Hank Williams, So Lonesome

by Bill Koon, George William Koon

Hank Williams (1923--1953) is revered in the top tier of the country-music pantheon, and his forlorn ballads are classics in the country songbook. An inspired, natural genius, Williams was the complete country balladeer. Though he knew almost nothing about the technicalities of music, his plaintive songs--"Cold, Cold Heart," "Your Cheatin' Heart," and "I'm So Lonesome I Could Cry"--affirm that he knew everything about its heart. Williams was to country music what Elvis Presley was to rock 'n' roll. With his legend already firmly established, he was only twenty-nine when he died on New Year's Day 1953 (or, perhaps, New Year's Eve 1952) in the back seat of his baby-blue Cadillac on the way to a concert in Canton, Ohio. Interest in Williams is unflagging, and myths and tall tales about his life and death continue to grow with every passing year. Although the fascinating trail of Williams's career has been a favorite subject for biographers, Hank Williams, So Lonesome winnows away the myths and hearsay while recounting this Alabama boy's blazing rise to stardom. This close look at Williams moves beyond other books by providing new research, evaluations, and interviews with friends, family, and band members. Of the many biographies this one comes closest to being truly accurate. It focuses also upon the music itself, confirming that Williams was a natural songwriter and performer like none other. This new assessment analyzes the Williams legacy by reviewing both the printed and recorded music and by thorough exploration of the Williams bibliography and discography. Bill Koon, a professor of English at Clemson University, is the editor of Classic Southern Humor.

Genres: Biography, Music

192 pages, Paperback

First published January 3, 2002

Reviews

[Ray · Rating 3 out of 5]

A very tragic story of one of country music's singing icons. This is my first biography of H.W. so I can't compare to other sources but in his short 29 years he gave us a lot of songs and many stories, some myth some true. Even though a lot of the tragedy was self inflicted, he was still a very interesting man. This book is broken into 3 parts, The singer, the songs and the resources. I really liked learning about the songs and where they derived and their true meanings. No truer song was ever sang than, "I'll never get out this world alive," which is actually about bad luck. If you like old country music and it's stars then this is for you.

[D Patterson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Comparatively to other bio's I have read on Hank Williams Sr, this one isn't too in depth, or mindblowing. I personally think author Colin Escott's biographies on Hank Sr are more informative reads

[Creighton · Rating 5 out of 5]

Hank Williams, the man evokes the sounds of a lonesome steel guitar, a clear fiddle, and a twangy voice of a man, singing about his heart and soul, songs like "I'm so lonesome I could cry" are lyrical magic, its no wonder he's considered "The Hillbilly Shakespeare". People will say Roy Acuff, or George Jones, or George Strait are the kings of Country music, but in my honest opinion, it was this man. I should add, I love old Country music (pre-1980's stuff but really the 1920s-1950s stuff), Blues, Jazz, Rockabilly, Gospel, and Folk music. I listen to a lot of artists, but I listen to Hank Williams the most, so this review will be a bit biased because I consider him one of my favorites.

I am a big fan of Hank Williams, and I heard his music when I was a little baby, and my mama sang me his songs; I had no clue who it was for a long time, but later I found out it was him. I heard stories about how my great grandpa listened to Hank Williams, and that he was his favorite country singer; and I found out later on my great grandpa saw him play at the Grand ole Opry.

Reading this book really showed the truth about how Hank was a man in constant pain, and how he had a poor childhood. His struggles with Alcoholism, depression, and his turbulent relationship with his wife and his greatest love, show us a story of a man that we feel so sympathetic for, while we feel helpless as we hear about how he lonesome he was. I recommend this book to anyone who wants to know the true story about this legend, or if they want to know how a person from a impoverished childhood can rise to the top, but they can also fall to the bottom.


P.S. I also recommend looking him up on YouTube

[Ellen · Rating 3 out of 5]

The book is broken down into three major parts: The Singer, The Song and The Resources.

The Singer is biographical; much less detail than some books I've read. Even so, there are certain parts of his life the author reminds us we'll never know for sure. Persons with something to gain have told the story from their perspectives and each or even all may be tainted by personal perception and/or personal gain from their relationship(s) with Hank.

The author shows us in The Song portion of the book that Hank was a romantic and often writes about a pathetic lover whose love never loves him/her back as much as he/she loves. There is speculation that some of the songs are biographical about his relationships with his love(s). Sometimes dates of writing on the original pencil drafts defy that speculation.

In The Resources the author reveals who he interviewed, those whose council he sought in writing, what public documents he referred to and what personal memorabilia he considered.

I enjoyed it.

[Dan · Rating 3 out of 5]

A thoroughly researched, but pretty dry telling of the Hank Williams story. The book is not helped by its odd partitioning of the life story and music criticism into separate chapters. It seems like integrating those subjects would not only have made for better reading but also been more in keeping with the subject.

[Gayle · Rating 2 out of 5]

Lots of speculation as there isn't a lot of factual information available. But I like that the author presents all the stories while pointing out why he thinks which is the most likely.

[Ted · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fairly interesting read.