Book Description
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.
Customer Reviews:
The real Hank.......2007-01-12
Hank left very little documented about his personal self, outside of what was projected in his songs. Also, few to none can or could claim to actually "know" the man, his deepest thoughts and emotions. It is clear to fans of Hank that this is where his story is. I give Escott much credit for digging for all the fine detailed facts he could find on Williams, and that is what the books reads like, a cognitive listing of scarce facts, and leaves a mental picture of Hank only as a simple alcoholic. No soul or emotion that drove Hank. Nothing was said about his performing presence. The magic he had with his audiences. Nothing about the precursor sex appeal and body movements that set the stage for the modern performers in the electronic age that followed him. Nothing about that revoluntary precise driving sound. Escrow downplayed the impact of Williams had he lived. His death created a legend, but trying to predict the what if's is anyones quess. I personaly believe Hank would have impacted the rock and roll age. Maybe not in the role that we know him from 1949 to 53, but I don't believe he would have met the fate of others during his time, when rock and roll took over. He had far to much talent for that. I'll give Escott credit in digging into the circumstances of Hank's death and acknowledging there are things missing, but a lot was left unsaid. From the day Hank died to this day, generations of his fans, only by past me down word of mouth, feel that Hank was driven to death by the establishment. He fought them in a disfunctional and distructive way. It is the age old story of a poor boy with exceptional God given talent used by the rich or greedy until there is nothing physicaly left, then left to die. One can get a picture of a dead man being driven to a concert come hell or high water in the hopes of the high dollar. No one cared to say to take him to a hospital when it would have counted. Don't misunderstand, Hank did not want help then or before, and that was the part of the story that should read like a greek tragedy, but doesn't. Also, Hank was the original hell raiser that few of the following rock stars could dare to keep up with. These stories are missing. It is the least credit to Escott to miss the following; the real bond between his fans- past, present and no doubt the future. Escott did not feel the man who pronouced invertation for invitation could survive. He missed the fact. This down to earth- direct in your face- realness of Hank is his soul and what is loved about him then and now from Alabama to New York City and from London to Tokyo. His death was just a cognitive detail. The emotion never died. It is yet to be captured in a book. The real Hank is still a mystery.
Sad, but true!.......2004-10-29
Just finished this book after recently getting into Hank's music. Colin Escott nails it, a wonderful work that explores the tragedy that was Hank Williams. I remember growing up in the late 20th century northern America, whenever I heard the term "country music", I always pictured some tall, lanky "hillbilly" that spoke and sang with a twang - the stereotype, or so I thought. Hank Williams created the stereotype I had in my head, but Escott tells us so much more that he did.
From his trouble with woman, including, and especially his mother, to his dalliances with the bottle and prescription drugs - from his horrible fiscal skills, right on through to his final day, a day clouded in just as much mystery as the man himself, Escott takes us on a 29-year ride so packed with detail you could not help but feel that Hank was 70 on that fatefull 1st day of 1953. You know he felt that old.
For anyone getting into Hank's music, this is the book for you. I'd also recommend it as a very insightful look into the early days of the music business, perhaps an Intro the Music Business texbook. And for all the "what if he had lived" arguments out there, Escott does a great job showing his readers how this genius' untimely demise may have, in fact, been very timely in preserving his legacy & country music.
The book culminates with 3 wonderful appendices. One lists every Hank Williams song title, any of which could have served as one of many chapter titles in this book. Excellent work, Mr. Escott.
Ole Hank: From rags to riches to rags to hillybilly heaven.......2004-06-24
Hank Williams (aka Luke the Drifter) lived 29 hard years from his hardscrabble youth in Alabama to his tragic death in the backseat of a car on Jan. 1, 1953. Along the way Hank managed to
live in what was often an alcholoh induced haze.
Williams was raised by his tough as nails mother Miss Lillian
who was oft married, ruled the roost and tried to control the erratic genius of her wayward son. Hank had an affinity for strong minded women. His first wife Audrey and second wife Billie were women who lived with the mecurial genius who wrote like an angel but lived the devil of a life.
Colin Escott is a British writer who draws a nuts and bolts portrait of Williams. His portrait is that of a poor boy from a poor part of southwest Alabama who from 1949-1953 dominated post World War II country music or hillybill music as it was called in those distant days.
Williams wrote such classics as "Cold Cold Heart, "YourCheating Heart" and others. Along the way he was helped by Fred Rose of Acuff-Rose publishing company along with the friends in the business from Ernest Tubb to Minnie Pearl.
Hank could not deal with fame and retreated into his booze and died an early death.
He is the greatest country music singer. Escott has done a good job but some readers may be bored by all the verbiage dedicated to record deals and the politics of the recording industry.
Nevertheless, I loved this book. It is a vivid snapshot of life lived along the lost highway of a lost soul who has blessed our culture with great music.
Everyone who loves Hank Williams and enjoys country music history will benefit from this fine book.
A good followup to Roger Williams' SING A SAD SONG.......2004-02-29
Except for Jesus Christ and Robert E. Lee, no other person has affected the conscious and unconscious mind of the average Southerner as has Hank Williams.
Colin Escott's biography is less sentimental and more sensationalized than Roger Williams', but is it really more detailed? After all, you can only get so much material within a given number of pages. Nevertheless, every time you re-read this book, you pick up facts and suggestions you never noticed before.
Of course, this is necessarily true with such a complex man, a genius in his field, and whose life and death were mysterious.
