Had he not succumbed to a combination of heart failure and painkillers on January 1, 1953, Hank Williams would have turned 88 years old today. Yet the fact that he died at the tragically young age of 29 doesn't diminish the indelible imprint that he left not only on the world of country music, but on roots, rock, gospel and all genres in between.
Williams arose from humble beginnings, in the immediate post-depression squalor of the American South, and became one of the greatest songwriters this nation has ever known, penning such enduring classics as "Jambalaya (On the bayou)," "I'm So Lonesome I Could Cry," "Lovesick Blues," "Your Cheatin' Heart," "Move It On Over," "Hey, Good Lookin'" and countless others that are still sung now because they remain every bit as contemporary as when Williams himself recorded them more than 60 years ago. Considering the number of artists who have integrated his songs into their own set lists -- Bob Dylan, Willie Nelson, Elvis Presley, Johnny Cash, Tony Bennett, Patsy Cline, Ray Charles, Jerry Lee Lewis, Louis Armstrong, Tom Petty, Linda Ronstadt, Sheryl Crow, Norah Jones, Emmylou Harris, Elvis Costello, Lucinda Williams, Norah Jones and Isaac Hayes, being but a few -- it's obvious why Williams' legacy lives on.
Follow County Grind on Facebook and Twitter: @CountyGrind.