A fourth generation performer sprouting from the Hank Williams Family Tree has officially presented himself with Hank Williams III’s son Coleman Williams and his band IV and The Strange Band.
This EP establishes that Hank Williams IV is not just a lark. No matter where he fits in the Hank Williams legacy, Ricky Fitzgerald fits somewhere, and that helps ensure the future of that legacy.
For two days before the awards show transpired, performances took place at the stately Guesthouse at Graceland in Memphis showcasing some of the greatest up-and-coming and independent talent from country, roots, and rockabilly—or “Ameripolitan” as we call it in this instance.
50 years ago today on December 12th, 1972, Randall Hank Williams Jr. and his wife Gwyn Yeargain welcomed their first and only child into the world. Keeping with the family tradition, they gave him the middle name of Hank, with his full christening taking shape as Shelton Hank Williams III.
The sonic baseline for Southern Circus is the stuff Coleman’s father calls Hellbilly music. But ‘Southern Circus’ is surprisingly omnivorous and diverse from there, and favorably so, mixing in more understated songwriting material than you expect, including songs that are a bit more purposeful.
A fourth generation of the Hank Williams lineage will officially be crowned when IV and the Strange Band featuring Coleman Williams release their debut album ‘Southern Circus’ on June 17th via the Black Country Rock label owned by Shooter Jennings.
The bloodlines of Jennings and Williams are running together once again as the great grandson of Hank Williams, grandson of Hank Jr., and the son of Hank Williams III has signed with the record label of the son of Waylon Jennings, Black Country Rock.
Could it be that the most important and influential bloodline in country music history actually has a lost branch? Country History X Episode #11 delves into this complicated and convoluted story, while now a 4th generation of performers have emerged looking to carry on Hank’s name.
A famous family name in country music is both the greatest asset one can hold, and the most unbelievably burdensome yoke from the expectations it foists upon you. At 30 years old, the son of Shelton Hank Williams III has decided to throw his hat in the ring.