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.
Finders are Keepers
Hank Williams Jr. Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I took a gamble and just lookie here what I got.
A diamond in the middle in a field full of stone.
And I'm bettin' everything I got that you can keep me comin' home.
Finders are Keepers
And I'm keeping you as long as I can.
Finders are Keeepers
A needle in a haystack would be easy to do
Compared to me finding somebody else like you.
I tell ya chasing the perfect woman is just like rolling the dice,
She's as pretty as a natural eleven and I'm puttin' my heart on the line.
Finders are Keepers
And I'm keeping you as long as I can.
Finders are Keeepers
So baby don't ever stop just keep on holdin' my hand.
Finders are Keeepers
So baby keep on keepin' on with your lovin' man.
The lyrics of Hank Williams Jr.'s song "Finders are Keepers" describe the singer's realization that he has found someone truly special. The opening lines suggest that the singer took a risk in pursuing his love interest, but that it paid off because he has found a "diamond in the middle" of a seemingly ordinary field. The phrase "betting everything I got" implies that the singer is willing to invest a lot in this relationship, because he believes that it is worth it. The chorus emphasizes the possessive nature of the singer's feelings, as he declares that he is keeping his love interest as long as he can, because "finders are keepers." The song also contains several gambling metaphors, such as "rolling the dice" and "as pretty as a natural eleven," which suggest that the singer feels like he is playing a game of chance with his heart.
Line by Line Meaning
You're one in a million, a hundred to one shot.
You are very unique and special, and finding someone like you was unlikely.
I took a gamble and just lookie here what I got.
I took a risk by pursuing you, but it paid off because now we're together.
A diamond in the middle in a field full of stone.
You're a rare gem among common people, and I feel lucky to have you.
And I'm bettin' everything I got that you can keep me comin' home.
I am confident that you will always be there for me, and I am willing to commit everything I have to our relationship.
A needle in a haystack would be easy to do
Finding someone else like you would be extremely difficult.
Compared to me finding somebody else like you.
I consider myself lucky to have found someone as wonderful as you, and there's no one else like you.
I tell ya chasing the perfect woman is just like rolling the dice,
Trying to find a perfect partner is a risky gamble, and sometimes it doesn't pay off.
She's as pretty as a natural eleven and I'm puttin' my heart on the line.
You are beautiful beyond measure, and I am investing my heart and soul into our relationship.
Finders are Keepers
Once you find something special, you should hold onto it tightly.
And I'm keeping you as long as I can.
I am committed to keeping our relationship strong and lasting as long as possible.
So baby don't ever stop just keep on holdin' my hand.
I want us to continue to support each other and stay connected, no matter what happens.
So baby keep on keepin' on with your lovin' man.
I promise to keep loving and supporting you, and I hope you will do the same for me.
Contributed by Benjamin K. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
Russ Tabbert
One of his most underrated songs! This song is awesome and pure Hank!
AngryChairNoExcuses
I hear my Grandpa singing this even though he passed in 2011. One of my favorite Hank songs! RIP Grandpa.
Joe Harris
Has anyone ever heard him do this song in concert??? Can't believe this song didn't go number #1
waymore1963
yes,last song at target center in 91
Matt Morton
This is probably one of the most underrated songs Hank Jr. ever recorded!
Lost in my Agony
Amen brother Matt I agree 100 percent
Elonna R
Hank has so many great songs, this is probably my favorite. LOVE it. If I ever get married, I'm playing this song. :D
James472 Pennington
Elonna R hell yeah
chester webster
That's cool if everget married love to play it too lol
Loren Nicholls
Love this song! Thanks for posting!