The Hank Williams Death Car
Hank Williams was the first true country superstar. But his fame came at a cost.
Written by Alex Reale
Reviewed by Lisa Steuer McArdle
Table of Contents
Famous musicians across history have lost their lives after being involved in deadly car crashes, including Keith Godchaux of the Grateful Dead, Duane Allman and Berry Oakley of the Allman Brothers, and Cliff Burton of Metallica.
One country icon doesn’t quite make this very sad list, but his death still involved a car. Hank Williams died in the backseat of an intact
Cadillac
.Country music’s first superstar
Remembered for what
Britannica
calls “plaintive, bluesy phrasing” and uncomplicated, memorable melodies that fused honky-tonk and blues, the future country superstar Hank Williams was born in 1923 in Alabama. He found music at a young age. Britannica reports that Williams first began learning guitar at age 8, and by the time he was 14 he had formed his first band. This precociousness set him on a path to stardom. In 1947 he got his first number one hit with “Move It On Over.”
A move to Nashville two years later, says
The Country Music Hall of Fame
, launched him into the realm of true stardom, as he churned out hit after hit. By 1950 and 1951 he had become “one of the most successful touring acts in country music,” and pop musicians began to cover his songs. Star singer Tony Bennett covered “Cold, Cold Heart” in 1951, a strong sign that Williams had officially entered the popular American consciousness.
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A painful background
But fame and fortune masked a lot of darkness. Williams suffered from back pain, alcoholism, and issues with his marriage to Audrey Sheppard, says The Country Music Hall of Fame. By 1952, he was divorced, and was clearly struggling with substance abuse issues. Despite this, he managed to keep singing and playing—even getting a huge hit in the release of “Jambalaya” in July.
In late December of that year, he got into the backseat of a pale blue 1952 Cadillac, ready to be chauffeured to West Virginia for a gig. The chauffeur Williams had hired, a college freshman and friend of the Williams family named Charles Carr, recalled that Williams had taken a shot of morphine to help with his back pain before they left, reports
LA Times
. Williams also had a “sleep aid that can slow the heart” with him. Carr noticed that Williams was unresponsive when he reached back to the backseat to put a blanket on him, says LA Times. The 29-year-old country star was dead. Carr called Williams’s mother and remembered that among the things she said was “Don’t let anything happen to the car.”
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The Cadillac lives on
Carr was apparently true to his word, as the Cadillac is perfectly preserved in the Hank Williams Museum in Montgomery, Alabama, says
Atlas Obscura
. Fans of the late, great country singer can go see where he took his last ride. And you can blast “Cold, Cold Heart” in tribute all along the way.Jerry
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