"Help Me Understand" is a song written by

Hank Williams Hank Williams (born Hiram Williams; September 17, 1923 – January 1, 1953) was an American singer, songwriter, and musician. Regarded as one of the most significant and influential American singers and songwriters of the 20th century, he reco ...

and released under the name " Luke the Drifter" on MGM Records in 1950.

Background

Williams' Luke the Drifter recordings were often characterized by bleak recitations and "Help Me Understand" is no exception, addressing the theme of

divorce Divorce (also known as dissolution of marriage) is the process of terminating a marriage or marital union. Divorce usually entails the canceling or reorganizing of the legal duties and responsibilities of marriage, thus dissolving the ...

and specifically the effect it has on the children growing up in broken homes. "One word led to another," Hank sings, "and the last word led to divorce," a line that would be all too prescient for the singer, who would be divorced from his wife Audrey Williams in 1951. Audrey actually cut the song for

Decca Decca may refer to: Music * Decca Records or Decca Music Group, a record label * Decca Gold, a classical music record label owned by Universal Music Group * Decca Broadway, a musical theater record label * Decca Studios, a recording facility in We ...

five months before Williams recorded it, and the pair would perform the song as a two-part piece; Hank would narrate while Audrey would sing the little girl's part, what country music historian Colin Escott deems "a rare occasion when her tuneless singing actually worked." Williams cut his version in

Nashville Nashville is the capital city of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the seat of Davidson County. With a population of 689,447 at the 2020 U.S. census, Nashville is the most populous city in the state, 21st most-populous city in the U.S., and the ...

on August 31, 1950 with Fred Rose producing. He was backed by

Jerry Rivers Jerry Rivers (August 25, 1928 – October 4, 1996) was an American fiddle player. Biography Jerry Rivers was born in Miami, Florida. He played fiddle with the Drifting Cowboys, a band who will be forever associated with their "frontman", the leg ...

(fiddle), Don Helms (steel guitar), Sammy Pruett (electric guitar),

Jack Shook Jack Shook (born Loren Shook; September 11, 1910 – September 23, 1986) was an American guitarist and a Grand Ole Opry star. He was a native of Decatur, Illinois. He was raised in Kansas and Missouri. He started at WSM, Nashville as a staff musi ...

(rhythm guitar), Ernie Newton or Howard Watts (bass) and

Owen Bradley William Owen Bradley (October 21, 1915 – January 7, 1998) was an American musician and record producer who, along with Chet Atkins, Bob Ferguson, Bill Porter, and Don Law, was one of the chief architects of the 1950s and 1960s Nashville sou ...

or Fred Rose (organ). David Allan Coe covered the song on his 1997 LP ''The Ghost of Hank Williams''.

References

{{authority control 1950 singles Hank Williams songs Songs written by Hank Williams Song recordings produced by Fred Rose (songwriter) MGM Records singles 1950 songs