Family Tradition (album)

Family Tradition
Family Tradition
Studio album by Hank Williams Jr.
Released	April 17, 1979
Recorded	1978
Studio	Wally Heider Recording Studio, Los Angeles; Heritage Studios, Hollywood; Sound Labs, Hollywood; Woodland Studios, East Nashville; Glaser/Wishbone Studios, Nashville
Genre	Country
Length	31:13
Label	Elektra/Curb
Producer	Jimmy Bowen (tracks 6-9); Phil Gernhard (track 10); Ray Ruff (tracks 1-5)
Hank Williams Jr. chronology
Singles from Family Tradition
	"I Fought the Law"; Released: 1978; "Old Flame, New Love"; Released: 1978; "Family Tradition"; Released: May 28, 1979; "To Love Somebody"; Released: January 1979;

Professional ratings
Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	^[1]
Christgau's Record Guide	C^[2]

Family Tradition is the twenty-ninth studio album by American musician Hank Williams Jr. It was released in April 1979 by Curb Records, his third studio album for the label.

Composition

Family Tradition shows influences from R&B and soul music.^[1]

Critical and commercial success

Family Tradition was a significant success, both critically and commercially for Williams. It peaked at number 3 on the Billboard Top Country Albums chart, making it Williams' first Top 5 album since 1969's Live at Cobo Hall. Four of the ten tracks were released as singles, the first single being "I Fought the Law". "I Fought the Law" was originally a hit for the rock & roll group The Bobby Fuller Four in the early 1960s and the song was a moderate success for Williams, peaking at number 15 on the Billboard Hot Country Singles & Tracks chart. The follow-up singles, "Old Flame, New Fire" and "To Love Somebody" had little success, only peaking at number 54 and number 49 respectively. The final single, the album's title track, "Family Tradition", would become one of Williams' most popular and recognized songs. It peaked at number 4 on the Hot Country Singles & Tracks chart, his first Top 10 single since 1974. Williams' performance received rave reviews by critics and he received his first Grammy nomination for Best Country Vocal Performance, Male. The album was also a significant commercial success for Williams, becoming only his second album to be certified Gold by the RIAA.

Track listing

All music is composed by Hank Williams Jr., except where noted

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
1.	"To Love Somebody"	Barry Gibb, Maurice Gibb, Robin Gibb	3:08
2.	"Old Flame, New Fire"	Oskar Solomon	2:37
3.	"Always Loving You"	Steve Young	4:26
4.	"We Can Work It All Out"		2:20
5.	"I Fought the Law"	Sonny Curtis	2:25
6.	"Family Tradition"		4:01
7.	"Only Daddy That'll Walk the Line"	Jimmy Bryant	3:18
8.	"Paying on Time"	Allen Reynolds, Hank Williams Jr.	3:13
9.	"I've Got Rights"		3:35
10.	"I Just Ain't Been Able"		2:35

Singles

Year	Single	US Country
1978	"I Fought the Law"	15
1978	"Old Flame, New Fire"	54
1979	"To Love Somebody"	49
1979	"Family Tradition"	4

Personnel

Hank Williams, Jr. - vocals, guitar
Reggie Young - electric guitar
Al Bruno, Jay Graydon, Jerry Wallace - guitar
Mac McAnally, Richard Bennett - acoustic guitar
Brad Felton - steel guitar
Bob Wray, Ray Pohlman, Reinie Press - bass
Charlie Daniels - fiddle
Alan Lindgren, Clayton Ivey, Don Randi, Greg Mathieson - keyboards
Billy M. Thomas, Chet McCracken, Roger Clark - drums
King Errisson - percussion
Muscle Shoals Horns - horns
Carol Chase, Jim Dugan, Karen McClain, Pam Johnze, Pat Erickson, Susie Allanson - background vocals
David Turner, Henry Ferber, James Getzoff, Murray Adler, Robert Lee Adcock, Sid Sharp, William Kurasch - violin
Jesse Ehrlich, Judy Perett, Raymond Kelley, Robert Lee Adcock - cello
Richard Hieronymus, John D'Andrea - arrangements

Technical

Jerry Hall, Leslie King, Mary Beth McLemore, Michael Lietz, Ron Treat - engineer
Jim Shea - photography

Charts

Weekly charts

Chart (1979)	Peak position
US Top Country Albums (Billboard)^[3]	3

Year-end charts

Chart (1979)	Position
US Top Country Albums (Billboard)^[4]	42
Chart (1980)	Position
US Top Country Albums (Billboard)^[5]	8

References

Notes

^ ^a ^b Jurek, Thom. "Family Tradition". AllMusic. Retrieved 2022-04-21.
^ Christgau, Robert (1981). "Consumer Guide '70s: W". Christgau's Record Guide: Rock Albums of the Seventies. Ticknor & Fields. ISBN 089919026X. Retrieved March 22, 2019 – via robertchristgau.com.
^ "Hank Williams Jr. Chart History (Top Country Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved March 10, 2021.
^ "Top Country Albums – Year-End 1979". Billboard. Retrieved March 10, 2021.
^ "Top Country Albums – Year-End 1980". Billboard. Retrieved March 10, 2021.