My favorite anecdote concerning Hank is missing from both books and is related by his steel guitarist, Don Helms: Once, playing an outdoor venue, it began to rain on Hank and his band. Hank and the band retreated to a covered stage area, where they continued the show. Looking over the audience, who were getting soaked, Hank had compassion on his musical followers, and returned to the rain. "If you're good enough to listen to me in the rain, I'm good enough to play for you in the rain!" And he did.
There you have it--a man with godlike qualities but yet a complete lack of pretense and who cared for his listeners like no one ever has. This is why you should pick up a copy of this for yourself and a copy to pass down to your grandchildren. We should never let this man's memory die.
Did you ever see a robin weep..........2003-10-23
Giving this book 5 Stars is as big an understatement as saying Hank could sing a heartbreak song.After all these years he is still the person who had the biggest impact on Country Music.I miss greatly the great music we used to hear on our radios we got from Hank and many others for so many years.This music which was written by,loved by,lived by and told about the hopes,struggles,sorrow,happiness and every other aspect of life of the people came from the singers and songwriters themselves.It is such a shame that the Industry has hijacked this music of the people and while forcing it aside,replaced it with studio tripe.The stuff that comes out today is a pretty sad subsitute for what Country Music really is--Hank,Robbins,Haggard,Jones,Carters,Cash Sovine,Nelson,Bare,Snow, Arnold,Lewis,Wynette,Cline ,Miller,Loretta,Anderson,Campbell,Boxcar,just to name a very few.Do you get my point? These people and their music would just never be heard if starting out today.It's time to forget about the studios and go back to the people--the roots of Country Music.
"Did you ever see a robin weep,
When leaves began to die,
Like me,he's lost the will to live,
I'm so lonesome I could cry."
How about Mansion on the Hill,Cold,Cold Heart,I saw the Light;that was Country Music at it's finest.
Escott as covered Hank with all the passion few others would be able to.I remember the New Year Hank Williams specials that lasted for four hours on radio here in Toronto hosted by Escott and Bill MacEwan and miss them as well.If you like Country Music and Hank;you'll love this book,as well as "Hank Williams Snapshots from the Lost Highway" by Escott and Kira Florita ;it is a great companion to this book.
Customer Reviews:
The Life of Hank Williams.......2006-07-03
This is the first book ever written that actually told the true life story of country music singer Hank Williams. Roger Williams interviewed country music performers who either worked for Hank or shared the stage with him. There are inside looks at Hank's problems and his relationships with his family and fellow performers. Hank's career was short. He died two months after his 29th birthday. However, in his short life he became a legend and fifty years after his death his music is still going strong. I recommend that every country music fan buy this book.
No Photos?.......2006-04-09
Good book, factual, full of trivial facts which was interesting, but way too much time spent on things like the history of the Opry, Louisiana Hayride, radio stations, other performers and events, etc. Why no photos? Most biographys have at least a couple of photos to go along with the story. The only photo you get is what's on the front cover. Other than that, I guess I learned a little more about Hank and how he wrote songs so in that light it was a decent book.
The Original and Still the Best Biography of Hank Williams.......2004-03-29
I've read HANK WILLIAMS:THE BIOGRAPHY and SING A SAD SONG numerous times and I like this one the best. It's sentimental and loving in tone. The former is more sensationalized and antiseptic. Having visited Georgiana, Alabama, a town frozen in time, this book starts right there on the little railroad platform where Hank shined his shoes as a youngster. THE BIOGRAPHY aspires to more detail, but you can only get so many facts within a given number of pages, and so THE BIOGRAPHY isn't really more detailed.
Both books omit my favorite anecdote, which is related by Hank's steel guitar player, Don Helms: Playing at any outdoor venue, Hank and band had to retreat to a covered area when it came a downpour. Looking out at his drenched fans, who refused to leave, Hank had compassion on them. Hank returned to the outdoor stage and informed them that "If you can stand in the rain and listen to me, then I can stand in the rain and sing for you!"
There you go--someone with a god-like talent, a great deal of humility, and who loved his followers more than he loved himself. Is it any wonder that only Jesus Christ and fellow Southerner Robert E. Lee have had more influence on the Southern psyce than Hank Williams?
HANK WILLIAMS IS ALIVE IN THE HEARTS OF HIS FANS.......2001-07-05
Roger Williams, who of course is not related to the subject that he wrote about, has given us a rare, insightful look into the life,career, and death of a country music legend. Hank Williams was an ordinary man with extroardinary talent who made the most out of the gifts that he was blessed with. However, as he grew up, Hank came across two powerful forces that would eventually destroy his career, and ultimately, his life. Women and booze did not mix, and as the book says,Hank found this one out the hard way. The author goes into detail about how Hank's career took off with his induction into the Grand Ole Opry in June of 1949. From there it gives us a look into how the opry operated in the early 1950's.The alcoholism which Hank undoubtedly had went far back to the early days of his youth when he was just eleven years old. By the time he released Lovesick Blues in 1948, Hank was already having problems staying sober. Alcohol is mentioned many times throughout the book because, as most fans know, alcohol wrecked Hank's overall physical condition. The book reveals some rare photos of Hank when he was at the prime of his recording career, but some of these photos shows his body slowly wasting away.After all is said and done, Hank Williams died in the backseat of his Cadillac at the age of 29, in the early morning hours of January 1, 1953. The cause of death could problably have been attributed to a broken heart. The life that Hank lead spelled out his fate way before the reaper came to take him away forever, but the legend lives on in the hearts of country music fans everywhere. Hank Williams will never be forgotten, and this book gives all the reasons why. But there's only one thing left to say. Hank was a man like all the rest, but his memory is enshrined because of his care and compassion for others who were less fortunate than he was.
