Hear that lonesome whippoorwill
He sounds too blue to fly
That means he’s lost the will to live
I’m so lonesome I could cry
Did you ever see a night so slow
As time goes draggin’ by
The moon just went behind the cloudsTo hide its face and cry
The silence of a falling star
Lights up a purple sky
And as I wonder where you are
I’m so lonesome I could cry
Written in 1949, this lullingly poignant song was a Hank Williams great.
The Alabaman Hank Williams (1923-1953), one of the most popular country music singer/songwriters in America, produced songs like Cold, Cold Heart, Your Cheatin’ Heart, Hey, Good Lookin’ and I‘ll Never Get Out of This World Alive.
As his song titles suggest, Williams experienced heartbreak and turmoil throughout his life. As he became successful, his addiction to alcohol and opiates deepened.
On his way to an Ohio concert in the back seat of his 1952 powder blue Cadillac he fell silent for several hours. Concerned, at 5:30 in the morning, his driver pulled over in Oak Hill, West Virginia and found Hank Williams dead.