"The Log Train" is a song written by American country music singer-songwriter
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 ...
in 1952.
Background
Along with "
Alone and Forsaken
"Alone and Forsaken" is a country song written and demoed (though never officially released at the time) by American musician Hank Williams. It has been since covered by many artists.
Background
Williams' recording of the song was taken from o ...
," "The Log Train" is one of Williams' few compositions that sounds more like a folk song than a country song, with its traditional ballad introduction, "If you will listen, a song I will sing..." Set in
Chapman, Alabama
Chapman is an unincorporated community in Butler County, Alabama, United States. Chapman is located on County Route 37, west-northwest of Georgiana. Chapman has a post office with ZIP code 36015.
History
Chapman is located on the former Louis ...
, the song is a biographical account of his father Lon's days as an engineer and was recorded at KWKH studio in
Shreveport
Shreveport ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Louisiana. It is the third most populous city in Louisiana after New Orleans and Baton Rouge, Louisiana, Baton Rouge, respectively. The Shreveport–Bossier City metropolitan area, with a population o ...
on December 3, 1952, just weeks before his death.
Williams' half sister Leila Griffin told ''
American Masters'' that Lon (to whom Hank bears a remarkable resemblance) married Hank's mother around 1918, but was injured in
France during
World War I, the experience having shattered him emotionally; he spent ten years in a V.A. hospital and likely influenced Williams more by his absence than anything else. According to the liner notes for the 1990
PolyGram
PolyGram N.V. was a multinational entertainment company and major music record label formerly based in the Netherlands. It was founded in 1962 as the Grammophon-Philips Group by Dutch corporation Philips and German corporation Siemens, to be a ...
retrospective ''Hank Williams: The Original Singles Collection'', the singer performed the song at a private gathering over
Christmas 1952 - a week before his death - and it was the last song anyone remembers hearing him sing.
References
1952 songs
Hank Williams songs
Songs written by Hank Williams
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