Book Description
A stunning gift book and indispensable collector's item, now available in paperback.
He was just twenty-nine years old and had beena recording artist for less than six years when he died on New Year's Day 1953. Yet the songs Hank Williams left behind-including "I Saw the Light," "Cold Cold Heart," "Your Cheatin' Heart"-transformed him into a legend whose influence is felt as strongly today as ever. But for all that Hank Williams's music seems to reveal, his fans have been given remarkably little of the man himself. Now Colin Escott and Kira Florita present a previously undiscovered wealth of private family snapshots, letters, unpublished interviews, and other ephemera-including his final lyric, found in the backseat of the car where he died. Most extraordinary, though, are the previously unseen handwritten lyrics-almost thirty songs altogether. In paperback for the first time, this is a windfall of memorabilia for his fans everywhere.
Customer Reviews:
Jett's Father & His Turbulent Short Life........2005-09-24
This is an adequate pictorial biography composed by Colin Escott And Kira Florita of Hiram (Hank) Williams, though he had left very little written context besides his songs. He was thirteen when his family moved to Montgomery, Alabama. When he was fifteen, he was tall and had a grown-man's voice. He was basically uneducated as his handwritten letters to his mother show. The teenage Hank wore glasses. His mother, Lillie, went along on some of his early performances. Her domestic life was troubled.
Hank and Audrey were happy in 1944 when they were in their twenties. But his mother intruded as she and Audrey did not get along. They divorced in May, 1948, but reconciled and Hank, Jr. was born exactly one year later. In Nashville, they had a fancy house on Franklin Road (which I used to drive by in the Seventies) during the time he appeared on the Grand Ole Opry.
The 'Hillbilly Hit Parade' of 1947 showed Eddy Arnold had two in the Top 10, "I'll Hold You in My Heart" and "It's a Sin." Jo Stafford, a pop singer had a duet of 'Timtayshun' at #6; she later recorded Hank's song, "Jambalaya." His song "Move It On Over" was recorded first by Cowboy Copus and was in the #2 spot. In 1947-48, he appeared on WLAC in Nashville; Bob Lobertini were there in various capacities fifteen years later. He sang on "Hillbilly Jamboree" on WCKY in Cincinnati, Nick Clooney's station. I miss him still.
Hank could mesmerize an audience with his personality and the way he sang. He had a spine operation at Vanderbilt Medical Center in Nashville in December, 1951 -- a year before his death, requiring stronger and stronger pain medicines to enable him to perform.
In January, 1952, they divorced again and he took up with Bobbie Lett, a former dancer but working as a secretary when she gets pregnant with his child. She'd been a pretty girl, but was very sedate when he met her there in Nashville. She'd previously been married to Monte Hale of cowboy movie fame out in California.
In June of that year, he married his second wife, Billie Jean, from Shreveport, Louisiana. He was back where he started at the 'Louisiana Hayride' from September to December), but this time he was the star attraction. He was not my type of singer but I did like his "Kawliga, the wooden Indian" song.
"Lost Highway" is just one of the enormous amount of songs he recorded. You can find a discography of all of his records in the book, SING A SAD SONG by Roger M. Williams and Bob Pinson. A good accompaniment to these two are Bill Koon's SO LONESOME.
Hank didn't really have time to be lonesome, as the pictures show he always had many people around him and many who cared. He was only twenty-nine, same age as Justin, when he died. God Bless Him.
silent eloquence in photos of a hard life.......2005-08-12
very well edited and prepared. The photos say a lot. I thought there might be a bit more text, but that is probably for another Colin Escott book and I plan to buy it as well
Hank Williams " THE " Country & Western Legend.......2003-10-14
I have been an avid C&W fan since the late 40's;and although I have admired the many other great stars throughout the years ,none better defined this music than the the way Hank did. He did it all ,and in a large degree,by himself. In any area ,be it: songwriting,costumes,variety,gospel,heartbreak,lonlieness,love,inovation,tours,fighting the establishnent,personal life,longevity,an interresting personality,pop ularity,humility,you name it, he excelled and was the one who set the standard for the other stars to follow.I am sure most of them would agree.
If my memory serves me well ,Hank had several songs on the top 10 a year after his death; and we still see books like these coming out 50 years after his death. One can only imagine what he would have produced if he had lived a normal lifespan.
This book is excellent in every respect and also a great companion to Escott's other equally fine effort Hank Williams S - The Biography.If my memory serves me correctly,Hank had several songs in thev top 10 a year after his death and book of this quality still coming out 50 years after his death.
Thorough Portrait Of A Music Great.......2002-05-21
In assembling 1998's 10-CD The Complete Hank Williams, Kira Florita and Colin Escott found far more material than their box set's book could contain. As a result, they put together this book, a behind-the-scenes look to hold his devotees spell-bound.
Fans who've read Escott's biography Hank Williams will treasure the new material: an extensive collection of informal photos, long-sealed court depositions, the accounting ledger with the $30,000 payoff to his naïve teenaged bride Billie Jean to abandon her claim to his estate, etc.
