Hank Williams Sings

Hank Williams Sings is the debut album of country music singer-songwriter Hank Williams. MGM Records released the album on November 9, 1951.

Hank Williams Sings
Studio album by
Hank Williams
ReleasedNovember 9, 1951 (1951-11-09)
Genre
Length22:05
LabelMGM
ProducerFred Rose
Hank Williams chronology
Hank Williams Sings
(1951)		 Moanin' the Blues
(1952)

Background

By 1951, Hank Williams' popularity had soared. Following the chart topping records "Cold, Cold Heart" and "Hey Good Lookin'", he joined the Hadacol caravan, a train-transported road show that toured the South in a forty-nine dates one night show schedule. After the tour disbanded before the shows were completed, Williams returned to Nashville, Tennessee. In September 1951, he traveled to Hollywood after being offered a part as the Sheriff in Small Town Girl. Ultimately, Williams did not participate of the movie.[1] On November 14, Williams was invited to The Perry Como Chesterfield Show. Anticipating the show, and the possible record sales that it could propel, MGM Records released Hank Williams Sings.[2]

Recording and composition
Hank Williams in concert in 1951

The songs were recorded by Williams during sessions between 1946 and 1949.[3] Producer Fred Rose took songs from previous single releases that did not sell well at the moment of their release. As Williams biographer Colin Escott put it: "Rose used Hank's first album as a dump site for oddball tracks that hadn't sold elsewhere. With the exception of 'Wedding Bells,' the tracks were the dogs of Hank's catalog, like 'I've Just Told Mama Goodbye,' 'Wealth Won't Save Your Soul,' and 'Six More Miles.'"

Billboard theorized that the label had decided not to release an album with new sides because it "would only spread jockey and juke plays too thinly instead of getting the concentrated push on a single record".[4] The LP contains two indisputable Hank Williams classics: the album opener "Lost Highway," which was composed by blind Texas honky tonk singer and songwriter Leon Payne, and the gospel standard "I Saw the Light," which Williams usually sang to close his shows. Five of the album's eight tracks were composed by Williams, with the only legitimate hit being "Wedding Bells," which hit #2 in 1949. "A Mansion on the Hill" failed to make the Top 10 in late 1948, peaking at #12. None of the remaining songs (mostly B-sides) charted at all. "Wealth Won't Save Your Soul" had actually been recorded for Sterling Records and released as Hank's second single before he moved to MGM in April 1947.

The album was released in three formats: ten-inch LP, a four 45rpm packaged set and a four 78rpm set.[2] It failed to chart,[5] which is not surprising simply because singles, rather than LPs, were emphasized in the country music business due in large part to the valuable jukebox trade.

Track listing
Side one
No.TitleWriter(s)Recording date[6]Length
1."Lost Highway"Leon PayneMarch 1, 19492:40
2."I've Just Told Mama Goodbye"Slim Sweet, Curley KinseyMarch 20, 19492:53
3."I Saw the Light"Hank WilliamsApril 21, 19472:43
4."Six More Miles (To the Graveyard)"Hank WilliamsApril 21, 19472:46
Side two
No.TitleWriter(s)Recording date[6]Length
1."A Mansion on the Hill"Hank WilliamsNovember 7, 19472:33
2."Wealth Won't Save Your Soul"Hank WilliamsDecember 11, 19462:45
3."Wedding Bells"Claude BooneMarch 20, 19492:53
4."A House Without Love"Hank WilliamsAugust 30, 19492:52

Personnel
  • Hank Williams -vocals, guitar
  • Zeb Turner - lead guitar
  • Zeke Turner - lead guitar
  • Louis Innis - bass, rhythm guitar
  • Jack Shook - rhythm guitar
  • James "Guy" Willis - guitar
  • Tommy Jackson - fiddle
  • Dale Potter - fiddle
  • Charles "Skeeter" Willis - fiddle
  • Chubby Wise - fiddle
  • Jerry Byrd - steel guitar
  • Don Davis - steel guitar
  • Dale "Smokey" Lohman - steel guitar
  • Ernie Newton - bass
  • Bronson "Brownie" Reynolds - bass
  • Velma Williams Smith - bass
  • Charles "Indian" Wright - bass
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References

Footnotes
  1. Koon, George William 2 1983, p. 50-57.
  2. Escott, Colin 1994, p. 135.
  3. Williams, Roger M 1981, p. 260-263.
  4. Billboard Staff 1951, p. 22.
  5. Larkin, Colin 2002, p. 185.
  6. Koon, George William 1983, p. 149.

Bibliography
  • Billboard Staff (1951). "Williams Tells How And When His Disks Click". Billboard. Nielsen Business Media, Inc. 63 (47). ISSN 0006-2510.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
  • Escott, Colin (1994). Hank Williams: The Biography. Hachette Digital, Inc. p. 307. ISBN 0-316-24986-6.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
  • Koon, George William (1983). Hank Williams: a bio-bibliography. Greenwood Press. ISBN 978-0-313-22982-4.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
  • Koon, George William (1983). Hank Williams, so lonesome. University of Mississippi press. ISBN 978-1-57806-283-6.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
  • Larkin, Colin (2002). The Virgin Encyclopedia of Fifties Music. Virgin Books. ISBN 978-1-852-27937-0.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
  • Williams, Roger M (1981). Sing A Sad Song. University of Illinois Press. ISBN 978-0-252-00861-0.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
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