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Hank Williams III

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Hank Williams III

Shelton Hank Williams (born December 12, 1972, in Nashville, Tennessee) is an American musician. He is sometimes credited as Hank III or even III. The three is often represented by a modified version of Raymond Pettibon's Black Flag logo.

The grandson of Hank Williams, Sr. and the son of Hank Williams Jr, he spent much of his early years playing drums in punk rock bands. In 1996, child support payments led Hank III to sign a contract with Nashville, Tennessee giant Curb Records. Three Hanks: Men With Broken Hearts was issued shortly thereafter, which brought the voices of all three generations of Williams men together. While this may seem to be a nice beginning, it was quite different from what Hank III himself desired musically. Despite having been born in Nashville, Tennessee, Hank III has never had a preference for mainstream Country.

While his name (and his uncanny vocal and physical resemblances to his grandfather) could have guaranteed him a thriving Country audience, he had no patience for the often predictable Nashville sound, nor for even the minimal constraints on behavior his promoters required. His opinions on this subject are well summed up in the songs "Trashville" and "Dick in Dixie."

His first album on his own, titled Risin' Outlaw, was released in September 1999. Lovesick, Broke and Driftin' was released in 2002. He had a great deal of trouble with his label. Reportedly the label was unwilling to release his appropriately named This Ain't Country LP, nor allow him Hank III to issue it alone. The label was also upset that he sold t-shirts that read "Fuck Curb.".

In late 2004, Thrown Out of the Bar was slated for release but Curb opted not to release it. Hank III and label executive Mike Curb would be in and out of court for the next year, and the judge ruled in favor of Hank III in the spring of 2005, demanding that Curb release the album. Shortly thereafter, Hank III and Curb came to terms, and Hank III dropped his "Fuck Curb" campaign. Bar was reworked into Straight to Hell.

Battles with Wal-Mart had delayed the release of his third studio album, titled Straight To Hell, which was released on February 28, 2006 as a two-disc set in two formats: a clean version (for Wal-Mart), and an uncensored version, which will be the first major-label Country album to bear a parental advisory warning.

Currently, Hank III is touring in support of Straight To Hell, and has been overheard claiming that a rock record (presumably under the moniker of Assjack) will finally see the light of day in less than a year, followed by a new country album.

Notable facts

  • Hank III enjoys an extremely loyal grassroots fan base and much of his success can be attributed to his taper-friendly stance regarding the audio/videotaping of his frenetic live shows, which have been his main promotional vehicle with the lack of attention paid to his promotion by the Curb label.
  • Live shows follow a "Jekyll and Hyde" format of a country set followed by a hellbilly set, and then an Assjack set. He plays country and hellbilly with his "Damn Band" and produces a very different sound with Assjack, which is a punk metal band. The lineup for Assjack, includes the addition of supplemental vocalist, Gary Lindsey, bassist JoeBuck switching from upright to electric bass, and the departure of his fiddle and slide guitar players.
  • Hank III has recorded the tracks "87 Southbound" and "Thunderstorms and Neon Signs", which were penned by Wayne Hancock, a musician who is often compared to him.
  • The song titled "Pills I Took" on Straight to Hell is a cover of a song originally by Those Poor Bastards.
  • In the past, The Damn Band/Assjack also featured fiddle-player extraordinaire Michael "Fiddleboy" McCanless, who would play both sets, the traditional country set of the concert and then come back and plug his fiddle into a distortion box and saw away during the metal set.
  • Upon first meeting Hank III, Minnie Pearl, a friend of Hank Williams Sr., said "Lord, Honey, you're a ghost," as she was astonished by his striking resemblance to his grandfather.
  • Hank III appears in the film Southlander: Diary of a Desperate Musician (2001) [3]

Discography

Albums

Other releases

  • Hank III Says Fuck You (cassette) (2000)
  • Bootleg No.1|Bootleg #1 (2000)
  • Life Of Sin/Hellbilly 7" (2000)
  • Bootleg No.2|Bootleg #2 (2001)
  • Live In Scotland (2001)
  • This Ain't Country (bootleg) (2001)
  • Bootleg No.3 Pre-Release|Bootleg #3 Pre-Release (2002)
  • Bootleg No.3 (2005)
  • Pills I Took Split 7" Vinyl With Those Poor Bastards (2006)
  • Ruby Get Back To The Hills Split 7" Vinyl With ANTiSEEN (2006)

Other appearances

  • Badlands: A Tribute To Bruce Springsteen's Nebraska (contributing track: "Atlantic City") (2000)
  • Driven Soundtrack (contributing track: "Hang On") (2001)
  • Timeless: A Tribute To Hank Williams (contributing track: "I'm A Long Gone Daddy") (2001)
  • Sharp Dressed Man: A Tribute To ZZ Top (contributing track: "Fearless Boogie") (2002)
  • The Crybaby (The Melvins, Vocals and Guitar on Ramblin' Man, Vocals on Okie From Muskogee) (2000)
  • Dressed In Black: A Tribute To Johnny Cash (contributing track: "Wreck Of The Old 97") (2002)
  • Live In London... England (Dale Watson Backing Vocals on Country My Ass) (2002)
  • Rise Above: 24 Black Flag Songs To Benefit The West Memphis Three (No Values) (2002)
  • Stars & Guitars (Willie Nelson and Friends Vocals on Dead Flowers and Move It On Over) (2003)
  • Touch My Heart: A Tribute To Johnny PayCheck (contributing track: "I'm The Only Hell My Mama Ever Raised") (2004)
  • Rebel Meets Rebel (Rebel Meets Rebel (David Allan Coe and Pantera), Vocals on "Get Outta My Life") (2006)
  • 50 Years Too Late (Joey Allcorn, Vocals on This Ain't Montgomery) (2006)
  • Everybody Loves ANTiSEEN: A Loving Tribute To The Boys From Brutalsville (contributing track: "Ruby, Get back to the hills") (2006)

Interviews

Reviews

Fans

Misc.

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