Among the handwritten copies of 30 unpublished songs and song fragments ("I Wish I Had A Dad," "The Broken Marriage") is "Then Came That Fatal Day" found on the floor of the Cadillac where he died en route to a December 31, 1952, concert. The newly revealed lyrics capture his love-hate relationship with his first wife, Audrey. Meanwhile, a draft of "Cold Cold Heart" accompanies Hank's and Audrey's conflicting accounts as to whether it was "inspired" by an abortion.
Numerous details emerge in the book, like Billie Jean's humor, and Hank's problems with excess measures in song lines. Letters from his publisher/co-author/editor Fred Rose (a recovered alcoholic who tried to curb Hank's substance abuse) find Rose trying to help the volatile marriage to Audrey while - like many others - harshly assessing her.
Audrey, who died in 1975, was an ambitious woman who attempted plenty of spin on her exhusband's legend, but she was probably right in saying, "If some woman, equally as strong as I am, had not come along, there never would have been a Hank Williams. He did not want to live when I met him."
It's an intriguing cast of characters, which build upon the already colorful Hank Williams legend. Check it out today!
Hank's Hidden Treasures!.......2001-10-18
If it was 25 pages longer, I would have given "Snapshots" five stars! It's a wonderful treasure trove of fascinating, previously unseen photos, interviews, first person narratives and long-lost song lyrics. If you're a Hank Williams fan, you know what an impressive researcher is Colin Escott. His earlier bio of Hank stands as the most complete picture we're likely to have of a singer who, almost without fail, gave complete heart and soul in the recording studio. Finally, we have a book that attempts far more than a grim post-mortem on Hank's well-documented personal miseries. This is a celebration of Hank Williams: musician and performer. Wait until you see all the incredible photos of Hank and the Drifting Cowboys on stage, playing to excited, packed houses in places as far flung as San Jose and Ottawa. By all accounts, Hank was the most charismatic live performer of his time. Many of the hand-written scraps of unpublished song lyrics are very moving, especially "I Wish I Had A Dad." If only Hank had been given enough time to put the words to music and record them, his string of classic hits would have, without doubt, continued. I am not a starry-eyed admirer. I realize that Hank was abusive to his wives, often cruel and secretive. (By the way, photos here show what a teenaged knock-out was Hank's second wife, Billie Jean.) The "hillbilly Shakespeare" lived most of his brief adult life as a tortured, late-stage alcoholic. But "Snapshots" takes care to balance the picture, too. It depicts Hank Williams as millions of record-buying fans saw him: an enomorously gifted singer/songwriter and electrifying showman. I hope that Colin Escott and Kira Florita keep searching for hidden treasures: "More Snapshots From The Lost Highway" would be welcomed by this reader! Also needed is a single volume that details (as much as possible) all of Hank's live perfomances, TV and radio appearances, such as Mark Lewisohn's "Complete Beatles Chronicle" and the book on Elvis' live perfomances, "King On The Road." Please buy "Hank Williams: The Original Singles Collection...Plus" (CD), Escott's biography and "Snapshots From The Lost Highway." Escott and Florita are "settin' the woods on fire"!
Average customer rating:
- "Know me,know my music."
- Engaging read
- Unremarkable....
- Worth every penny
- Move it on over
|
Lovesick Blues: The Life of Hank Williams
Paul Hemphill
Manufacturer: Viking Adult
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
 Country & Folk
| Composers & Musicians
| Arts & Literature
| Biographies & Memoirs
| Subjects
| Books
General
| Composers & Musicians
| Arts & Literature
| Biographies & Memoirs
| Subjects
| Books
General
| Biographies & Memoirs
| Subjects
| Books
General
| United States
| Historical
| Biographies & Memoirs
| Subjects
| Books
Williams, Hank
| ( W )
| People, A-Z
| Biographies & Memoirs
| Subjects
| Books
General
| Music
| Entertainment
| Subjects
| Books
Bluegrass
| Musical Genres
| Music
| Entertainment
| Subjects
| Books
Country
| Musical Genres
| Music
| Entertainment
| Subjects
| Books
Folk & Traditional
| Musical Genres
| Music
| Entertainment
| Subjects
| Books
All Deals
| Blowout Books
| Stores
| Books
Biographies & Memoirs
| Blowout Books
| Stores
| Books
Entertainment
| Blowout Books
| Stores
| Books
Similar Items:
-
Hank Williams: Honky Tonk Blues
-
Hank Williams: The Biography
-
Hank Williams: Snapshots from the Lost Highway
-
The Nashville Sound
-
Sportswars: Athletes in the Age of Aquarius
ASIN: 0670034142 |
Book Description
Hank Williams, the quintessential country music singer and songwriter, died alone in the backseat of his Cadillac on New Year's Day, 1953. He died much as he had lived: drunk, forlorn, suffering from a birth defect, wondering when the bubble would burst. Having sprouted out of nowhere, like a weed in the wilds of south Alabama, he was gone at the age of twenty-nine.
Now, with his definitive biography of the man and his music, Paul Hemphill takes the reader on a journey through Hank Williams's life and times: his dirt-poor beginnings as a sickly child, learning music from a black street singer, refining it in raucous rural honky-tonks during the Depression, emerging as a star of the Grand Ole Opry. Uneducated, virtually fatherless, an alcoholic in his teens, unlucky at love, Hank mined his experiences to write songs that will live forever.
Hemphill, author of The Nashville Sound and the son of a long-distance trucker from Alabama, brings his background to bear on a story that often reads like fiction. He has unearthed many fresh details in Williams's life, but most importantly, he has explained that life and given it the lively telling it deserves.
