Williams began his career following in his famed father's footsteps, covering his father's songs and imitating his father's style. Williams' first television appearance was in a 1964 episode of ABC's The Jimmy Dean Show, in which at age fourteen he sang several songs associated with his father. Later that year, he was a guest star on Shindig!.
Williams' style evolved slowly as he struggled to find his own voice and place within country music. This was interrupted by a near-fatal fall off the side of Ajax Peak in Montana on August 8, 1975. After an extended recovery, he challenged the country music establishment with a blend of country, rock, and blues. As a multi-instrumentalist, Williams' repertoire of skills includes guitar, bass guitar, upright bass, steel guitar, banjo, dobro, piano, keyboards, saxophone, harmonica, fiddle, and drums.
From 1989 through October 2011, his song "All My Rowdy Friends Are Coming Over Tonight", refashioned as "All My Rowdy Friends Are Here on Monday Night", had been used to open broadcasts of Monday Night Football until it was pulled after Williams made controversial comments comparing President Barack Obama to Adolf Hitler. The song returned to open the show in 2017.
On August 12, 2020, Williams was selected to be inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame.
Williams' early career was guided, some say outright dominated, by his mother Audrey Williams, who many claim was the driving force that led his father to musical superstardom during the late 1940s and early 1950s. Audrey, in many ways, wished for young Hank to be nothing more than a "Hank Williams, Sr. impersonator", sometimes going as far as to have clothes designed for him that were identical to his father's stage clothes and vocal stylings very similar to those of his father.
Although Williams' recordings earned him numerous country hits throughout the 1960s and early 1970s, he became disillusioned with his role as a 'Hank Williams clone' and severed ties with his mother in order to pursue his own musical direction and tastes. After recording the soundtrack to Your Cheatin' Heart, a biography of his father, Williams, Jr. hit the charts with one of his own compositions, "Standing in the Shadows". The song signalled a move to rock and roll and other influences as he stepped from the shadow of his father.
Also during this time, Williams had his first two No. 1 songs: "All For the Love of Sunshine" (1970, featured on the soundtrack to Kelly's Heroes) and "Eleven Roses" (1972).
By the mid-1970s, Williams had finally found the musical direction that would, eventually, make him a superstar. Williams' unique blend of traditional country with southern rock and blues earned him a devoted following, although some mainstream country radio stations wouldn't touch his new songs in this blatantly untraditional sound.
While recording a series of hit songs, Williams began abusing drugs, including alcohol and eventually tried to commit suicide in 1974. Moving to Alabama, Williams began playing music with Southern rock musicians Toy Caldwell, Marshall Tucker Band and Charlie Daniels, and others.
His last major success was "There's a Tear in My Beer", a duet with his father created using electronic dubbing techniques. The song itself was written by his father, presumably, sometime between 1950 and 1953 and was recorded with Hank Williams playing just his guitar. The music video for the song combined existing television footage of Hank Williams performing and the dubbing techniques transferred the image of Hank Jr. onto the screen, so it appeared as if he were actually playing with his father. The video was an overwhelming success, both critically and commercially. It was named Video Of The Year by both the Country Music Association and the Academy of Country music. Hank Williams, Jr. would go on to win a Grammy award in 1990 for Best Country Vocal Collaboration.
Despite his slumping album sales, Hank Williams Jr. continued to be a popular concert draw during the early 1990s and continued to record, with several of his recordings during this time still managing to achieve gold status, selling 500,000 copies.
He is probably best known today as the performer of the theme song for Monday Night Football, based on "All My Rowdy Friends Are Coming Over Tonight". The opening theme became a classic, as much a part of the show as the football itself. In 1991, 1992, 1993, and 1994, Williams' opening themes for Monday Night Football would earn him four Emmy awards.
Williams opened for Super Bowl XL on February 5, 2006, on ABC and was in the stands as a Pittsburgh Steelers fan.
On April 10, 2006, CMT honored Williams with the Johnny Cash Visionary Award, presenting it to him at the 2006 CMT Music Awards.
