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 Know What You've Got Up Your Sleeve
Hank Williams Jr. Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Let me tell you baby you're a natural ten
You got those pretty eyes and such a beautiful smile
You got what it takes to drive the little boys wild
For a chance with you I'd get down on my knees sugar
She said (stop) I know what you've got up your sleeve
Yea if ya want to get to know me then you better move slow
Treat me like a lady ask me to dance
Say some nice things and we might have romance
If you're gonna move fast then ya might as well leave
Cause I know what you've got up your sleeve
Don't come in here comin' on strong
You're turnin' me off trying to turn me on
You think you're mister right but you got it all wrong
Using them ol' lines I've heard and seen
I know what you've got up your sleeve
Well let's start this all over again honey
I hate to see this beautiful relationship end
May I please sit down she said well okay
Now you show me some manners and you might have your way
But don't tell me something Bocephus I'm not gonna believe
I know what you've got up your sleeve
You're coming in here coming on strong
Oh turning me off trying to turn me on
Using the same ol' lines I've heard'em all and seen
I know what you've got up your sleeve
I know what you've got up your sleeve
The lyrics of "I Know What You've Got Up Your Sleeve" by Hank Williams Jr. refer to a situation where the singer meets a woman who he finds physically attractive upon first meeting. He is eager to pursue her and is willing to do anything to get her attention. The woman, on the other hand, is not interested in the singer’s advances and knows that he has an ulterior motive. She is unimpressed with his attempts to woo her and refuses to be taken in by his sweet talk. The woman is not fooled by the singer's smooth words and is resistant to his charms. She knows that he is trying too hard to impress her and has an agenda behind his words.
The lyrics suggest that the woman wants the singer to slow down and take things slowly. She wants him to be genuine, honest and sincere in his approach to her. She wants to be treated like a lady and respected. She is not interested in a man who is only interested in her for superficial reasons. The song is a reminder that genuine affection and trust are more important than putting up a front.
Line by Line Meaning
Well I noticed you when you walked in
I saw you when you entered the room
Let me tell you baby you're a natural ten
You are very attractive
You got those pretty eyes and such a beautiful smile
Your eyes and smile are very attractive
You got what it takes to drive the little boys wild
You have the qualities that attract men
For a chance with you I'd get down on my knees sugar
I would do anything for a chance to be with you
She said (stop) I know what you've got up your sleeve
She knows that the singer is using false flattery to try to win her over
Yea if ya want to get to know me then you better move slow
If you want to build a relationship with me, you need to take it slow
Change your direction take a different approach
You need to try a different tactic to win her over
Treat me like a lady ask me to dance
Show respect by treating her like a lady and asking her to dance
Say some nice things and we might have romance
If you say genuine, nice things to her, there may be a chance for romance
If you're gonna move fast then ya might as well leave
If you're not willing to take it slow, you should leave
Cause I know what you've got up your sleeve
She knows that the artist is using false flattery to try to win her over
Don't come in here comin' on strong
Don't be too forceful or pushy
You're turnin' me off trying to turn me on
Your aggressive tactics are not attractive
You think you're mister right but you got it all wrong
The singer is not interested and the singer does not believe in the sincerity of the singer
Using them ol' lines I've heard and seen
The artist has heard those pick-up lines before
Well let's start this all over again honey
Let's try to build a relationship on a more genuine basis
I hate to see this beautiful relationship end
The singer does not want a potentially good relationship to fail due to insincerity
May I please sit down she said well okay
She is willing to give the singer another chance
Now you show me some manners and you might have your way
If you show genuine interest and respect, there may be a chance to pursue a relationship
But don't tell me something Bocephus I'm not gonna believe
The artist is not interested in false flattery
I know what you've got up your sleeve
She knows that the artist is using false flattery to try to win her over
You're coming in here coming on strong
Don't be too aggressive or pushy
Oh turning me off trying to turn me on
Aggressive tactics are not attractive
I know what you've got up your sleeve
She knows that the singer is using false flattery to try and win her over
Contributed by Victoria D. Suggest a correction in the comments below.