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.
You Win Again
Hank Williams Jr. Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
That you've been seen, a-runnin' 'round
I know that I should leave, but then
I just can't go, you win again
This heart of mine, could never see
What everybody knew but me
Just trusting you was my great sin
I'm sorry for your victim now
'Cause soon his head, like mine will bow
He'll give his heart, but all in vain
And someday say, you win again
You have no heart, you have no shame
You take true love, and give the blame
I guess that I, should not complain
I love you still, you win again
In 'You Win Again,' Hank Williams tells the story of a love triangle, where the singer has lost his lover to someone else, who is taking advantage of her fondness for him. Although the singer acknowledges what's going on, he is powerless to stop it, and he is left alone, with only his regret and sorrow for falling for the wrong person.
The first verse sets the scene. Williams has learned that his lover is seeing someone else, and though he knows he should leave her, he finds it hard to do so. In the second verse, he admits that he was blind to the fact that everyone else knew about the affair except him. He confesses that his mistake was trusting her entirely. In the chorus, he states how he is conceding defeat to his competitor, as he falls victim to the other's betrayal. In the third verse, Williams warns the other person's new love that he is just like him, and he, too, will soon bow to their deception. In the final verse, Williams confronts his lover, telling her she has no heart, is shameless and takes true love without any responsibility. Though hurt, he can't resist her, and he loves her still, admitting she's won again.
Line by Line Meaning
The news is out, all over town
Rumors that you're cheating on me have spread
That you've been seen, a-runnin' 'round
People have seen you with someone else
I know that I should leave, but then
I understand I ought to go away from you, but
I just can't go, you win again
My love for you is too strong that I can't leave you
This heart of mine, could never see
I was blinded and didn't realize
What everybody knew but me
That you're unfaithful and everyone else knew but me
Just trusting you was my great sin
My biggest error was to believe in your loyalty
What can I do, you win again
I'm helpless, and you always come out on top
I'm sorry for your victim now
I pity the person you're currently deceiving
'Cause soon his head, like mine will bow
He will face the same fate as me soon enough
He'll give his heart, but all in vain
He will offer his love to you without success
And someday say, you win again
Eventually, he will admit that you defeated him
You have no heart, you have no shame
You're heartless and have no guilt
You take true love, and give the blame
You betray true love and blame it on others
I guess that I, should not complain
It's not unexpected, so I shouldn't protest
I love you still, you win again
Despite everything, my love for you remains, and you keep winning
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: Hank Williams, Sr
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@kadehagren4543
I’ve listened to this over 100 times since I’ve found it. Still gives me goosebumps. Hank jr has an amazing voice.
@samuelelrod8472
I've seen him in concert 17 times. His pure talent is unparalleled.
@NormalRabbit12
Take me with you
@WeBeeJamming
You should've just toured with him.🤣🤣🤣
@samuelelrod8472
@Mr. Ricky I've never seen a musician that could play every instrument
@WeBeeJamming
@Samuel Elrod Agreed. My wife went with me to my first concert and thought he was faking. I told her that there are only a few instruments he can't play! And that night I bet he played 10 or so. All while entertaining thousands of fans. People that bash him or talk about him only being famous because of his father are normally just sheep following the path of the last idiot's comment.
@chriscarlson516
He doesn't quite have the perfect pitch that his daddy had. Sometimes he sings around the note before he finds it, while Hank sr's pitch was always true.
@rethastoneking4680
I think this country is ready for a revival of this kind of singing and these wonderful old songs that had so much feeling in them.🇺🇸
@harrypotter7291
@Mark Rondson Morgan Wallen has no talent he’s a poop butt.
@gillygil8747
You gotta look for it. I'm likin' Jamie Johnson. He is the real deal.