Customer Reviews:
"Know me,know my music.".......2007-07-12
An excellent book on Hank Williams.I followed his career and enjoyed him and his music from the beginning.You often hear people say that they remember where they were and what they were doing when they heard JFKennedy was shot,or when the World Trade Center was attacked on 9/11;but I can remember it as clear as a bell when I heard Hank had died.I was in our kitchen listening to the radio;it may well have been a Hank song,but I'm not sure;when the announcer broke in to tell us that Hank Williams had died in the back seat of his Cadillac,on the way to do a show in Canton ,Ohio.
Even if you have come to know Hank's music many years after his passing;you'll find this an excellent book that tells you what Hank and his music was all about.
I also remember in those days the local radio station announced and played The Top Ten Country as well as the Top Ten Popular (Pop) Songs. For a year or more after his death, Hank's songs kept making the list;even though several had not even been released at the time he died.
One should not overlook the fact that Hank's songs were mostly written by himself and were about his life.Today people loosely say that singers are singing from the heart;butif you really want to know what it really means, you will find it with Hank.Having a stable of songwriters,arrangers and so forth produce songs will never have the honesty that we got from Hank.
I have other Biographies about Hank,including Colin Escott's .They are good,have a lot of facts and information;but this book really gets into the heart and soul of Hank.
There are numerous references to Hank's Steel Guitar player,Don Helms,and quite rightly so.Don was with Hank through it all,both the good and the bad,and it is unlikely if anyone knew ,loved and understood Hank better than Don;and that includes Hank's wives and family.
On June 30,2006 ,I heard that Don Helms was going to do a show outside of Hamilton,Ontario.I had forgotten about him,but when they announced that he had been Hank's Steel Guitar player;I just had to go. It was a small crowd,about 150 or so,in a Legion (VFW)hall. Well,was I in for a treat. Don had with him a young singer about 28 or so,about Hank's build dressed in a costume identical to Hank's "Music Suit" ;and accompained by Don and a couple of others sang Hank's songs all afternoon.The young singer,(Hank) Chris Malpow kept us spellbound with his reverent impersonation of Hank, and Don played with the vitality and dedication that he did 50 years ago. Along with them was his wonderful and extremely friendly wife of 60 years,Hazel. They talked one on one,signed autographs,posed for pictures with their admirers,left his famed Guitar on stage for anyone to admire;and seemed as happy to be with us as we were to have them.He said he had hopes to doing more shows.Having been born on Feb 28,1927,makes him 80 today;but I can tell you,he can put on a show as good as the best of them.So,If you get a chance to see him,don't miss it.
He told us one very interesting story,among many.
In the final days,Hank's problems were way beyond control. Hank decided to go back to Alabama. Don wouldn't go.He told Hank when he got things straightened out,he'd be waiting for him in Nashville. There had been a recording session already booked in Nashville.So Hank called Don to do what would be their final session,though nobody knew it at the time. Hank said he had written a new song.Don asked for more details,music,etc.Hank said,he wouldn't have any trouble,He would sing it, and Don could just play along.Well,that's what they did. The song was "Your Cheatin' Heart" and that was the only time he and Hank ever sang it ogether. A careful listening will show you that Don tried his best to follow Hank. And,what a song it was.
As fans of Hank,we are very fortunate that people have made the effort to bring these biographies to us. Another person mentioned in the book is Bill Mcewan.For several years he and Colin Escott collaborated on a 3-Hour radio show every New Year's Day on Hank Williams. They were always telling wonderful stories and turning up recordings that had never been releaded.They often played parts of the "Health and Happiness"shows.
On page 170 it is stated that ;
"Hank recorded a total of sixty-six songs,thirty-seven of them making the "Billboard"charts,and the most important number is that he had written fifty of them himself."
That number seems low to me. One Website lists 166 Songs between 1946 and 1952. Does anyone know what the correct number and the names are?
Engaging read.......2007-06-03
I thoroughly enjoyed this short but absorbing biography of the country legend. Having been a fan all his life, Hemphill writes with great empathy and understanding, making the south and the country culture of the 1940s really come alive. So one learns a lot about the history of the southern states, the development of the music and the singers of the time. He analyses the lyrics and makes them more comprehensible in the light of Williams' personal life and background.
It's interesting to learn about the towns, the venues, truckstops and radio stations, and the history of the Grand Ole Opry, the record companies and the major figures of early country music. In those days, live performances were more lucrative than record sales so Hank Williams worked extraordinarily hard on constant gruelling tours. That was before the days of luxury tour buses. Hemphill succeeds in capturing the essence of Williams' poetic genius in his discussions of the famous songs, enthusing the reader to go back to the music and listen with a new ear.
As a music lover, I found the author's discussion of the different popular music genres of the late 1940s of particular interest, and how Hank Williams' songs were covered by artists as varied as Tony Bennett, Louis Armstrong, Perry Como and Dinah Washington. Fifty years after his death, his music had been interpreted by an impressive array of artists from almost every possible genre, like James Brown, The Bee Gees, Nat King Cole, Isaac Hayes, Elvis and even The Residents: Stars & Hank Forever. In the introduction to her version of Pale Blue Eyes, Patti Smith pays tribute to Hank in a brief narration about his death in the back of a car on the way to a gig.
The writing style is a pleasure, down to earth, often witty even when he narrates episodes from the dark side with lots of empathy. Lovesick Blues is one of the most enjoyable biographies of a musician that I have read. But the book would have benefited from a discography and stuff like Billboard country and pop chart positions, as well as an index. Five stars for reading pleasure, but one deducted for the absence of the aforementioned.
