The grandson of Hank Williams and the son of Hank Williams Jr., he spent much of his early years playing drums in metal and punk rock bands. In 1996, child support payments led Hank III to sign a contract with Music City giant Curb. Three Hanks: Men With Broken Hearts was issued shortly thereafter, which brought the voices of all three generations of Williams men together. While this may seem to be a nice beginning, it was quite different from what Hank III himself desired musically. Despite having been born in Nashville, Tennessee, Hank III has never had a preference for mainstream country.
While his name (and his uncanny vocal and physical resemblances to his grandfather) could have guaranteed him a thriving country audience, he had no patience for the often predictable Nashville sound, nor for even the minimal constraints on behavior his promoters required. His opinions on this subject are well summed up in the songs "Trashville" and "Dick in Dixie".
His first album on his own, titled Risin' Outlaw, was released in September 1999. Lovesick, Broke & Driftin' was released in 2002. He had a great deal of trouble with his label Curb Records, with incidents as extreme as their unwillingness to either release his appropriately named This Ain't Country LP, nor allow him to issue it alone, and his selling of "F*** Curb" T-shirts. Battles with Walmart had delayed the release of his third studio album, titled Straight To Hell, which will be released on Feburary 28th as a two-disc in two formats: a clean version (for Wal-Mart), and an uncensored version, which will be the first country album to bear a parental advisory sticker on the cover.
He plays country with his "damn band" and produces a rather different sound with Assjack, which is a metalcore/psychobilly band. He is also the Bass guitarist in Superjoint Ritual, with former Pantera frontman Phil Anselmo. Superjoint Ritual has since disbanded but III is still working with Anselmo on one of his many side-projects (like arson anthem, mentioned below).
A number of "sub-sub-genres" have been coined describing his original sound, such as hard-twang, slacker swing, hellbilly, and honky punk.
Hank III has recorded the tracks "87 Southbound", "Thunderstorms and Neon Signs", as well as "Why Don't You Leave Me Alone", which were penned by Wayne Hancock, a musician who is often compared to him.
Hank III enjoys an extremely loyal grassroots fan base and much of his success can be attributed to his taper friendly stance regarding the audio/videotaping of his frenetic live shows which has been his main promotional vehicle considering the lack of attention paid to his promotion by the Curb Record label.
The Damn Band/Assjack also featured fiddle player extraordinaire Michael "Fiddleboy" McCanless who would play both sets, the traditional country set of the concert and then come back and plug his fiddle into a distortion box and saw away during the metal set. Sadly his talent left this world on February 3, 2003 after losing a battle with cancer, of which the cry of "Fuck Cancer" came out of Hank III's "Fuck Curb" campaign.
In late 2004 Thrown Out of the Bar was slated for release, but Curb opted not to issue it. Williams and label executive Mike Curb would be in and out of court for the next year before a judge ruled in favor of Williams in the spring of 2005, demanding that Curb release the album. Shortly thereafter Williams and Curb came to terms, and Williams dropped his "Fuck Curb" campaign. Bar was reworked into Straight to Hell, released on Curb’s rock imprint, Bruc. Battles with Wal-Mart delayed the appearance of this album, which was released on February 28, 2006 as a two-disc set in two formats: a censored version (for Wal-Mart), and an uncensored version that was the first major-label country album ever to bear a parental advisory warning. One of the songs, "Louisiana Stripes" was written by a little-known Alabama teenager named Jeremy Cummings, who originally released the song on his 2004 debut CD Country Bullshit.
Williams recently played drums for Arson Anthem, formed with Phil Anselmo and Mike Williams of the sludge band Eyehategod.
Williams released his long awaited punk-metal album AssJack on August 4, 2009.
His next album, Rebel Within, was released in May 2010. It charted at number 20 in Billboard magazine.
Williams' former label Curb Records released Hillbilly Joker on May 17, 2011; this is his last release with the label. Williams had been involved in a long contract dispute with his Curb Records after the company refused to release his punk inspired CD This Ain't Country. Several of the songs on Hillbilly Joker had been available as bootlegs, some of them for nearly ten years.
