A piece of easy mastery, “Long Gone Lonesome Blues” crystallizes loads of the traits which have made Hank Williams’ recordings so enduring. It’s a conventional blues with a laconic honky-tonker’s tempo and straightforward, dancefloor-ready really feel; Williams’ blue yodel is out in full pressure and it’s contrasted effectively with the trace of a rock and roll rumble. It’s arduous to think about, then, that this single was truly Williams’ semi-desperate try to comply with up the large recognition of “Lovesick Blues.”
Listen to “Long Gone Lonesome Blues” on Hank Williams’ 40 Greatest Hits.
Needless to say, it labored, bringing him again to the highest of the nation charts and within the realm of the large 78 and 45 gross sales to which he had turn into accustomed. He did so by mimicking a lot of the construction and aesthetic of “Lovesick Blues,” however with an extra layer of fairly morose poetry. Where “Lovesick Blues” wore its humor and self-deprecation on its sleeve, “Long Gone Lonesome Blues” spoke to a a lot deeper sort of despair – one which in the end finds the narrator hoping for his premature demise in a freezing river.
The recording
After toying round with the title for some time, Williams lastly completed the track throughout a fishing journey with songwriter Vic McAlpin; reportedly, McAlpin requested him if he was going to fish or watch the fish swim by – the supply of the track’s first line, and its subsequent river theme. The lament was recorded by Williams alongside his highway band in Nashville early in 1950, marking the primary time that Williams had recorded along with his personal band as a substitute of studio musicians in nearly three years. They play with understated polish, sitting again whereas Williams and his vocal fireworks virtually bounce by the mic.
The reception
“Long Gone Lonesome Blues” was profitable nearly instantly, quelling any anxieties Williams and his label might need had about his skill to recreate the magic he’d tapped into so effectively in years prior. Instead, its large enchantment “set the table for the unprecedented success he would enjoy until his death,” as biographer Colin Escott put it – the curler coaster was totally set in movement, with out even minor derailments, for higher or worse. Still a favourite of any singer seeking to flaunt their vocal prowess, the track additionally impressed Bruce Springsteen as he penned “The River”; listeners can hear that it has a few of the similar river imagery as Williams’ unique composition.
Listen to “Long Gone Lonesome Blues” on Hank Williams’ 40 Greatest Hits.