THE 1000 BEST SONGS IN THE WORLD EVER.

555- Hank Williams With His Drifting Cowboys-Jambalaya (On the Bayou)

1952-It has never charted in the UK.

Best Bit-At 0.30. A Jambalaya is a Creole rice dish of West African, French, and Spanish influence, consisting mainly of meat and vegetables mixed with rice, but what the hell am I going on about, this is a music countdown, not a recipe pamphlet.

Hank Williams was born Hiram King Williams, on September 17th, 1923, in Mount Olive, Butler County, Alabama, United States, he died from the causes of alcohol abuse, and prescription drugs, on January 1st, 1953, at the age of 29. Williams had been born with ‘Spina Bifida occulta,’ a defect of the spinal column, which had given him lifelong pain. Williams parents were both followers of ‘Freemasonry,’ and had named their son ‘Hiram 1,’ after a king in the Hebrew Bible, however his name was misspelled on the birth certificate. Although dying at a young age Hank Williams is regarded as one of the most significant and influential American singers and songwriters of the 20th Century, and a great influence in the development of ‘Country and Western Music.’ Artists whom he inspired include Bob Dylan, Elvis Presley, and Jerry Lee Lewis. Williams was inducted into the ‘Country Music Hall of Fame,’ in 1961, then the ‘Songwriters Hall of Fame,’ in 1970, and the ‘Rock and Roll Hall of Fame,’ in 1987, and then in 1999 he was given a star on the ‘Hollywood Walk of Fame.’ In 2010, he was posthumously awarded a ‘Pulitzer Prize Special Citation,’ for his ‘Craftsmanship as a songwriter who expressed universal feelings with poignant simplicity and played a pivotal role in transforming Country Music into a major musical and cultural force in American life.’

The discography of Hank Williams, who wrote or co-wrote in excess of 167 songs, includes 12 studio Albums released between 1951-2009, 10 of which were issued after his death. There are also 25 official compilation Albums, and eight live Albums, all released posthumously. Hank Williams released 41 singles during his lifetime, (1947-1952) with a further 30 (1953-1996) being issued after his death. In America on Billboard, he has charted twice on the Hot 100, top 40, with ‘Lovesick Blues,’ reaching Number 24 in 1949, and ‘Jambalaya (On the Bayou’) peaking at Number 20 in 1952. Hank Williams found his greatest commercial success on the American Billboard ‘Hot Country Songs’ chart, where 41 of his singles reached that charts top 40, with 11 of those tracks including ‘Jambalaya (On the Bayou’) reaching the Number 1 position, while in the UK, none of his songs have ever reached the top 40 singles chart.

‘Jambalaya (On the Bayou’) was co-written by Hank Williams, and Moon Mullican, (1909-1967) with both artists releasing their respective versions of the song in July 1952. Because Mullican was under contract to ‘King Records’ at that time, he was not credited as a co-writer, meaning he wouldn’t have to pay royalty’s to the record label. Moon Mullican was born Aubrey Wilson Mullican, on March 29th, 1909, in Polk County, Texas, United States, on New Years Eve 1966 he suffered a heart attack, and died early in the morning on January 1st, 1967, at the age of 57. Mullican acquired the nickname ‘Moon’ in the early 1930’s, with some sources suggesting that it was short for ‘moonshine,’ and some attributing it to his all night performances. His family say it was because he loved to play ‘Shoot the Moon,’ which is a variation of the dominoes game ’42.’ It is also highly suspected that the widely popular syndicated comic strip ‘Moon Mullins,’ which debuted in 1923, played a role in the similar nickname, and alliteration sticking to Mullican. Moon Mullican who was also nicknamed ‘King of the Hillbilly Piano Players,’ was associated with the ‘Hillbilly Boogie’ style which influenced ‘Rockabilly’ music, which led to the onset of ‘Rock and Roll.’ Jerry Lee Lewis (1935-2022) (see also best songs 678-362 and 99) cited Mullican as a major influence on his own singing and piano playing. Moon Mullican was once quoted as saying,’We gotta play music that’ll make them goddamn beer bottles bounce on the table.’

Hank Williams, and Moon Mullican based the melody to ‘Jambalaya (On the Bayou’) on an old Cajun song called ‘Grand Texas,’ but whereas that songs lyrics tell of a lost love, where the narrator is left by his woman for another, ‘Jambalaya (On the Bayou’) is about celebration. The Narrator attends a party with his girlfriend Yvonne, where he is introduced to her family, as a possible future husband. At the party they are treated to Cajun cuisine, notably Jambalaya, crawfish pie, and file gumbo. Other notable hit versions of the song include, Jo Stafford, (1952-Billboard Number 3 & UK Number 11) Fats Domino, (1961-Billboard Number 30) John Fogerty under the name of the ‘Blue Ridge Rangers,’ (1973-Number 16) and The Carpenters (1973-UK Number 12.)

‘Thibodaux, Fontaineaux, the place is buzzin’, a kinfolk come to see Yvonne by the dozen. Dressed in style they go hog wild, me oh my oh, son of a gun, we’ll have big fun on the bayou.’