I don't want to publish my email address online) and I could send you the tracks as mp3.
Thanks Peter, I'll keep that in mind! You're a good man.
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