On This Day in 1950, Hank Williams Recorded One of Only Two Career Hits To Feature the Drums

On this very day in the year 1950, the incomparable country music pioneer Hank Williams recorded the legendary song, “Moanin’ The Blues”. The song was recorded during a session at Castle Studio in Nashville. 

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The song would go on to become Williams’ fourth No. 1 single with MGM Records, and it’s also a neat little piece of music history. “Moanin’ The Blues” is one of the very few Hank Williams tunes to feature the drums. The vast majority of Williams’ music featured stripped-down recordings with little more than his voice and a series of guitar tracks, fiddles, and bass. The only other song in Williams’ discography to feature the drums is “Kaw-Liga” from 1952.

“Moanin’ The Blues” Was a Big Deal in the Country & Western Music World in 1950

“Moanin’ The Blues” was famously recorded in Nashville at Castle Studio, with Fred Rose producing the track. The song, at least in terms of recording, is a bit of an eternal mystery in the country world.

To start, the song features one of only two songs from Hank Williams’ career to feature percussion, namely the drums. It’s not clear what possessed Williams to feature a rare drum line in the song, considering the vast majority of his other works lacked percussion entirely.

The second mystery surrounding “Moanin’ The Blues” comes down to the personnel involved. It’s not entirely clear who is on the track. We do know that Hank Williams sings, Jerry Rivers plays the fiddle, Don Helms plays the steel guitar, and Sammy Pruett plays the electric guitar. However, the other musicians on the song are a bit of a mystery. 

It is believed that either Ernie Newton or Cedric Rainwater (real name Howard Watts) played the bass. Either Fred Rose or Owen Bradley played the organ. It’s a real mystery when it comes to the drums. It’s possible that Farris Coursey played the drums on “Moanin’ The Blues”, but music historians don’t know for certain. Just as well, it is unclear if Jack Shook is playing the rhythm guitar on the track, though it was likely him.

“Moanin’ The Blues” became a hefty hit upon its release, and it has been covered countless times through the years. Hank Williams Jr. famously recorded his father’s song in 1963. Merle Haggard and Charley also took on the song in the 70s and 80s. And, probably most famously, Hank Williams III recorded a “duet” of the song with his grandfather via overdubs in 1996.

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