Personalities | Hank Williams | Roots of Rock
(Singer-songwriter, 1923–53)
Insofar as rock has been shaped by country music, it has been shaped by Hank Williams. Williams, a superstar at 25 and dead at 29, set standards for popular as well as country music, and was a virtual hit songwriting machine. Yet, like several young rock stars who followed him, he was unable to manage stardom and drifted into alcoholism and addiction.
Williams started out performing around his native Alabama. He landed a spot on a local radio station, and was signed to MGM Records by 1947. By 1951 his songs were being covered by the biggest mainstream artists, and Hank was appearing with them on stage and television to sing hits like ‘Your Cheatin’ Heart’, ‘Cold Cold Heart’, ‘Jambalaya’ and ‘Hey, Good Lookin’’. But his life and career collapsed after his divorce from his manager/wife Audrey, and he died in the back of his car in the early hours of New Year’s Day, 1953.
Styles & Forms | Roots of Rock
Personalities | Sonny Boy Williamson | Roots of Rock
AUTHORITATIVE
An extensive music information resource, bringing together the talents and expertise of a wide range of editors and musicologists, including Stanley Sadie, Charles Wilson, Paul Du Noyer, Tony Byworth, Bob Allen, Howard Mandel, Cliff Douse, William Schafer, John Wilson...
CURATED
Classical, Rock, Blues, Jazz, Country and more. Flame Tree has been making encyclopaedias and guides about music for over 20 years. Now Flame Tree Pro brings together a huge canon of carefully curated information on genres, styles, artists and instruments. It's a perfect tool for study, and entertaining too, a great companion to our music books.
David Bowie
Fantastic new, unofficial biography covers
his life, music, art and movies, with a
sweep of incredible photographs.
