 Randall Hank Williams ("Bocephus" was his late
father's fond nickname for him) was born May 26,
1949, a month before Hank Sr.'s landmark first
appearance on the Grand Ole Opry, and he was 3
when the elder Williams died. At 8, he went on
stage as
Hank Williams Jr. with his father's songs, voice
and mannerisms. He debuted on the Opry at age 11
and at 14 made his first hit record, a rendition
of his father's "Long Gone Lonesome Blues." A
year later, Hank Williams Jr. sang all the songs on the
soundtrack of Your Cheatin' Heart, Hank
Sr.'s film biography. In his teens, he learned
piano from Jerry Lee Lewis, appeared on The
Ed Sullivan Show and performed for crowds of
20,000 people.
In 1969, Hank Williams Jr. and Johnny Cash teamed up at
Detroit's Cobo Hall for the largest-grossing
country show to date, and in 1970, Hank Williams
Jr.
signed the biggest recording contract in the
history of MGM Records. But as much as he loved
his father's legacy, he had grown weary of
cloning his father and wanted to pursue his own
musical identity.
In the early 1970s, Hank
Williams Jr. adopted a
Southern rock side, easily heard in the 1975
album Hank Williams Jr. and Friends. That
same year, he nearly died from falling off a
Montana mountain and endured numerous surgeries
to keep him alive. After moving to a new record
label in 1979, Hank Williams Jr. issued his signature classic,
"Family Tradition," which referenced his famous
father and their shared love for the wild side.
He remained a staple of country music radio in
the 1980s with hits like "Texas Women," "Dixie
on My Mind," "All My Rowdy Friends (Have Settled
Down)," "A Country Boy Can Survive" and "Born to
Boogie." Hank Williams Jr. won the CMA's entertainer trophy in
1987 and 1988. In 1989, he won his first (and
only) Grammy for the duet with his father,
"There's a Tear in My Beer," which borrowed Hank
Sr.'s vocals from a vinyl record.
When the radio hits slowed down in the 1990s,
Hank Williams Jr. found notoriety by singing the opening
theme for ABC's Monday Night Football.
Alan Jackson turned Hank Williams Jr.'s song "The Blues
Man" into a Top 40 hit in 2000. To this day,
Hank Williams Jr. remains a favorite among Southern rock
fans.
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