Early in 2020, country-music legend Hank Williams will be the subject of a six-cd collection which gathers a series of 144 performances from radio shows he hosted nearly 70 years ago. Hank Williams: Pictures From Life’s Other Side — The Man and His Music in Rare Photos and Recordings represents the complete rundown of Williams’ performances 15-minute broadcasts of a radio show he began hosting at Wsm studios in 1951. The set, which will be released February 7th, was produced by Cheryl Pawelski, with each track restored and remastered from existing transcription discs by Michael Graves.
- 11/22/2019
- by Stephen L. Betts
- Rollingstone.com
In the spring of 1949, Hank Williams had his first Number One hit with “Lovesick Blues” and made his final appearance on the Louisiana Hayride. He would then join the Grand Ole Opry, where he made his triumphant debut that June, shortly after his son, Hank Jr., was born. In October of that monumental year for the entertainer, Williams began hosting his first syndicated radio program, The Health & Happiness Show. In honor of the show’s upcoming 70th anniversary, BMG will release both a two-cd and three-lp vinyl set containing the...
- 5/6/2019
- by Stephen L. Betts
- Rollingstone.com
Although Hank Williams’ death at age 29 on January 1st, 1953, marked a premature end to what had been a remarkable career, his legacy has survived — and thrived — not only through his classic recordings but also through the two generations of family members who have forged their own paths in country music and beyond. Williams, who was born 95 years ago on September 17th, was followed into entertainment by his two children, Hank Williams Jr. and Jett Williams, and more recently by Hank Jr.’s children Shelton (a.k.a. Hank 3), Holly and...
- 9/18/2018
- by Stephen L. Betts
- Rollingstone.com
The first time Hank Williams appeared on The Grand Ole Opry, he brought down the house. On June 11, 1949, the lanky 25-year-old walked up to the microphone and began singing his No. 1 hit, "Lovesick Blues." As his daughter, Jett Williams, exclusively explained to Closer Weekly, "He was a guest, he didn’t have his band or anything." The Opry had resisted booking Hank, who already had a reputation for heavy drinking, but they couldn’t ignore the rising star. "He went on and he got six encores!" Jett marveled. "That became one of his signature songs. They called him the 'Lovesick Blues' boy." Jett, a singer-songwriter, doesn’t deny her father had demons — mostly brought on by the spina bifida he was born with that gave him lifelong back pain — but she recalled he had qualities not many saw. "A public perception of my dad would have him a very sorrowful,...
- 8/26/2018
- by Closer Staff
- Closer Weekly
I Saw the Light may have been pushed back to March of 2016, but it didn’t change the premiere plans, or dampen anyone’s spirits. The premiere, which was on the 17th at the Belcourt Theatre in Nashville, saw writer/director Marc Abraham and the film’s cast enjoying the scene during the red carpet and an after party, which included music by Tom Hiddleston.
In attendance: writer/director Marc Abraham, Tom Hiddleston (“Hank Williams”), Elizabeth Olsen (“Audrey Williams”), Bradley Whitford (“Fred Rose”), Maddie Hasson (“Billie Jean Jones”), and Wrenn Schmidt(“Bobbi Jett”). Also joining them on the carpet was Hank Williams’ Daughter Jett Williams, Fred Parker Jr. (“Faron Young”) and the members of the film’s musical talent known as the ‘Drifting Cowboys,’ Josh Brady, Wes Langolis, Casey Bond, Michael Rinne.
I Saw The Light Opens in New York, Los Angeles, and Nashville on March 25th, 2016 (followed by nationwide...
In attendance: writer/director Marc Abraham, Tom Hiddleston (“Hank Williams”), Elizabeth Olsen (“Audrey Williams”), Bradley Whitford (“Fred Rose”), Maddie Hasson (“Billie Jean Jones”), and Wrenn Schmidt(“Bobbi Jett”). Also joining them on the carpet was Hank Williams’ Daughter Jett Williams, Fred Parker Jr. (“Faron Young”) and the members of the film’s musical talent known as the ‘Drifting Cowboys,’ Josh Brady, Wes Langolis, Casey Bond, Michael Rinne.
I Saw The Light Opens in New York, Los Angeles, and Nashville on March 25th, 2016 (followed by nationwide...
- 10/20/2015
- by Marc Eastman
- AreYouScreening.com
Tinseltown took over Music City this past weekend, with the glitzy premiere of the highly anticipated Hank Williams biopic, I Saw the Light. Stars of the big-screen adaptation of the book, Hank Williams: The Biography by Colin Escott, George Merritt and William Macewen, walked the red carpet (which, for the record, was actually green), as invited guests filled the twin theaters at Nashville's historic Belcourt theater. British actor Tom Hiddleston turns in a career-defining role as the troubled singer-songwriter, whose influence is seen not only in nearly every country artist who came after him,...
- 10/19/2015
- Rollingstone.com
The big-screen retelling of the life of country music icon Hank Williams has secured a release date, just in time for awards season. Sony Pictures Classics has announced that I Saw the Light will bow in movie theaters on Black Friday, November 27th.
English actor Tom Hiddleston will play the lead role and do his own singing in the film. His previous screen credits include the role of Loki in a trio of Marvel films: Thor, The Avengers and Thor: The Dark World. He also portrayed novelist F. Scott Fitzgerald...
English actor Tom Hiddleston will play the lead role and do his own singing in the film. His previous screen credits include the role of Loki in a trio of Marvel films: Thor, The Avengers and Thor: The Dark World. He also portrayed novelist F. Scott Fitzgerald...
- 7/1/2015
- Rollingstone.com
The Hank Williams biopic I Saw the Light has added The West Wing actor Bradley Whitford and fellow Emmy-winner Cherry Jones to its cast.
Whitford will play iconic songwriter and music publisher Fred Rose, who co-wrote with Williams such classic tunes as "Kaw-Liga" and "I'll Never Get Out of This World Alive." He also penned numerous songs recorded by other artists including the Willie Nelson hit, "Blue Eyes Crying in the Rain" and "Deed I Do," by Sophie Tucker. With entertainer Roy Acuff, Rose formed Acuff-Rose, one of the most...
Whitford will play iconic songwriter and music publisher Fred Rose, who co-wrote with Williams such classic tunes as "Kaw-Liga" and "I'll Never Get Out of This World Alive." He also penned numerous songs recorded by other artists including the Willie Nelson hit, "Blue Eyes Crying in the Rain" and "Deed I Do," by Sophie Tucker. With entertainer Roy Acuff, Rose formed Acuff-Rose, one of the most...
- 11/7/2014
- Rollingstone.com
The upcoming Hank Williams biopic, I Saw the Light, begins production in Louisiana this week, with four newly-announced actors on set. Wrenn Schmidt (pictured above), David Krumholtz, Josh Pais and James DuMont have been cast in the film, the Hollywood Reporter reveals, joining Tom Hiddleston, who is playing the lead role, and Elizabeth Olsen, who will portray the country icon's first wife, Audrey Mae Williams.
Schmidt will play Bobbie Jett, a woman who had a short-lived relationship with Williams after his divorce from Audrey. She gave birth to their daughter,...
Schmidt will play Bobbie Jett, a woman who had a short-lived relationship with Williams after his divorce from Audrey. She gave birth to their daughter,...
- 10/16/2014
- Rollingstone.com
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