Sources

Family Tradition album at CMT.com

[AM-1] Jurek, Thom. "Family Tradition". AllMusic. Retrieved 2022-04-21.

[CG-2] Christgau, Robert (1981). "Consumer Guide '70s: W". Christgau's Record Guide: Rock Albums of the Seventies. Ticknor & Fields. ISBN 089919026X. Retrieved March 22, 2019 – via robertchristgau.com.

[ac_BillboardCountry_Hank_Williams_Jr.-3] "Hank Williams Jr. Chart History (Top Country Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved March 10, 2021.

[4] "Top Country Albums – Year-End 1979". Billboard. Retrieved March 10, 2021.

[5] "Top Country Albums – Year-End 1980". Billboard. Retrieved March 10, 2021.

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v t e Hank Williams Jr.
Studio albums	Your Cheatin' Heart Connie Francis and Hank Williams Jr. Sing Great Country Favorites Ballads of the Hills and Plains Blues My Name A Time to Sing Songs My Father Left Me Luke the Drifter Jr. – Vol. 2 Live at Cobo Hall After You, Pride's Not Hard to Swallow Hank Williams Jr. and Friends Family Tradition Whiskey Bent and Hell Bound Habits Old and New Rowdy The Pressure Is On High Notes Strong Stuff Man of Steel Major Moves Five-O Montana Cafe Hank Live Born to Boogie Wild Streak Lone Wolf Pure Hank Maverick Out of Left Field Hog Wild A.K.A. Wham Bam Sam Three Hanks: Men with Broken Hearts Stormy The Almeria Club Recordings I'm One of You 127 Rose Avenue It's About Time Rich White Honky Blues
Compilation albums	Greatest Hits Greatest Hits Vol. 2 Fourteen Greatest Hits Hank Williams Jr.'s Greatest Hits Hank Williams Jr.'s Greatest Hits, Vol. 2 Greatest Hits, Vol. 3 America (The Way I See It) The Best of Hank Williams Jr. Volume One: Roots and Branches Tribute to My Father 20 Hits Special Collection, Vol. 1 Early Years, Vol. 1 Early Years, Vol. 2 The Bocephus Box That's How They Do It in Dixie: The Essential Collection
Notable singles	"Long Gone Lonesome Blues" "Nobody's Child" "All for the Love of Sunshine" "So Sad (To Watch Good Love Go Bad)" (with Lois Johnson) "Rainin' in My Heart" "Eleven Roses" "Rainy Night in Georgia" "I'll Think of Something" "I Fought the Law" "To Love Somebody" "Family Tradition" "Whiskey Bent and Hell Bound" "Women I've Never Had" "Kaw-Liga" "Old Habits" "Texas Women" "Dixie on My Mind" "All My Rowdy Friends (Have Settled Down)" "A Country Boy Can Survive" "Honky Tonkin'" "The American Dream" "Gonna Go Huntin' Tonight" "Leave Them Boys Alone" (with Ernest Tubb and Waylon Jennings) "Queen of My Heart" "Man of Steel" "Attitude Adjustment" "All My Rowdy Friends Are Coming Over Tonight" "Major Moves" "I'm for Love" "This Ain't Dallas" "Ain't Misbehavin'" "Country State of Mind" "Mind Your Own Business" (with Reba McEntire, Tom Petty, Reverend Ike and Willie Nelson) "Born to Boogie" "Heaven Can't Be Found" "Young Country" "If the South Woulda Won" "Early in the Morning and Late at Night" "There's a Tear in My Beer" (with Hank Williams Sr.) "Finders Are Keepers" "Ain't Nobody's Business" "Good Friends, Good Whiskey, Good Lovin'" "If It Will, It Will" "Devil in the Bottle" "Are You Ready for the Country?" (with Eric Church)
Guest singles	"The Conversation" (with Waylon Jennings) "That Old Wheel" (with Johnny Cash) "Bartender Song (Sittin' at a Bar)" (with Rehab)
Family	Hank Williams (father) Audrey Williams (mother) Jett Williams (half-sister) Hank Williams III (son) Holly Williams (daughter) Sam Williams (son) Coleman Williams (grandson)
Related articles	Discography Living Proof: The Hank Williams Jr. Story