Hank Williams Lands Top Honor on Opry 100 List of Greatest Country Songs Ever

This month, country music’s most hallowed ground celebrates a full century of operation. Founded Nov. 28, 1925, by George D. Hay as the WSM Barn Dance, country music’s longest-running radio broadcast became known as the Grand Ole Opry two years later. The storied institution has celebrated this milestone all year long, most notably with a star-studded concert back in March. Now, the church of country music has unveiled its list of the genre’s top songs of all time. Unsurprisingly, Hank Williams is at the top… again.

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Celebrating a Century of Country Music

Hitting shelves Friday, Nov. 7, the double album Opry 100: Country’s Greatest Songs showcases a century of country music greatness. And of course, Ashley McBryde gets things started with her 2024 cover of the Hank Williams classic “Your Cheatin’ Heart.”

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On September 7, 2024, Opry member @ashleymcbryde stepped up to the microphone to sing “Your Cheatin’ Heart,” more than 70 years after Hank Williams first sang it. At that moment, she carried on a timeless Opry tradition—keeping the songs of the past alive for those in the audience that night and tuned in around the world. Listen to the live, never-before-released recording from Opry 100: Country’s Greatest Songs and order your copy at the link in bio! #Opry100

♬ original sound – Grand Ole Opry

Other tracks include Patsy Cline’s 1962 performance of “Crazy,” Loretta Lynn’s “Coal Miner’s Daughter” from 1985, and Carrie Underwood’s 2018 rendition of her breakout hit “Jesus, Take the Wheel.”

Hank Williams penned “Your Cheatin’ Heart” during a 1952 car ride from Nashville to Shreveport, Louisiana, He and fiancée Billie Jean Jones were headed to share the news of their engagement with her parents. After describing ex-wife Audrey Sheppard as a “cheatin’ heart,” Bocephus dictated the lyrics to Jones as he drove.

Sadly, Williams would never see the success of “Your Cheatin’ Heart.” The song came out at the end of January 1953, just mere weeks after his death at age 29.

[RELATED: 4 Country Stars Who Made It to the Grand Ole Opry Before They Turned 30]

Hank Williams Was a Fixture at the Grand Ole Opry (Until He Was Banned)

Hank Williams made his Opry debut on June 11, 1949, where he famously earned six encores. Unfortunately, a back injury he sustained after falling from a bull during a Texas rodeo only worsened as his career took off. Struggling with continuing pain and substance use issues, Williams’ frequent missed appearances at the Opry earned him the nickname “No-Show Hank.”

Williams’ no-show on Aug. 9, 1952, was the final straw for Opry manager Jim Denny, who fired the “Hey, Good Lookin’” crooner two days later. Although Denny had hoped to eventually reinstate him, that never happened, as he died of heart failure just five months later on New Year’s Day 1953.

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