Hank Snow
Hank Snow ( born May 9, 1914 in Brooklyn in Liverpool, Nova Scotia, Canada, † December 20, 1999 in Madison, Tennessee, real name Clarence Eugene Snow) was a Canadian country singer whose career began in the mid-1930s and almost five decades survived. His greatest success was the "Singing Ranger" in the 1950s, his most famous hit was I'm Movin 'On.
- 2.1 albums
- 2.2 Singles ( selection)
Life
Hank Snow grew up in located in the easternmost province of Canada Nova Scotia. His childhood was happy only in the first eight years, then his parents divorced. After re- marriage of his mother started an embossed by his violent stepfather period of suffering. At the age of twelve years, Hank left his home and worked as a cabin boy on a freighter. Four years later he returned to the Maritime his back and took a series of odd jobs to land. To 1929 he first heard the records of Jimmie Rodgers and was instantly intrigued. He bought a cheap mail-order guitar and began to act out the songs from his new idol.
In 1933 he moved to the provincial capital, Halifax. It was the time of the Great Depression and survival as an unskilled worker was difficult. Snow took every opportunity to ( unpaid ) musical performances. Finally, he managed to stay with a local radio station as " Hank, The Yodelling Ranger". However, his financial situation was desperate poor, and he lived for a time on public support. In 1936 he married Minnie Blanch Aalders. In the same year he applied to RCA Victor for a sound platform contract. On 29 October, the first recording session was conducted in Montreal.
His first single, the self-composed songs Prisoned Cowboy / Lonesome Blue Yodel, was not a success. In the next recording session in late 1937 more songs for the Canadian market were produced. His reputation grew steadily, the distances of his publications were shorter. He got his own radio show at a supra-regional stations in Montreal and later in Brunswick. Trying to get a foothold in the U.S., proved to be difficult. A first attempt in Hollywood failed in 1947. Was not until two years later, the first record of Hank Snow appeared in the United States. Meanwhile, he had to be inspired by Jimmie Rodgers Blue Yodeling filed and entered as the " Singing Ranger " on.
Career
End of the 1940 Ernest Tubb was aware of the young Canadians and gave him an appearance at the Grand Ole Opry. However, he could not at first the audience to convince. It was only when he with Marriage Vow achieved a ranking in the country top 10 end of 1949, the spell was broken. The breakthrough came in a little later with the self- written song I'm Movin 'On, which could hold almost half a year at the top of the country charts. 1951 followed by the number 1 hits The Golden Rocket and The Rhumba Boogie. In part, the success of his backing band was thanks to Rainbow Ranch Boys, who worked until the end of 1956 for him and contributed significantly to a unique sound.
Hank Snow's success continued until the mid- 1950s. The biggest hit at this time was 1954 I Do not Hurt Anymore. Short term he became the promoter of a young country singer named Elvis Presley. In these years, the country music came through the outshining success of rock'n'roll into the deepest crisis in its history. In response, the Nashville Sound was developed by an approach to the pop music, the commercial survival could be saved with the. Snow had problems adjusting to the new situation. His half-hearted Rockabillyaufnahmen sounded unconvincing, and also with the Nashville sound, he could not make friends. Inevitably eased its sales figures, even though he was still in the charts. In 1962 he again succeeded with I've Been Everywhere, a number - one hit, followed by the Single Down A Dead End Street, which was also placed at number two. It was mainly his appearances at the Grand Ole Opry, which kept him in the public eye.
Somewhat surprisingly, in 1974 he succeeded ( after 38 years in the music business ) with Hello Love, another number - one hit. It was his last big single success. Thereafter, he focused on the production of long-playing records and performances at the Grand Ole Opry. In 1978 he was elected to the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame and a year later in the Country Music Hall of Fame. In the German-speaking world in the late 1970s, he won unexpectedly in popularity after the Hamburger country band Truck Stop with the song " I'd like ' so like Dave Dudley hör'n " ( ... Hank Snow, and Charley Pride ... ) a large hit had.
1981 RCA released him against his will ( after 45 years ) from the recording contract. In addition to his appearances at the Grand Ole Opry, he became involved in social issues. The bitter experiences of his childhood memories, he founded an organization against the abuse of children. In 1974 he wrote his autobiography, "The Hank Snow Story".
Hank Snow, the Singing Ranger, died on 20 December 1999 at the age of 85 years.
Discography
Albums
Singles ( selection)
Awards and honors
- Inclusion in the Canadian Country Music Hall of Fame
- 1978: Nashville Songwriters inclusion in the Hall of Fame
- 1979: Admission into the Country Music Hall of Fame
- 1994: Honorary doctorate from the Saint Mary's University Halifax
- 1997: Nova Scotia admission to the Country Music Hall of Fame