Hiram King Willams aka Hank Wiliams was born in Mount Olive, Alabama on this day in 1923. Hank would only live 29 years but in a short period of time he became the most important, influential and greatest country music singer who ever lived. He had 35 songs that hit the Top 10 on the country charts, 11 of them hit #1. His influence is still felt today.

Merle Haggard would be my personal favourite country music artist but I can’t argue against Hank Williams being the greatest. As a singer and songwriter he cannot be topped. He influenced not only generations of country music stars but also rock and roll acts. He is not only in the Country Music Hall of Fame- but he is in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as an early influence. In many ways Hank Williams was the first punk rocker.

In 2010 they awarded Hank Williams a Pulitzer Prize for his songwriting. His son Hank Jr followed the tradition and Hank Jr’s son Hank III has been recording for years now. Whereas Hank Jr doesn’t look that much like his father, Hank III looks like the ghost of Hank Williams and he has that same punk attitude.

below is Hank Williams III

Hank Williams died in the backseat of a car in Oak Hill, West Virginia while on his way to a concert in Canton, Ohio on January 1st,1953, he was only 29 years old.