I'll Never Get Out of This World Alive

Last updated
"I'll Never Get Out of This World Alive"
Single by Hank Williams With His Drifting Cowboys
B-side "I Could Never Be Ashamed of You"
PublishedOctober 6, 1952 (1952-10-06) by Milene Music [1]
ReleasedNovember 1952 (1952-11)
RecordedJune 13, 1952 (1952-06-13) [2]
Studio Castle Studio, Nashville
Genre Country & Western, Honky-tonk, Country blues
Length2:25
Label MGM 11366
Songwriter(s) Hank Williams, Fred Rose
Hank Williams With His Drifting Cowboys singles chronology
"Settin' the Woods on Fire"
(1952)
"I'll Never Get Out of This World Alive"
(1952)
"Kaw-Liga"
(1953)

"I'll Never Get Out of This World Alive" is a song written by Fred Rose and American country music singer-songwriter Hank Williams, released by Williams in 1952.

Contents

Background

The song was the last single to be released during Williams' lifetime. Co-writer Fred Rose, who died a year after the song's release, played a critical role in the development of Williams' songwriting; as Colin Escott points out, it was up to Rose "to separate the gold from the dross and work with Hank to transform the best ideas into integrated, complete statements, taut with commercial logic. If Rose contributed substantially, as he did on "A Mansion on the Hill" and later "Kaw-Liga," he took half-credit; if he simply doctored Hank's songs, he didn't take a share. Rose knew that he would get the publisher's half of the royalty, and there is consensus that he was not a greedy man."

Entrance marker of the Oakwood Annex Cemetery in Montgomery, Alabama Hank Williams Memorial Montgomery Alabama.JPG
Entrance marker of the Oakwood Annex Cemetery in Montgomery, Alabama

Meant to be a humorous song, as evidenced by its ironic title and chorus, the composition took on additional poignancy following Williams' death early in the first hours of January 1953. Williams recorded the song at Castle Studio in Nashville on June 13, 1952, with backing provided by Jerry Rivers (fiddle), Don Helms (steel guitar), Chet Atkins (lead guitar), Chuck Wright (bass) and probably Ernie Newton (bass). [3] Atkins recalled later, "We recorded 'I'll Never Get Out of this World Alive' and after each take, he'd sit down in a chair. I remember thinking, 'Hoss, you're not jivin',' because he was so weak that all he could do was just sing a few lines, and then just fall in the chair." [4]

Chart performance

"I'll Never Get Out of This World Alive" reached No. 1 on the Billboard Country Singles chart posthumously in January 1953.

Hank Williams version

YearChartPosition
1952 Billboard Country Singles [5] 1

Cover versions

The song has been covered by artists such as

In other media

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hank Williams</span> American singer, songwriter, and musician (1923–1953)

Hiram "Hank" Williams was an American singer-songwriter. He is regarded as one of the most significant and influential American singers and songwriters of the 20th century. Williams recorded 55 singles that reached the top 10 of the Billboard Country & Western Best Sellers chart, five of which were released posthumously, and 12 of which reached No.1.

"Jambalaya (On the Bayou)" is a song written and recorded by American country music singer Hank Williams that was first released in July 1952. It is Williams' most recorded song. Named for a Creole and Cajun dish, jambalaya, it spawned numerous recordings and has since achieved popularity in several different music genres.

"Half as Much" is an American pop standard song written by Curley Williams in 1951. It was recorded by country music singer Hank Williams in 1952 and reached number two on the Billboard Country Singles chart.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hey, Good Lookin' (song)</span> 1951 song written and recorded by Hank Williams

"Hey, Good Lookin'" is a 1951 song written and recorded by Hank Williams, and his version was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame in 2001. In 2003, CMT voted the Hank Williams version No. 19 on CMT's 100 Greatest Songs of Country Music. Since its original 1951 recording it has been covered by a variety of artists.

"I'm So Lonesome I Could Cry" is a song written and recorded by American country music singer-songwriter Hank Williams in 1949. The song has been covered by a wide range of musicians.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kaw-Liga</span> 1952 song by Hank Williams and Fred Rose

"Kaw-Liga" is a country music song written by Hank Williams and Fred Rose.