Hank Williams: Snapshots from the Lost Highway
Complete Collection
Unremarkable...........2007-04-28
Hemphill brings nothing new to the table.
Because this book was just rehash of better books before it, I found it unsatisfying.
The author comes out of the starting gates, sentimental and reflective, with every intention to write a story, in first person....and I thought I was being taken into A Hank story from a fresh perspective...thinking perhaps that maybe the kid had crossed paths with him a long time ago.......and then, oddly and abruptly, its switches into a Matter-of-fact delivery of Hank's factual life story?
Escott's bio is extraordinary....Hemphill coming in on the heels of it...failed to bring anything of his own. Seriously, Im not sure why he wrote the book, when he offered next to nothing new....and in some areas, quite a bit less.
Its not a horrible book, its just not special.
Worth every penny.......2007-04-16
This was a book that I literally could not put down. This is a book that was very well researched. The author doesn't gloss over Hank or put him up on a pedestal like a lost god. He writes about his life as it happened and I read things in here I'd never read anywhere else. This book is a steal at Amazon's price. It's worth every penny.
Move it on over.......2007-03-15
Good book about the life of legendary country singer Hank Williams. Booze, wrong women (mother and wife) but great songs. Book is easy to read.
Some minor complaints: no index and no sources so virtually unusable for more scientific research
Book Description
Hank Williams was country music's greatest star and songwriter. This is the story of Hank and his wife, Audrey, his rise to fame, their stormy marriage, and the alcoholism that destroyed them both. Illustrated and indexed.
Customer Reviews:
A good natured Outlook........2007-04-28
Of the 10 or so major contributions in book form regarding Hank and Audrey that have sifted down and settled thru the gravel of time, I found this book to be the most important as far as really getting an intimate feel on what it was like to see these two alive, in love, in anger and in all their glory. One cant help but root Lycrecia on as she obviousley loved her mother and her stepfather, despite their many flaws. After completing this book (and I have read it several times) I finished with a sense that Lycrecia is a good natured person, who made her peace with a situation that she could have just have easily chosen to be bitter and disgruntled over. This woman appears to have hidden nothing. And their are some ugly bits in here, I assure you. But she also doesnt hide that she loved her mother, and father....but Midway thru the book you can sense that she had to detach from her mother and and her mother's sad spiral downwards into a narciscist's dismal finale of lonesomeness and discontent. The pleasure of this book, to me, was in the details....from birthday serenades to the color of the wallpaper in the homes she grew up in. History is so heavily buried in accounts Of Hanks tragic, suffering and misery that the reader has to regroup here and there and realize that Ol'HAnk had fun and family and horses and ailments and good times. To Lycrecia he was and will always be "Daddy" and I liked how that made me feel.
HANK WILLIAMS HAD MORE THEN MISERY....some might not want that to part of the picture, but its there and personally I will forever be grateful to Mrs. Lycrecia for that.
As a woman, I read this book and it felt like a letter from an old freind. Partly because a Southern Woman seems to be born with this endearing quality, usually complimented by a grit-eating grin.
THis book is one of my favoritemosts! An absolute MUST have for any Hank and/or AUdrey enthusiast.
IF you are just starting to consume the information about Hank's life ....go for Escott's Bio and the Snapshots from a lost HIghway.....and then, because its a sweet and satisfying read, have this book for dessert.
The Other Side Of The Story.......2000-01-11
This book is kind of an oddity in the world of Hank Williams oriented literature. The earlier chapters (the ones about Hank Williams) are sketchy, in places, and though one senses a real affection for Mr. Williams in Lycretia's narrative, there are few new details to surprise the more than casual reader. Where this book comes to life and becomes a good read is in the second two-thirds, as the focus shifts to Audrey. Audrey has generally gotten a bad deal, both in life and in print, and this is the first book that has even attempted to humanise her. That it succeeds in doing so makes it all the more likeable, although the picture it paints of her final ten years is a bleak and depressing one, and the comment that it makes about Nashville and the music establishment deserves to be expanded to book length. Although only the most "completist" of Hank Williams collectors (or masochists) would want to hear Audrey's "greatest hits collection" (formerly available on Bear Family Records), most would do well to read this book, to get the full story of the oft-maligned "first" Mrs. Williams, and the horrible sad turn her life took.
I am looking for Dale Vinicur, the contributor of this book.......1999-11-19
I am looking for the contributor of this book, Dale Vinicur...Does anyone know how to reach her?
Customer Reviews:
A Happy But Bittersweet Ending..........2005-09-23
The premise of this book is so sad it makes me want to cry. Hank Williams was an unreliable country singer (like George Jones who came along later), who did things he would not have done had he not been on drugs and a hard drinker. Before his death, he signed a written contract that a child had been born to a woman in Montgomery. Actually, he had signed a notarized contract acknowledging his paternity of Bobbie Jett's as yet unborn child on October 15, 1952, three months before her birth. She was to be "wholly and completed supported by him."
He was a lanky, boyish-looking man (not good looking) with eyes much older than his years. Drugs, liquor, and hard-living caught up with him on New Year's Eve, 1952, in Knoxville, Tennessee, at the Andrew Johnson Hotel -- six days before Jett was born. Bobbie Jett moved from Montgomery to California after the birth, and Hank's mother adopted her only to die and leave the child unprotected. She was with a foster home, as a ward of the state, then adopted again at the age of three when she went to live in Mobile, Alabama.
