Stamp of the Month: September 2023

Hank Williams

USA 9.6.1993

American country musician and songwriter Hiram “Hank” King Williams Sr. was born on September 17, 1923 in Mount Olive, Alabama. He died on January 1, 1953 in Oak Hill, West Virginia. September 2023 will be his 100th birthday.

Hank Williams performed with the band The Drifting Cowboys as a teenager. In 1939 he began working for the local radio

station WSFA and soon had his own show there. The influential songwriter and producer Fred Rose enabled Williams to record a first single in 1946, the success of which earned him a record deal with MGM Records. In the same year he became a permanent member of the radio show Louisiana Hayride, which was broadcast throughout the southern United States. In 1949, Hank Williams made his debut on the most famous country show, the Grand Ole Opry in Nashville. He was the first artist to give six encores during his appearance on this live broadcast.

However, as early as the early 1940s, Hank Williams showed the first signs of alcohol addiction. The expulsion from the broadcaster WSFA was followed in 1952 by the exclusion from the Grand Ole Opry.

Despite these problems, Hank Williams is still considered one of the finest singer-songwriters and one of the most influential figures in country music history. A star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame and induction into the Country Music Hall of Fame recognize his work.

Antigua & Barbuda 18.8.1994

The video shows Hank Williams performing one of his most famous songs “Cold, cold Heart” from 1951 on a television show in 1952.