On November 11, 2008, Williams was honored as a BMI Icon at the 56th annual BMI Country Awards. The artists and songwriters named BMI Icons have had "a unique and indelible influence on generations of music makers".
In 2011, Williams was named one of "Seven Living Legends" of his native Shreveport, Louisiana, by Danny Fox (1954–2014) of KWKH radio. Others named were Bob Griffin of KSLA and KTBS-TV and James Burton. Two others cited, Claude King and Frank Page, both died in 2013.
In 2015, Hank Williams Jr. was Inducted into The Louisiana Music Hall Of Fame.
All The Roads
Hank Williams Jr. Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
But I got to the river so lonesome I wanted to die, oh Lord!
And then I jumped in the river, but the river was dry.
He's long gone, and now I'm lonesome blue.
I had me a man who couldn't be true.
He made me for my money and she made me blue.
But my leanin' post is done left and gone.
He's long gone, and now I'm lonesome blue.
I'm gonna find me a river, one that's cold as ice.
And when I find me that river, Lord I'm gonna pay the price, Oh Lord!
I'm goin' down in it three times, but Lord I'm only comin' up twice.
He's long gone, and now I'm lonesome blue.
He told me on Sunday he was checkin' me out,
Long about Monday he was nowhere about.
And here it is Tuesday, ain't had no news.
I got them gone but not forgotten blues.
He's long gone, and now I'm lonesome blue.
In Hank Williams Jr.'s song All The Roads, the lyrics tell a story of heartbreak and loneliness. The opening verse describes the singer's trip to the river, which ends up being a metaphor for her feeling of emptiness and despair. Even when attempting to take her own life, she finds that the river is dry - a symbol of her inability to escape her pain. The chorus sings of her lost love, who has left her feeling "lonesome blue."
The second verse reveals that the singer's man was unfaithful, leaving her both emotionally and financially ruined. She longs for a man to lean on, but with her "leanin' post" gone, she is left with nothing. The chorus repeats the theme of loneliness and heartbreak, with the singer feeling the repercussions of her man's lies.
The final verse describes the singer's search for a river so cold that it will finally take her life. She will pay any price to find this river and plans to submerge herself three times, but she will only emerge twice. Despite her desperation, her lost love weighs heavily on her mind, leaving her with the feeling of being "gone but not forgotten."
Line by Line Meaning
I went down to the river to watch the fish swim by
I went to the river to enjoy the simple pleasures of life, like watching fish swim.
But I got to the river so lonesome I wanted to die, oh Lord!
However, I was so lonely when I got to the river that I felt like dying.
And then I jumped in the river, but the river was dry.
I tried to escape my loneliness by jumping into the dry riverbed, but it didn't help.
He's long gone, and now I'm lonesome blue.
My lover has left me, and now I feel nothing but sadness.
I had me a man who couldn't be true.
I was in a romantic relationship with a man who was unfaithful.
He made me for my money and she made me blue.
He took advantage of me financially, and she caused me emotional pain.
A woman needs a man that he can lean on,
I believe that women need a reliable partner to provide emotional support.
But my leanin' post is done left and gone.
Unfortunately, my previous partner was not that person, and has since left me.
I'm gonna find me a river, one that's cold as ice.
I am determined to find a new escape or solution to my loneliness, even if it is a cold and difficult one.
And when I find me that river, Lord I'm gonna pay the price, Oh Lord!
I know that this solution will come at a cost or sacrifice.
I'm goin' down in it three times, but Lord I'm only comin' up twice.
I am willing to immerse myself fully in this solution, but I know that I will only be able to do so much before needing to resurface for air.
He told me on Sunday he was checkin' me out,
He expressed interest in me on Sunday, indicating he was intrigued by me.
Long about Monday he was nowhere about.
However, by Monday, he was nowhere to be found, suggesting he may not have been genuine in his interest.
And here it is Tuesday, ain't had no news.
As time went on, I did not receive any communication or updates from him.
I got them gone but not forgotten blues.
His absence has left me feeling sad and lonely, yet not completely over him.
He's long gone, and now I'm lonesome blue.
As a result of his departure and my failed attempts to move on, I continue to feel persistently sad and lonely.
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
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