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.
I Can't Help It
Hank Williams Jr. Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
And my heart fell at your feet
I can't help it if I'm still in love with you
Somebody else stood by your side
And he looked so satis-fied
I can't help it if I'm still in love with you.
A picture from the past came slowly stealing
Then suddenly I got that old time feeling
I can't help it if I'm still in love with you.
It's hard to know another's lips will kiss you
And hold you just the way I used to do
Oh, heaven only knows how much I miss you
I can't help it if I'm still in love with you.
The song "I Can't Help It" by Hank Williams Jr. is a classic tale of heartbreak and unrequited love. The lyrics describe the singer encountering an ex-lover on the street, and the flood of emotions that ensues. Despite their best efforts to move on, the singer can't help but feel pangs of love and longing for their former flame.
The imagery of the song is particularly striking. The line "my heart fell at your feet" is a powerful depiction of the overwhelming feeling of vulnerability that comes with seeing an ex-lover after a breakup. The image of a "picture from the past" slowly stealing into the singer's mind is also evocative, suggesting that memories of their former relationship are never far from their thoughts.
Overall, "I Can't Help It" is a moving and relatable song for anyone who has ever experienced heartbreak. Its timeless message of unrequited love continues to resonate with audiences today.
Line by Line Meaning
Today I passed you on the street
I encountered you while walking along the street today
And my heart fell at your feet
My emotions were stirred up by the sight of you
I can't help it if I'm still in love with you
I have no control over my strong feelings for you
Somebody else stood by your side
I saw another person with you
And he looked so satis-fied
He appeared content and happy being with you
A picture from the past came slowly stealing
Memories came rushing back slowly and gently
As I brushed your arm and walked so close to you
I touched your arm and walked very near to you
Then suddenly I got that old time feeling
Suddenly, I felt the same way I used to feel in the past
It's hard to know another's lips will kiss you
It is difficult to accept that someone else will be touching and kissing you
And hold you just the way I used to do
In the same way that I used to hold and embrace you
Oh, heaven only knows how much I miss you
The extent to which I long for you is beyond comprehension
I can't help it if I'm still in love with you.
My emotions are beyond my control and I still have strong feelings for you
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: TARIK L. COLLINS, MALIK SMART, AHMIR K. THOMPSON, RICHARD NICHOLS, KARL B. JENKINS, GREG SPEARMAN, PEDRO MARTINEZ
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
white1967falcon
no one may realize how difficult it is to sing the songs of hank williams than his only son. a boy left with barely a memory of one of the most enduring figures in music...who was always respected for his contributions by artists of every genre and generation since his untimely death. these two men lived tortured lives of self-destruction, and his son was nearly lost in much the same way. but JR was strong enough to rise, fall, and reach greater heights in his own right. god bless hank.
Jimmy Jennings
I cant imagine how hard it is for Hank jr. To sing his daddys songs especially one like this that has a very emotional feeling to it, i get choked up just thinking about it, i dont think i could make it through the first verse, man his daddy sure had a way with a sad song.
Lena Andersson
Absolutely fantastic🎤🎸H.W.Jr ❤
Suzanne Darcy
He sounds a lot like his Dad, I love it!! ♥️💃🏻♥️💃🏻♥️💃🏻
9/24/20
eula beaver
Hank Jr. has a lot of talent just like his father!
Roadnottaken27
My God! He sure looks good in that picture! 😘
Lulu Coetzer
memories ow man
AJB3
My fave version (sorry Hank's dad).
Justin Coone
I always thought jr sounded better honestly 🤔
AJB3
@Justin Coone + he was like 15 here. Amazing.