On June 23, 2011, it was posted on III's personal Facebook that he would be releasing four new CDs on September 6, 2011. It said to expect Country, Doom-Rock, Speed Metal with Cattle Callin' on the releases. It also said that they would be released on III's own record label Hank III Records. Entitled Ghost to a Ghost/Gutter Town (a 2-disc country record with some ambient and folk influences), 3 Bar Ranch Cattle Callin' (a metal record in the newly anointed cattle core genre) and Attention Deficit Domination (a doom-rock record), these new albums were released on Williams's own record label Hank3 Records through Megaforce Records, and feature guest appearances by Tom Waits, Les Claypool (Primus), Alan King (Hellstomper), Ray Lawrence Jr., Troy Medlin (Sourvein), Dave Sherman (Earthride) and Williams' dog, Trooper.
On March 4, 2013, on Williams's web site, it was announced that he is working on two new albums. It has been confirmed that there are at least 25 new songs. On May 3, 2013, Williams released the names of two new albums: a country album Brothers of the 4×4 and punk album A Fiendish Threat, under the band name "3".
On July 6, 2018, Williams was featured on DevilDriver's cover of his song "Country Heroes", which appears on their album Outlaws 'til the End: Vol. 1. On May 24, 2021 he released a cover of the David Allan Coe song "You Never Even Called Me By My Name" on his YouTube channel. On July 31, 2021 Williams shut down his online store. In 2021, Williams' son, Coleman Finchum, changed his last name to Williams began recording and releasing music under the moniker "IV". He formed a band known as "IV and the Strange Band". Their debut album, Southern Circus, was released in June 2022.
On Sunday 18th September 2022, he released a number of new songs on his YouTube channel.
Rebel Within
Hank Williams III Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
And hard times are trying it's best to get in
The bottles getting lower again my friend
So do yourself a shot and lets start to sin
The bottles getting lower again my friend
And do yourself a shot and lets start to win
The bottles getting lower again my friend
And I'm doing right and you can do me wrong
Look out darling cause you know I'm c*ck strong
You can do me right and I'll do you wrong
Look out darling cause I'm showing you the rebel within
I'm drunk, again
You're stoned, again
Let's fuck, again
Till dawn, again
I'm drunk, again
You're stoned, again
Let's f*ck, again
Till dawn, again
The more I try to keep on headin' down,
It makes me feel like I've lost everything I've owned
Maybe it was all the hell I raised,
Or that fifth of whiskey that I drank for days
Was it cause I don't fit in,
Or maybe it was cause I had the devil as a friend
Now I know I never made momma proud,
Lets light up a smoke and we'll shoot it down
I'm drunk, again
You're stoned, again
Let's f*ck, again
Till dawn, again
I'm drunk, again
You're stoned, again
Let's f*ck, I'm showing you the rebel within
The more I try to do right, it just seems wrong
I guess that's the curse of livin' out my songs
Born of bad blood since day number one
Hell I was born soft? and a loaded gun
The life I live has always been fast as can be
And I never let the hard times make me weak
The bottles gettin' lower again my friend again
So lets light up a smoke and live hard to the end
And I'm doing right while you're doing wrong
Look out darlin' cause you know I'm c*ck strong
You can do me right and I'll do you wrong
Look out darlin' cause I'm showing you the rebel within
I'm drunk, again
You're stoned, again
Let's f*ck, again
Till dawn, again
I'm drunk, again
You're stoned, again
Let's f*ck, again
Till dawn, again
I'm drunk, again
You're stoned, again
Let's f**k, again
Till dawn, again
I'm drunk, again
You're stoned, again
Let's f*ck, again
Till dawn, again
The rebel within (I'm showing you), the rebel within
The rebel within (I'm showing you), the rebel within
The song "Rebel Within" by Hank Williams III is a hard-hitting and dark track that showcases the artist's rebellious persona. The lyrics of the song are centered around the idea of living life on the edge, by indulging in alcohol, smoking, and sex, even if it means that one is going against the norms of society. The song begins with the singer acknowledging that hard times are trying to get in, and the bottle is getting lower. He urges his friend to do a shot and start sinning, implying that it is better to live life to the fullest and go against societal norms than to conform to them and lead a boring life. As the song progresses, the singer talks about how he has always lived life fast and hard, never conforming to what is expected of him. He sings, "You can do me right, and I'll do you wrong, look out darlin' cause I'm showing you the rebel within." This line is a perfect representation of the theme of the entire song - living life on one's terms, without any regard for what others think or expect.
