Williams' early career definitely seemed to centre around his father's music. Williams first performed on stage by singing one of his father's songs when he was eight years old. In 1964, he made his recording debut with 'Long Gone Lonesome Blues', one of his father's many classic songs. Williams provided the singing voice of his father in the 1964 film 'Your Cheatin' Heart' and also recorded an album of duets with his father.
Williams' early career was guided, and to an extent dominated, by his mother, who is widely claimed as being the driving force that led his late father to musical superstar status during the late 1940s and early 1950s. Audrey promoted young Hank Jr. as a Hank Williams tribute act, even to the extent of having stage clothes designed for him that were identical to his father's, and encouraging vocal styles very similar to those of his father.
This all became too much for the young musician who eventually severed the ties with his mother in an attempt to find his own musical voice. By the mid-1970s Williams began to pursue a musical direction that would eventually make him a superstar. At the time of recording a series of moderately successful songs, Williams began a heavy pattern of both drug and alcohol abuse. Upon moving to Alabama, in an attempt to refocus both his creative energy and his troubled personal life, Williams began playing music with Southern rock musicians including Waylon Jennings, Toy Caldwell, and Charlie Daniels.
He has achieved huge commercial success on the US Country charts over his career, most notably a run of six albums released between 1984 and 1988 which all topped the chart. He has had countless wins and nominations at Academy of Country Music and the Grammy Awards.
Having grown up watching his father play bass in a local country band, Nichols was always around country music. After doing odd-jobs and working as a mechanic, Nichols met producer Randy Edwards, who encouraged Nichols to develop his songwriting skills.
At 19, he had signed with Intersound Records, releasing his self-titled first album in 1996. The album did not sell particularly well and Nichols was dropped from the label, moving to Giant Records before again leaving their roster. However, Nichols was soon to achieve better results, after singing to Universal South Records (Show Dog- Universal Music) in 1999.
In 2002, his second album, "Man With Memory" finally brought Nichols some success, with his lead single "The Impossible" reaching number three on the Billboard Hot County Songs Chart, being declared the tenth most-played country song of 2003 and certified Platinum. This release earned Nichols several awards, including three Grammy Award nominations and an award for Top new Male Vocalist from the Academy of Country Music. The second single, "Brokenheartsville," brought Nichols his first number one on the Billboard country charts, with two further singles entering the top 20.
Nichols proceeded to build on his success with his next three albums "Revelation" (2004), "III" (2005) and "Real Things" (2007), with hit singles "Tequila avers Her Clothes Fall Off," "What's a Guy Gotta Do" and "It Ain't No Crime," all breaking into the top 20 of the country charts.
Nichols' third number one single was "Gimme That Girl," released in 2010 on the album, "Old Things New." WIth his 2012 album, "Crickets," a more pop-orientated, upbeat affair, Nichols was again on top form, achieving two number one singles from the album."Sunny and 75" and "Yeah" both topped the country charts.
As the son of one of the all-time icons of the country genre, Hank Williams, it’s perhaps not surprising that Hank Williams Jr. would go on to follow on his father’s footsteps - to some extent, at least. He certainly can’t be accused of failing to put his own spin on the genre, or of simply trading off of his father’s name and songs; instead, he brought a rough and ready rock approach the country sound, one that’s often been described as ‘outlaw country’, or just lumped in with the hard southern rock sound that’s become so prominent on the U.S. rock scene these past few decades. Either way, there’s no question that Williams has been commercially successful as a result; he’s made no fewer than fifty-four studio albums, which overall have shifted in excess of thirty six million copies; his most recent full-length, Old School New Rules, dropped in 2012. He continues to tour the U.S. extensively, although his audience outside of his homeland is limited; his cult fanbase turn up to his shows for both the high-octane country rock that characterises them, and Williams’ now-infamous - but indeed customary - rants against President Barack Obama, a staple of the shows since he took office.
Joeg_67
Having not achieved the same dizzying commercial success of some of his peers, Joe Nichols has still done incredibly well in the US country charts whilst managing to maintain a likeable down to earth mentality. Since the beginning of his career nearly two decades ago he has amassed a loyal, large following who continue to sell out his tours in record numbers.
With an expert attainment of the country genre and a slick supportive band, Nichols goes about creating a setlist to appeal to all members of the audience which of course features hits such as 'Size Matters (Someday)' and 'The Impossible'. The audience remains responsive throughout the whole concert due to Joe's warm demeanour and likeable personality. He builds a rapport almost instantly and addresses the crowd as if he was chatting to an old friend.
Although modest, he is clearly confident in his abilities as he rapidly strums the introduction to 'Tequila Makes Her Clothes Fall Off' to the sound of huge cheers. The crowd supports him during the chorus and form a thousand strong choir as a thank you of sorts for such a wonderful evening of live music.
sean-ward
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