Hank Williams--Hey Good Lookin' (1951)

     As a child, I remember the two album set that my daddy owned. It had a purple label and the music was a foreign to me as anything I had ever heard. At the time my listening experiences had been AM radio, and dad listened to country, but nothing had prepared me for hearing this yodeling and this voice that seemed to bounce around like a yo-yo at times. But there was something sweet about the vocals, actually it was downright poetic....that was my first introduction to Hank Williams Sr.

      One of the reasons that Hank Sr is still seen as the touchstones of country music  was his ability to take the life and loves of common folk and boil it down in a lyrical style that is almost poetic. His mannerism and vocal delivery screams country, but the songs themselves go far beyond classification. This was to his advantage as many pop singers covered his songs, but it also laid the foundation down for every singer/songwriter who wanted to be "of the people". Merle Haggard, Kris Kristofferson, Willie Nelson,  Garth Brooks all have Hank as their lyrical touchstone.

       It's hard to imagine what country music would have been like had Williams not died so young. On the other hand, his legend might not have been as secured if his passing not been while he was still churning out classic songs. For those who are living now on a diet of what "country radio" has and you want to hear what real country was all about....start right here.

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Sunday Morning Vault: Les Paul/Mary Ford--How High The Moon (1951)

      Usually this spot on Sunday morning is reserved for a song and/or artist that has been forgotten. Today is different as I wanted to put a spotlight on a legend and innovator who's birthday was remembered a few days ago....

       Les Paul didn't invent the electric guitar, but his version of it's design, his innovations that brought distinct sounds to popular music, and his actual playing prowess easily gives him the title, "Father of the Electric Guitar". Paul was one who not only had ideas, but loved to tinker with possible solutions to the problem. For instance, when he was a boy, the harmonica was his first instrument. As he learned to play the guitar, he needed a way to hold the harmonica, so as a young teenager, he fashioned a holder for it, that, in it's basic form is the still being used today by artists of all genres.

       In the late 40's he began experiments with overdubbing and, over the years would develop tape delay and phasing effects into his recordings. He was also a groundbreaking guitar player as well, his style and musical licks put him in a class by himself. What is even more extraordinary was the fact that, after a car accident which left him with extensive injuries, including his right arm, he instructed doctors to set his elbow at a permanent 90 degree angle rather than have it amputated. He would never be able to straighten it again.

         "How High The Moon", sung by his then wife Mary Ford, shows off the skill, style, and innovation that would influenced anyone who strapped on an electric guitar. Rock and Roll would not be what it is today without him.....

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