I'm So Lonesome I Could Cry
Hank Williams' 1949 country classic, widely covered.
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Samuel Hopkins Adams · Public domain
"I'm So Lonesome I Could Cry" is a song written and recorded by American country music singer-songwriter Hank Williams in 1949. It was released as the B-side to the blues "My Bucket's Got a Hole in It" and reached number four on the country chart that year. The song has been covered by a wide range of musicians and is widely regarded as a classic American song.
Background
Hank Williams wrote and recorded "I'm So Lonesome I Could Cry" on August 30, 1949, at Herzog Studio in Cincinnati, Ohio. He was backed by members of the Pleasant Valley Boys: Zeke Turner (lead guitar), Jerry Byrd (steel guitar), Louis Innis (rhythm guitar), Tommy Jackson (fiddle), and Ernie Newton (bass). Williams originally intended the words to be spoken rather than sung, as he had done on several of his Luke the Drifter recordings. According to Colin Escott's 2004 book, the inspiration for the song came from the title of a different song Williams spotted on a list of forthcoming MGM record releases.
There is a disputed claim that 21-year-old Kentuckian Paul Gilley wrote the lyrics and sold them to Williams, allowing Williams to take credit. Gilley supposedly also wrote lyrics to "Cold, Cold Heart" and other hit country songs before drowning at age 27. These claims have not been widely accepted.
The song was released as a B-side because up-tempo numbers were deemed more appropriate for jukebox trade than melancholy ballads. It reached number four on the country chart in 1949.
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Sources
Compiled from Wikipedia and the sources listed below. Text from Wikipedia is available under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is adapted from it.
- Wikipedia: I'm So Lonesome I Could Cry (CC BY-SA 4.0).
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