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.
Thirsty
Hank Williams Jr. Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Looks like it's gonna be another all nighter
Hope that barrel ain't got no bottom
Gonna keep drinkin' as long as you got 'em
I been workin' all week out in the heat
I got a cotton mouth I need to drown out
Dehydration leads to a lot of libation
This inebriation sure is gonna hurt me
But every now and then you just get a little thirsty
Little Miss Prissy's sippin' martinis
Boys on the bar stools shootin' down whiskey
Cowboy's chuggin' on an ice cold beer
The country boys got a jar of somethin' clear
Some girl and her mom got a Jaager Bomb
They just dropped it on me now I can't see
Dehydration leads to a lot of libation
Gets you good vibrations, starts up a celebration
This inebriation sure is gonna hurt me
But you know every now and then you just get pretty thirsty
Alright y'all ready?
Set 'em up, Joe
Ready, aim
Drink, drink, drink, drink, drink
Dehydration leads to a lot of libation
Gets you good vibrations, starts up a celebration
This inebriation sure is gonna hurt me
But every now and then you just get a little thirsty
Every now and then you just get a little thirsty
Bartender put a little whiskey in my water
Looks like it's gonna be another all nighter
Hope that barrel ain't got no bottom
In Hank Williams Jr.’s song “Thirsty”, the singer is asking the bartender to put a little whiskey in his water. He mentions how he has been working all week out in the heat and now has a cotton mouth that he needs to drown out. He also talks about the other people in the bar, some sipping martinis and some chugging beer, and how they all have come to the bar to quench their thirst. This song is about the desire to drink alcohol to cure thirst which leads to getting drunk.
The chorus emphasizes the idea that dehydration leads to a lot of libation which gets you good vibrations and starts up a celebration. The singer admits that this inebriation is sure going to hurt him, but every now and then, he just gets a little thirsty. The chorus reflects the truth that sometimes, people drink to quench their thirst but then get carried away and drink because they enjoy it, and not just because they are thirsty.
In conclusion, the lyrics of the song “Thirsty” by Hank Williams Jr. reflect the idea that sometimes people drink alcohol to cure thirst but sometimes they drink it to get drunk because they enjoy it. It highlights the culture of drinking alcohol in the society and how it has become a common way to socialize and have fun.
Line by Line Meaning
Bartender put a little whiskey in my water
I want a drink to quench my thirst, but I also want to feel the effects of alcohol.
Looks like it's gonna be another all nighter
I plan on drinking all night and staying up late.
Hope that barrel ain't got no bottom
I hope there is an endless supply of drinks to keep me going all night.
Gonna keep drinkin' as long as you got 'em
I will continue drinking as long as there are drinks available.
I been workin' all week out in the heat
I have been working hard in the sun and need to quench my dehydration with a drink.
I got a cotton mouth I need to drown out
I have a dry mouth that I need to hydrate with a drink.
Dehydration leads to a lot of libation
When you are dehydrated, you tend to drink a lot.
Gets you good vibrations, starts up a celebration
Drinking can make you feel good and lead to a fun night.
This inebriation sure is gonna hurt me
Drinking too much alcohol can lead to harmful effects.
But every now and then you just get a little thirsty
Sometimes you just need to have a drink.
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
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