Throughout the course of music history, we’ve lost countless bright and talented musicians to fatal plane crashes. Buddy Holly’s demise was later dubbed the “Day the Music Died” by Don McLean. Otis Redding’s last flight prevented him from recording a final verse to “Sittin’ On the Dock of the Bay”. Patsy Cline’s plane went down in the woods of Camden, Tennessee, in 1963. But just like Holly and Redding’s flights, there were more stars on board Cline’s flight than just the “Crazy” singer.
Videos by American Songwriter
On December 22, 1921, one of those unfortunate musicians riding in the Piper Comanche that fateful spring was born. Nicknamed after a popular comic strip and called “Eleven Yards of Personality” due to his oversized charisma and 6-foot-5 frame, Hawkshaw Hawkins was at the peak of his career when he boarded his last plane ride with Cline and Cowboy Copas.
(Ironically, the musicians were headed home after performing a benefit for a disc jockey who died in an automobile accident.)
Hawkshaw Hawkins Was a Post-WWII Success, but His First No. 1 Hit Was Posthumous
Hawkshaw Hawkins, born Harold Hawkins on December 22, 1921, in Huntington, West Virginia, was a Grand Ole Opry member. He was also the husband of Jean Shepard, whom many cite as the first major female country star. He earned the nickname Hawkshaw after the titular detective of a popular comic strip at the time, after helping his neighbor locate missing fishing rods. Hawkins had already begun dipping his toes in the music industry when he joined the U.S. Army in 1943 to fight during World War II. The future country star fought in the Battle of the Bulge and earned four service stars.
After returning from the war, Hawkins enjoyed Top 10 successes with tracks like “Pan American”, “Dog House Boogie”, “Slow Poke”, and “Sunny Side of the Mountain”. His last single was “Lonesome 7-7203”, which he released three days before a fatal plane crash would take his life and the lives of Patsy Cline, fellow musician Cowboy Copas, and the pilot, Randy Hughes. Hawkshaw was survived by his wife, Jean Shepard. She was pregnant with the couple’s second son, Harold Franklin Hawkins Jr., their older daughter, Susan Marlene, and their first son, Donnie. Shepard gave birth to Hawkins’ namesake one month after his death.
As is often the case when a musician dies, Hawkins’ passing caused a spike in popularity for his final single, earning him a posthumous No. 1 hit, the first of his career, in the weeks following the crash.
Photo by Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images
Leave a Reply
Only members can comment. Become a member. Already a member? Log in.