Synopses & Reviews
Synopsis
Few American entertainers
have had the explosive impact, wide-ranging appeal, and continuing popularity
of country music star Hank Williams. Such Williams standards as "Your
Cheatin' Heart," "I'm So Lonesome I Could Cry," "Jambalaya,"
and "I Saw the Light" have all entered the pantheon of great
American song.
Roger Williams recounts the
story of Hank's rise from impoverished Southern roots, his coming of age
during and after World War II, his meteoric climb to national acclaim
and star status on the Grand Ole Opry, his chronic bouts with alcoholism
and the alienation it created in those he loved and sang for, and finally
his tragic death at twenty-nine and subsequent emergence as a folk hero.
The book also features a thorough discography compiled by Bob Pinson of
the Country Music Foundation.