On her 21st birthday, her mother visited her where she was attending the University of Alabama and presented her with two thousand dollars her grandmother had bequeathed to her to receive at that time. So the truth is out. She did have a famous father from whom she had inherited his talent. "My guitar was my best friend growing up," she said; the radio was mine, and I sang along with the pop songs and could mimic them perfectly, and pantomime difficult recordings such as Teresa Brewer who always sang in a hurry. My dad used to sing the Hank Williams' songs, 'Hey, Good Lookin' and "I'm so lonesome I could cry' along with 'Beautiful, beautiful brown eyes' to me as he played his guitar. His father sang church music and played harmonica. I did try 'Your Cheatin' Heart' on the Cas Walker Show once, but I was not country enough to suit his high standards and went back to the love of my life, pop music.
She'd wondered where she had gotten her deep love of music, but now knew and also realized that "Hard to believe I'd been so wanted after all." She discovered that her mother had married and had five other children but, when Jett called to speak with her on the phone, she leared that her mother was dead, too. So, now she is an orphan. Just knowing she was loved after all was the lifting of a tremendous burden.
You must see the photo sections in the book to realize just how far this woman has come. Her biological mother was beautiful, could have been my sister, dark eyes and all. There is a photo of Hank and Aubrey (Hank, Jr.'s mother) with a group called 'The Drifting Cowboys." Jett made a tour in 1989 with this same group (old men now) and it was called "Jett Williams and the Drifting Cowboys." Life comes full circle. There is an article in August, 2005, edition of 'Guideposts,' an inspirational publication called "Birthright" about her present life in Hartsdale, Tennessee. She looks like her dad.
FACT IS STRANGER THAN FICTION..........2002-02-13
Jett Williams' story is the sort of tale for soap opera fodder, only better, because it's based on true life. This book has everything...fame, sex, sabotage, covertness, secrets, lies, legal battles...and all within the same family. It's sad to know that the family of such an inspiring talent as Hank Williams, Sr., could stoop to such cruelty and greed...and even more amazing that Jett was able to rise above it all, claim her heritage and be recognized for her own talent. She should be a spokesperson for open adoption records everywhere! Her struggle is an inspiration to adoptees everywhere who hope for a biological reconnection.
Average customer rating:
- Fond Memories of the B-Westerns .
- Table of Contents
- Happy Times
- Those Wide Open Spaces
- Those wide Open Spaces
|
Those Wide Open Spaces
Hank Williams
Manufacturer: InSync Communications
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
History
| Subjects
| Books
| Africa
| Americas
| Ancient
| Arctic & Antarctica
| Asia
| Australia & Oceania
| Books on CD
| Books on Cassette
| Europe
| Gay & Lesbian
| Historical Study
| Large Print
| Middle East
| Military
| Military Science
| Russia
| United States
| World
Entertainers
| Arts & Literature
| Biographies & Memoirs
| Subjects
| Books
Williams, Hank
| ( W )
| People, A-Z
| Biographies & Memoirs
| Subjects
| Books
General
| Movies
| Entertainment
| Subjects
| Books
Guides & Reviews
| Movies
| Entertainment
| Subjects
| Books
History & Criticism
| Movies
| Entertainment
| Subjects
| Books
Movie Tie-Ins
| Genre Fiction
| Literature & Fiction
| Subjects
| Books
General
| Performing Arts
| Arts & Photography
| Subjects
| Books
ASIN: 1929902034 |
Book Description
Take a wonderful trip back to your youth -- or the youth of your father -- and spend time with the great cowboy matinee heroes of the 1930's-40's and 50's. Those Wide Open Spaces gives you an intimate inside look at the men, women, and horses that rode across theater screens in every town, large and small, throughout this nation every Saturday afternoon for more than three decades.
Between these 448 pages you will find more than 220 old photographs (many quite rare; some never published before)of individuals that kids really looked up to, dreamed of becoming, and really missed when they rode off into the sunset. Among the great names are: Hopalong Cassidy, Roy Rogers, Gene Autry, Rocky Lane, Johnny Mack Brown, Tex Ritter, Wild Bill Elliott, Charles Starrett, Rex Allen, Sunset Carson, Bob Livingston, Buster Crabbe, Tim Holt, Buck Jones, Tom Mix, and many, many more. Also included are biographies on some of the famous "Queens of the Silver Screen" including Linda Sitrling, Virginia Mayo, Nell O'Day, Peggy Stewart, and Anne Jefferys to name a few. And who could forget the mighty steeds these heroes rode in those great B-Westerns? Horses such as: Topper (Hopalong Cassidy), Silver (The Lone Ranger; also Buck Jones' horse), Tarzan (Ken Maynard), and Papoose (ridden by Little Beaver -- aka Robert Blake -- in the Red Rider series).
As long as there are little boys...as long as the little boy in many of us never grows up...there will be a void in our lives -- a longing for those special days in our youth when there were true heroes (both living and fictional). Bring back those days when childhood actually meant being a kid and nothing more.
Customer Reviews:
Fond Memories of the B-Westerns ........2005-12-04
Those Wide Open Spaces is a fantastic book containing an enormous amount of information regarding the B-Western movies and the heroes that served as role models.
It is great that Mr. Williams would take the time to put together such a book. It was doubtless a labor of love. I love the format that makes for a quick reference. The section on the guys and their horses was inspiring.
