Tag: Hank Williams

Sam Williams: “Can’t Fool Your Own Blood” (Song of the Day)

Sam Williams, the youngest grandson of Hank Williams, released his debut album featuring the mesmerizing track, “Can’t Fool Your Own Blood.”

Sam Williams Can't Fool

Sam Williams has a last name with a lot of musical history. The grandson of Hank Williams and the son of Hank Williams Jr., Williams is carving his own musical trail. With songs encompassing rock, folk, and country, Williams released a debut full album in 2021, Glasshouse Children. One of my favorite tracks from the album is “Can’t Fool Your Own Blood.”

And you can lie to a liar,
Go ahead and flame the fire,
And Burn down everything you love;
You can steal from a thief,
I’ll act like I believe,
But you can’t fool your own blood.

One might be tempted to speculate that the heavy weight of being in a legendary family has led Sam Williams to reflect on what a family means. And is that a reference to Hank’s “Lost Highway” in the line, “And then the lost highway claims me its own.”

But the song is after something more universal. Beginning with the portrait of an alcoholic mother, the song remarks on how you might be able to hide a lot from the world, but ultimately you can’t hide from those that know you best.

It’s a stunning song on a wonderful debut album from a young artist. Here’s hoping we have Sam Williams around for a long time.

Leave your two cents in the comments.

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  • Hank Williams Live Show from July 1952 (Audio)
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  • The Irresistible Rhythm and Harmonies of The Cactus Blossoms
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  • Preview of Tom Hiddleston as Hank Williams
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    Hank Williams Live Show from July 1952 (Audio)

    Listen to a live performance by Hank Williams from July 1952 in Pennsylvania.

    Hank Williams Live Show

    I have been listening to the recent six-CD release of Hank Williams performances from The Mother’s Best radio shows as well as reading a biography. So, I cannot get enough Hank. There are not a lot of live performance recordings so I was happy to find this gem.

    Below is the audio from Hank Williams performing on July 13, 1952 at Sunset Park in West Grove Pennsylvania. In less than six months, the great singer-songwriter, who was born on September 17, 1923, would be dead on January 1, 1953.

    By the time of the 1952 performance, alcohol and heart problems were already haunting Williams, nipping at his heels. But his legendary talent was still on full display. So check out this live performance.

    Leave your two cents in the comments.

  • Sam Williams: “Can’t Fool Your Own Blood” (Song of the Day)
  • D.L. Menard: “The Back Door”
  • The Irresistible Rhythm and Harmonies of The Cactus Blossoms
  • Trailer for Hank Williams Biopic “I Saw the Light”
  • Preview of Tom Hiddleston as Hank Williams
  • Marty Brown Plays “I’m So Lonesome I Could Cry” in Hank Williams Studio
    • ( Some related Chimesfreedom posts.)

    D.L. Menard: “The Back Door”

    The Back Door Cajun music singer-songwriter D.L. Menard recently passed away on July 27, 2017. By all reports, Menard was a warm and engaging man who always had time for his fans. His most popular recordings include “Under the Oak Tree,” “Rebecca Ann,” “Bachelor’s Life,” “La Valse de Jolly Rogers,” and “She Didn’t Know I Was Married.” But his most endearing legacy may be “The Back Door” (“La Porte En Arrière”) which he wrote and performed for audiences around the world.

    Menard was born Doris Leon Menard in Erath, Louisiana on April 14, 1932. He began performing music at the age of 17, and he met Hank Williams at the age of 18. Menard, who continued through his musical career to work as a craftsman, became a world-wide ambassador for Cajun music, so that he is sometimes called “The Cajun Hank Williams.”

    “The Back Door” (“La Porte en Arrière”)

    He wrote his biggest hit, “The Back Door,” during a shift working at a gas station. Menard’s song is about sneaking back home after a night of partying. It became a hit in 1962.  And music fans today recognize the song as one of the most popular Cajun songs of all time.