The song evokes emotions of rebellion, defiance, and recklessness. It encourages listeners to embrace their inner rebel and live life on their terms. The lyrics suggest that life is too short, and it's better to indulge in vices than to live a monotonous, boring life.
Line by Line Meaning
Well the bottles getting lower again my friend
The amount of alcohol is decreasing again, my friend.
And hard times are trying it's best to get in
Difficulties are trying their best to enter.
The bottles getting lower again my friend
The amount of alcohol is decreasing again, my friend.
So do yourself a shot and lets start to sin
Let's start to indulge in sinful activities by taking a shot.
And do yourself a shot and lets start to win
Let's start to be victorious by taking a shot.
So lets light up a smoke and live hard till the end
Let's smoke and live life to the fullest until the end.
And I'm doing right and you can do me wrong
I am doing what I believe is right, and you can betray me.
Look out darling cause you know I'm c*ck strong
Watch out, my strength and determination will overcome any obstacle.
You can do me right and I'll do you wrong
You can treat me well, but I may still treat you poorly.
Look out darling cause I'm showing you the rebel within
Watch out, I am revealing my rebellious nature to you.
I'm drunk, again
I am intoxicated, again.
You're stoned, again
You are under the influence of drugs, again.
Let's f*ck, again
Let's engage in sexual activity, again.
Till dawn, again
Until daybreak, again.
The more I try to keep on headin' down,
The more I try to move forward,
It makes me feel like I've lost everything I've owned
The more I feel like I have lost everything I possess.
Maybe it was all the hell I raised,
Perhaps it was the chaos and destruction I caused.
Or that fifth of whiskey that I drank for days
Or perhaps it was the fifth of whiskey that I consumed for days.
Was it cause I don't fit in,
Was it because I do not belong,
Or maybe it was cause I had the devil as a friend
Or perhaps it was because I befriended the devil.
Now I know I never made momma proud,
Now, I am aware that I never made my mother proud,
Lets light up a smoke and we'll shoot it down
Let's smoke and destroy ourselves.
The more I try to do right, it just seems wrong
The more I try to do good, it feels bad
I guess that's the curse of livin' out my songs
Perhaps, it is the price of living my life as a musician.
Born of bad blood since day number one
Born with a bad legacy since day one.
Hell I was born soft? and a loaded gun
I was born as a target and a deadly weapon.
The life I live has always been fast as can be
The lifestyle I adopt is always fast-paced.
And I never let the hard times make me weak
I never allow difficult times to weaken me.
The rebel within (I'm showing you), the rebel within
I am exposing and displaying my inner rebellious nature.
Lyrics © SHELTON HANK WILLIAMS III
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
David Bishop
Hank lll is carrying on a lineage of great music. Seems like each generation found their specific niche and did all they could to test the boundaries in all directions.
Brandon Scott
Fuckin A
The Dissident Brit
His grandad would be proud I think, the Williams Trilogy is one of undisputed awesomeness in my opinion.
Matías
I'm a new age metalhead and I'm digging this a lot!
Antonio Junior
since 2013 listening this song... so many memories and stories. God bless Hank Willians and his great family, God bless the SOUTH. Grateful from Brazil!
Connor Smook
Saw Hank 3 live last night and I gotta say, it's a fucking must see! When people say he isn't talented, go to one of his shows and tell me that. He plays Country, Punk Rock, and Metal in a 4 hour show! I also met him after the show, rad dude!
The Dissident Brit
I remeber seeing him in an interview and he was so cool about the fact he's appealing to a lot of audiences at his concerts. Loved how he just put it straight and explained he's got people who want to hear the country stuff and then those who like the heavy stuff, and he doesn't want to just piss them off so he works it all in. Quite a feat I'd imagine to do that all in a few hours. Legend in my book, I'd love to see him live.
H3LLBILLY
"I know that I never made mama proud" the ghost of his granddaddy flows through this man... He's this generation of Hank Williams and is one hell of a performer!! The only and best concert I ever went to is his and loved every minute of it!!
MountainDew7
That is like saying you have only been to McDonald's and they have the best hamburger in the world. You need to get out more my friend. God Bless.
Viking Blood
THIS ALBUM NEVER LEAVES MY TRUCK'S CD PLAYER & YET IT NEVER GETS BORING!