"Honky Tonk Blues" was a hit country and western song written and performed by Hank Williams. The original 1952 recording was a major hit, and it later became a hit for Charley Pride.

"Why Don't You Love Me" is a song by American singer and guitarist Hank Williams. The song reached number one on the U.S. Country & Western chart. It was released as a single in 1950 with the B-side, "A House Without Love".

"Long Gone Lonesome Blues" is a 1950 song by Hank Williams. It was Williams' second number-one single on the Country & Western chart. "Long Gone Lonesome Blues" stayed on the charts for 21 weeks, with five weeks at the top.

"Take These Chains from My Heart" is a song by Hank Williams. It was written by Fred Rose and Hy Heath and was recorded at Williams' final recording session on September 23, 1952, in Nashville. The song has been widely praised; Williams' biographer Colin Escott deems it "perhaps the best song [Rose] ever presented to Hank...It was one of the very few songs that sounded somewhat similar to a Hank Williams song." Williams is backed by Tommy Jackson (fiddle), Don Helms, Chet Atkins, Jack Shook, and Floyd "Lightnin'" Chance (bass). In the wake of Williams' death on New Year's Day, 1953, the song shot to No. 1, his final chart-topping hit for MGM Records. Like "Your Cheatin' Heart," the song's theme of despair, so vividly articulated by Williams' typically impassioned singing, reinforced the image of Hank as a tortured, mythic figure.

"You Win Again" is a 1952 song by Hank Williams. In style, the song is a blues ballad and deals with the singer's despair with his partner. The song has been widely covered, including versions by Ray Charles, Jerry Lee Lewis, Roy Orbison, the Grateful Dead, Charley Pride, Bob Dylan, and the Rolling Stones.

"Honky Tonkin'" is a 1947 country music song, written and recorded by Hank Williams. His song went to #14 on the Billboard country music chart in 1948. In 1982, it became the sixth chart topping single for Williams' son, Hank Williams Jr.

"Lost Highway" is a country music song written and recorded by blind country singer-songwriter Leon Payne in 1948. It was released in October 1948 on Nashville-based Bullet label.

"Settin' the Woods on Fire" was the A-side of a single by Hank Williams, released in September 1952. The song reached number 2 on U.S. Billboard Most Played by Jockeys chart and number 2 on the National Best Sellers chart.

"A Mansion on the Hill" is a song written by Hank Williams and Fred Rose and originally recorded by Williams on MGM Records. It peaked at No. 12 on the Most Played Jukebox Folk Records chart in March 1949.

"My Son Calls Another Man Daddy" is a song written by Jewell House and made famous by country star Hank Williams, who released the song in 1950.

"I Won't Be Home No More" is a song recorded by Hank Williams on July 11, 1952. It was released posthumously on MGM Records a year later in July 1953. The song climbed to No. 4 on the US Billboard National Best Sellers chart.

"(I Heard That) Lonesome Whistle" is a song written by Hank Williams and Jimmie Davis. It became his fourteenth consecutive Top 10 single in 1951.

"I Could Never Be Ashamed of You" is a song written and recorded by Hank Williams. It was released as the B-side of "I'll Never Get Out of This World Alive" on MGM Records in November 1952.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">A Home in Heaven</span> 1956 single by Hank Williams & Audrey Williams

"A Home in Heaven" is a hymn written by Hank Williams and recorded as a duet with his wife Audrey Williams. It was released as a single on MGM Records in 1956.

References

  1. "U.S. Copyright Office Virtual Card Catalog 1946-1954". vcc.copyright.gov. Retrieved 2021-09-09.
  2. "Hank Williams 78rpm Issues". jazzdiscography.com. Retrieved 2021-09-23.
  3. Escott, Merritt & MacEwen 2004, p. 347.
  4. Escott, Merritt & MacEwen 2004, p. 132.
  5. Whitburn, Joel (2004). The Billboard Book Of Top 40 Country Hits: 1944-2006, Second edition. Record Research. p. 387.
  6. "The Delta Rhythm Boys - Inductees - The Vocal Group Hall of Fame Foundation". 5 January 2012. Archived from the original on 2012-01-05. Retrieved 1 May 2021.

Bibliography