Hank Penny

Hank Penny ( born September 18, 1918 as the Herbert Clayton Penny in Birmingham, Alabama; † 17 April 1992) was an American country singer who was successful in the 1940s in California as a bandleader.

Life and work

Hank Penny began his musical career in 1936 in New Orleans. For a local radio station he worked as a soloist. His preference was for the Western Swing, which was popular in those years. In 1937 he returned to his hometown of Birmingham, Alabama, where he founded the band Radio Cowboys. 1938, the first record was released a short time later the band moved to Nashville. The Radio Cowboys broke up in the early 1940s, after several members had been drafted into the army.

At the invitation of Merle Travis Penny 1945 moved to California, where there is a vibrant country music scene was in those years that was dominated by bandleaders like Spade Cooley and Tex Ritter. After the Second World War was a boom in the dance halls; the carefree Western Swing flourished. Thanks to his friendship with Merle Travis Penny found connection quickly. Cooley and his manager allowed him in 1946, the compilation of his own band, the Penny Serenadas.

In addition to his regular appearances in the vast dance halls of the West Coast, he played a successful records. With Steel Guitar Stomp and Get Yourself A Redhead he was also placed in the top 10. As of 1950, the western swing trend abated, and Penny has focused more and more on radio appearances. In 1952 he married the singer Sue Thomson. Short term, he had his own TV show. In 1954, he moved to Las Vegas, where he appeared for seven years at the Golden Nugget; in his backing band played the jazz musician Arno Marsh. In the early 1970s he returned to Nashville for some time, before he sat down to rest in California.

Hank Penny, who always stood in the shadow of more famous colleagues like Spade Cooley or Merle Travis, died on April 17, 1992 of a heart attack.