    Menard talks about “The Back Door” and then performs it in the video below. Even if you do not recognize the title of the song, you might recognize it once you hear it. Either way, it will make you want to get up and two-step.

    Menard drew inspiration for “The Back Door” from Hank Williams’ “Honky Tonk Blues.” In the audio recording below, Williams sings “Honky Tonk Blues” live at The Grand Ole Opry in 1952.

    You may hear a connection in the liveliness of both songs.  Check out the Hank Williams song.

    In 2014, Rolling Stone listed Menard’s “The Back Door” (“La Porte en Arrière”) as the 72nd greatest country song of all time. It was even ahead of that other wonderful Cajan classic, Harry Coates’ “Jole Blon,” which was at 99 (and which even Bruce Springsteen recorded with Gary U.S. Bonds).

    What is your favorite D.L. Menard song? Leave your two cents in the comments.

  • Sam Williams: “Can’t Fool Your Own Blood” (Song of the Day)
  • Hank Williams Live Show from July 1952 (Audio)
  • The Irresistible Rhythm and Harmonies of The Cactus Blossoms
  • Trailer for Hank Williams Biopic “I Saw the Light”
  • Preview of Tom Hiddleston as Hank Williams
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    The Irresistible Rhythm and Harmonies of The Cactus Blossoms

    You're Dreaming Brothers Jack Torrey and Page Burkum of The Cactus Blossoms create some great harmonies reminiscent of another pair, The Everly Brothers. The Cactus Blossoms’ new debut album You’re Dreaming, featuring mostly songs written by each of the brothers, is essential listening for classic country fans.

    On The Cactus Blossoms’ website, the brothers discuss how as Minnesota teenagers they began to be enthralled by pre-1960s country music. They explain, “We weren’t born in the wrong era. We just got into some music from a different era and found a way to make it our own.”

    I am always a sucker for tight country vocals that blend well, and there is something about the way that brothers can sing together. Burkham explains to Rolling Stone, though, that he thinks the brotherly bond adds to the music in another way: their sense of rhythm. He reasons, “If you have two good singers who aren’t related, they can both hit beautiful notes together, but if their timing is different or the way they breathe is different, it will have a harder time linking up.”

    See what you think of their vocals and their rhythm. Below is “Stoplight Kisses” from You’re Dreaming.

    In this video, the brothers perform “Here Today, Gone Tomorrow” at Rhythm & Roots. If you hear a little of the ghost of Hank Williams, you are not alone.

    You’re Dreaming was produced by rockabilly singer-songwriter JD McPherson and released January 22, 2016.

    Leave your two cents in the comments.

  • Sam Williams: “Can’t Fool Your Own Blood” (Song of the Day)
  • Hank Williams Live Show from July 1952 (Audio)
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  • D.L. Menard: “The Back Door”
  • Trailer for Hank Williams Biopic “I Saw the Light”
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    Trailer for Hank Williams Biopic “I Saw the Light”

    Hank Williams Movie

    Earlier this year, we saw a short preview of actor Tom Hiddleston as country music legend Hank Williams in the upcoming movie I Saw the Light. Now, we get a longer look at the Hank Williams biopic in a new trailer.

    Hiddleston did all of his own singing in the film, so in the two-minute trailer, we hear Hiddleston singing Williams’s 1951 song “Hey Good Lookin’.” The clip also illustrates that the movie explores Williams’s turbulent love life and problems with alcoholism. Check it out.

    I Saw the Light hits theaters in general release on March 25, 2016.

    What do you think of the trailer for the Hank Williams movie? Leave your two cents in the comments.

  • Preview of Tom Hiddleston as Hank Williams
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  • Sam Williams: “Can’t Fool Your Own Blood” (Song of the Day)
  • Hank Williams Live Show from July 1952 (Audio)
  • D.L. Menard: “The Back Door”

    • (Some related Chimesfreedom posts.)