This is a must have book to memorialize some great people who made a lot of wonderful memories for myself and many others.
Continue writing...
Table of Contents.......2000-09-08
The Table of Contents you have on this book should read this way!
Chapter 1 The Most Famous Hero of the West Hopalong Cassidy
Chapter 2.Action Hero of the West
Allan "Rocky" Lane
Chapter 3.The All-American Cowboy
Johnny Mack Brown
Chapter 4.Back in the Saddle Again
Gene Autry
Chapter 5.King of the Cowboys
Roy Rogers
Chapter 6.America's Most-Beloved Cowboy
Tex Ritter
Chapter 7.The Peaceable Man
Wild Bill Elliott
Chapter 8.The Gallant Defender
Charles Starrett aka The Durango Kid
Chapter 9.Michelangelo & The Outlaw
Bob Brown & AL Jennings
Chapter 10.Those Other Silver Screen Heroes
Monte Hale-Rex Allen-Don "Red" Barry-Sunset Carson Ray "Crash" Corrigan-Max Terhune-Robert Livingston Buster Crabbe-Eddie Dean-Tim Holt-Buck Jones-Lash LaRue-Tim McCoy-Ken Maynard-Tom Mix-Bob Steele-Whip Wilson-Jimmy Wakely*
Chapter 11.Saddle Queens of the Silver Screen
Jennifer Holt-Anne Gwynne-Lois Hall-Linda Stirling Virginia Mayo-Elaine Riley-June Story-Nell O'Day Peggy Stewart-Anne Jefferys
Chapter 12.The Cowboy and His Horse The Cowboy and The Name of the Horse He Rode!
Happy Times.......2000-08-30
I have just finsihed reading Those Wide Open Spaces and it is a great book. It is a book that the whole family will enjoy. It has been a long, long time since I went to those Saturday matinee movies in Philadelphia and watched by hero on the screen, Roy Rogers. This book brought back such wonderful memories that I had forgotten. The biographies about each star was very interesting with information that I had never known before. You will really enjoy this book and I recommend it for all ages. Looking forward to his next book.
Those Wide Open Spaces.......2000-06-14
This is an excellent compilation of nostalgia about our twentieth century western movie heroes. It brought back many memories of my youth, when life was more simple and childhood heroes were easier to find.
Those wide Open Spaces.......2000-06-14
This is an excellent compilation of twentieth century western nostalgia. It brought back so many wonderful memories of my childhood heroes.
Average customer rating:
- My uncle
- Armchair psychologist!!!
- come on, it's my dad
|
Hank Williams: Country Music's Tragic King
Jay Caress
Manufacturer: Stein & Day Pub
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
General
| Instruments & Performers
| Music
| Entertainment
| Subjects
| Books
General
| Music
| Entertainment
| Subjects
| Books
Williams, Hank
| ( W )
| People, A-Z
| Biographies & Memoirs
| Subjects
| Books
ASIN: 0812825837 |
Customer Reviews:
My uncle.......2006-10-15
Hey, I read this book when I was a teenager - my uncle is the one who wrote it and it's dedicated to my father. At any rate, the story is how it is seen by the writer. That's what history or biographies - especially of people who have since moved to the Grand Ol' Opry up there - do. I was not into Country and Western, but I enjoyed, to a degree, the story of the man's life. Maybe it wasn't word for word dictation, but then the Bible, a best seller, isn't either (no disrespect meant there, folks).
Armchair psychologist!!!.......2005-01-24
The author here comes off as the worst sort of
armchair psychologist, giving all sorts of "facts"
about why Hank did things, much as Goldman did
in his books about Elvis and John Lennon.
I find this sort of writing repulsive and unacceptable.
It's like reading an episode of "Behind The Music" which
was written by a guy in polyester pants and a nylon
shirt with plastic pearl buttons who's just scored
himself an "A" in Psychology101.
Woo hoo buddy. High fives.
come on, it's my dad.......2000-11-29
My dad wrote this book so I have to give it five stars.
Books:
- History: Fiction or Science? (Chronology, No. 1)
- History: Fiction or Science? (Chronology, No. 1)
- History: Fiction or Science? (Chronology, No. 1)
- History: Fiction or Science? (Chronology, No. 1)
- History: Fiction or Science? (Chronology, No. 1)
- History: Fiction or Science? (Chronology, No. 1)
- History: Fiction or Science? (Chronology, No. 1)
- History: Fiction or Science? (Chronology, No. 1)
- History: Fiction or Science? (Chronology, No. 1)
- History: Fiction or Science? (Chronology, No. 1)
Books Index
Books Home
Recommended Books
- Kiss, Bow, or Shake Hands: The Bestselling Guide to Doing Business in More Than 60 Countries
- Drive A Tractor
- Business Heroes: Making Business Renewal You Personal Crusade
- Amusing Ourselves to Death: Public Discourse in the Age of Show Business
- Desperate Measures
- Help for Your Fearful Dog: A Step-by-Step Guide to Helping Your Dog Conquer His Fears
- Collins Guide to Mushrooms & Toadstools
- How to Settle Your Own Auto Accident Claim Without a Lawyer
- AAT Payroll Administration Level 3 FA 2004
- Mutual Fund Fact Book 1999: A Guide to the Trends and Statistics Observed and Recorded in the Mut
Lovesick Blues : The Life of Hank Williams
Sing a Sad Song: THE LIFE OF HANK WILLIAMS (Music in American Life)
I Lived to Tell It All
