Hank Williams III

born on 12/12/1972 in Nashville, TN, United States

Hank Williams III

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
Hank Williams III
Birth name Shelton Hank Williams
Born December 12 1972
Nashville, Tennessee
Genres Alt-country, heavy metal, punk rock
Occupations Singer-songwriter, guitarist, bassist, drummer
Instruments Vocals, guitar, bass, drums Keyboards
Years active 1991–present
Labels Curb Records, Sanctuary Records, Bruc Records, Sidewalk Records, MRI Distribution, Hank3 Records
Associated acts Assjack
Arson Anthem
Attention Deficit Domination
Superjoint Ritual
Whipping Post
Bedwetter
Salida
BuzzKill
Website Official Website
Notable instruments
"Last Badass Gibson ES-175
Guild Acoustics and Nightbird Solidbody
Fryette Pitbull
Crate BV300H
Randall RG100

Shelton Hank Williams, known as Hank 3 (born December 12, 1972), is the grandson of country music legend Hank Williams and the son of Hank Williams Jr., he is one of the most prominent musicians to play neotraditional country in a country music market dominated by pop country. In addition to his honky tonk recordings, Williams' style alternates between punk and metal. He is the principal member of the punk metal band Assjack, the drummer for the Southern hardcore punk band Arson Anthem, and was the bassist for Pantera singer Phil Anselmo's band Superjoint Ritual. He has released seven studio albums, including five for Curb Records.

Early career

Hank Williams III spent much of his early career playing drums in punk rock bands during the late 1980s and early to mid 1990s. Three years after a one night stand in 1995, Hank Williams III was served papers on stage while opening for the underground band Buzzoven. The judge told Williams that playing music was no real job and to come up with $60,000 in overdue child support. To avoid being branded as a deadbeat dad, Williams signed a contract with Nashville, Tennessee, music industry giant Curb Records to pay off the debt. Three Hanks: Men With Broken Hearts was issued shortly thereafter, which spliced together recordings to make it seem that three generations of Williams men were singing alongside one another. In the late 1980s, upon first meeting Hank Williams III, Minnie Pearl, a friend of the late Hank Williams Sr., reportedly said "Lord, honey, you're a ghost," as she was astonished by his striking resemblance to his grandfather.[1]

Risin' Outlaw and contract issues (1999-2004)

Hank Williams III first solo album, Risin' Outlaw, was released in September 1999 to respectable sales and strong reviews. While his name (and his uncanny vocal and physical resemblances to his grandfather) could have guaranteed Williams a thriving country audience, he had little 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 his songs "Trashville" and "Dick in Dixie."

Williams' live shows typically follow a Jekyll and Hyde format: a country music set featuring fiddle player Adam McOwen and slide guitar player Andy Gibson, followed by a hellbilly set, and then an Assjack set. He plays both the country and the psychobilly with his "Damn Band." Assjack produces a very different sound than either, mixing heavy doses of metalcore, psychobilly, and hardcore punk.

The lineup for Assjack includes the addition of supplemental vocalist Gary Lindsey, bassist Zach Shedd switching from upright to electric bass, and the departure of his fiddle and slide guitar players. McOwen's predecessor was fellow-fiddle-player Michael "Fiddleboy" McCanless, who would play all three sets, adding traditional violin for the country set of the concert before plugging his instrument into an amplifier and distortion unit for later sets. Another former band member was guitarist Duane Denison, previously with The Jesus Lizard, who left The Damn Band and Assjack in January 2001 and later that year formed Tomahawk.

Williams has had significant contractual conflicts with Curb Records. He expressed dissatisfaction with his debut, and reportedly the label was unwilling to release his appropriately named This Ain't Country LP, nor to allow him to issue it on another record label. In response, Williams began making t-shirts stating "Fuck Curb." Also during this era, Williams played bass guitar in heavy metal band Superjoint Ritual, a now-defunct band led by former Pantera vocalist Phil Anselmo.

Thrown out of the Bar and Straight to Hell (2004-06)

In late 2004 Thrown Out of the Bar was slated for release, but Curb opted not to issue it. Williams and label executive Mike Curb would be in and out of court for the next year before a judge ruled in favor of Williams in the spring of 2005, demanding that Curb release the album. Shortly thereafter Williams and Curb came to terms, and Williams dropped his "Fuck Curb" campaign. Bar was reworked into Straight to Hell, released on Curbs rock imprint, Bruc. Battles with Wal-Mart delayed the appearance of this album, which was released on February 28, 2006 as a two-disc set in two formats: a censored version (for Wal-Mart), and an uncensored version that was the first major-label country album ever to bear a parental advisory warning. One of the songs, "Pills I Took", was written by a little-known Wisconsin group called Those Poor Bastards, who originally released the song on their 2004 CD Country Bullshit.[2]

Recent work (2007-present)

Williams recently played drums for Arson Anthem, formed with Phil Anselmo and Mike Williams of the sludge band Eyehategod.[3]

Williams released his long awaited punk-metal album AssJack on August 4, 2009.

His next album, Rebel Within, was released in May 2010.[4] It charted at number 20 in Billboard magazine.

Williams' former label Curb Records released Hillbilly Joker on May 17, 2011; this is his last release with the label. Williams had been involved in a long contract dispute with his Curb Records after the company refused to release his punk inspired CD This Ain't Country. Several of the songs on Hillbilly Joker had been available as bootlegs, some of them for nearly ten years. When asked about the Hillbilly Joker being released, Williams replied "don't buy it, but get it some other way and burn the hell out of it and give it to everyone."

On May 18th 2011, it was posted on III's web site that he is busy making new material / album which could be released very soon.[5]

On June 23rd 2011, it was posted on III's personal Facebook that he would be releasing four new cd's on Sept 6th 2011. It said to expect Country, Doom-Rock , Speed Metal with Cattle Callin on the releases.It also said that they would be released on III's own record label Hank III Records.

Discography

Main article: Hank Williams III discography
  • Three Hanks: Men With Broken Hearts (1996)
  • Risin' Outlaw (1999)
  • Lovesick, Broke and Driftin' (2002)
  • Straight to Hell (2006)
  • Damn Right, Rebel Proud (2008)
  • Rebel Within (2010)
  • Hillbilly Joker (2011)
  • New Releases Coming Sept 6th (2011)

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)
  • Grand Ole Opry at The Ryman Auditorium: Tribute to Hank Williams Sr. (2003)
  • Superjoint Ritual- Use Once and Destroy (2002)
  • Superjoint Ritual- A Lethal Dose of American Hatred (featuring Phil Anselmo on guitar and vocals, Jimmy Bower on Four-String Sonex, Joe Fazzio on drums and Hank III on bass) (2003)
  • Stars & Guitars (Willie Nelson and Friends backing vocals (w/Keith Richards and Ryan Adams) on "Dead Flowers") (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)
  • Everybody Loves ANTiSEEN: A Loving Tribute To The Boys From Brutalsville (contributing track: "Ruby, Get back to the hills") (2006)
  • For the Sick: A Tribute To EyeHateGod (contributing tracks: "Take as Needed for Pain" and "Torn Between Suicide and Breakfast"; credited as The Unholy 3) (2007)
  • Arson Anthem self titled (2008) (featuring Phil Anselmo on guitar, Mike Williams on vocals and Hank 3 on drums)
  • Arson Anthem Insecurity Notoriety(Oct 12,2010 release) (featuring Phil Anselmo on guitar, Mike Williams on vocals and Hank 3 on drums)
  • "The Wild and Wonderful Whites of West Virginia"
  • Rare Breed: The Songs Of Peter La Farge(2010) (contributing track: "Marijuana Blues")

References

  1. http://www.bullz-eye.com/music/interviews/2008/hank_williams_iii.htm
  2. Popmatters music review
  3. Metal News - Superjoint Ritual Is No More ( Metal Underground . com )
  4. [1]
  5. http://hank3.com/::: May 18 ::: Still lot's of twistin' and tweakin' goin' on at the Haunted Ranch - news of new material could be coming soon, so be sure to keep watch here, the official YouTube Channel (often updated by III himself), and III's personal Facebook page - the ONLY "official" page on Facebook.

External links

This page was last modified 23.06.2011 15:11:02

This article uses material from the article Hank Williams III from the free encyclopedia Wikipedia and it is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License.